The “Adventist” view of “the law” is a plain contradiction of Bible teaching! People today are not under any part of the Old Testament.

        The ten commandments are included in the list of those things which were abolished / done away with!
        2) The letter to the Galatians was written to warn of false teachers who were trying to take away the freedom which Christians have in Jesus Christ. They wanted to bring them into slavery to the Law of Moses (Gal. 2:4; Gal. 5:1). The Law of Moses was given 450 years after God’s promise to Abraham (Gal. 3:17). The Law of Moses, which included the ten commandments, was given until the “Seed” (Christ) should come (Gal. 3:19). The Law of Moses was a “tutor” to bring the Israelites to “the faith” in Christ (Gal. 3:24-25). But after the faith had come (the New Testament books), the Israelites were no longer under a tutor (the Law of Moses).
        3) In Romans 7, the apostle Paul says that Christians are “dead to the law” (Rom. 7:4). He also says that we have been “delivered from the law” (v.6). The law we are dead to said “thou shalt not covet” (v.7). This is one of the ten commandments. It means the law we are dead to and discharged from is the law that contained the ten commandments. The tenth commandment is: “Thou shalt not covet” (Exodus 20:17).
        4) Jeremiah 31:31-34 is a prophecy regarding the Law which included the ten commandments: “Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt...” In Hebrews 8:8-13, we see the fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy. The covenant that God made with Israel and Judah when He led them out of Egypt was the Law given at Mt. Sinai — the ten commandments, written on two tables of stone (Exodus 20). The writer of Hebrews says: “...if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second” (Heb. 8:7). Note also that the sabbath was made known to Isael at Mt. Sinai, not at the creation as the Adventists argue (Nehemiah 9:13-14).
        5) Paul wrote to the Christians in Colossae that “...the handwriting of ordinances...” [a direct reference to the ten commandments] “...was against us, which was contrary to us...” and that Jesus “...took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross” (Col. 2:14).
        6) After Paul told the Christians in Colossae that the “handwriting of ordinances” was nailed to the cross, he instructed them: “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come...” (Col. 2:16-17). These passages clearly teach that remembering the sabbath is not binding on anyone today, nor has it ever been binding on Christians. It was only for the people of Israel, beginning at Mt Sinai (Deut. 5:1-3; Jer. 31:31-34; Neh. 9:13-14) and ending when Christ died on the cross (Col. 2:14; Heb. 8:6-13).
        When Christ came and established the New Law (New Testament), ALL the law of Moses, which included the ten commandments, was done away. Notice what the following passages say of the law Moses delivered to the Israelites at Mt. Sinai: 1) it was made old, 2) it was decayed, 3) it vanished away (Heb. 8:13), 4) it was changed (Heb. 7:12), 5) it was disannulled, 6) it was weak, 7) it was unprofitable (Heb. 7:18), 8) it was only a shadow (Heb. 10:1), 9) it was taken away (Heb. 10:9-10), 10) it was blotted out, 11) it was nailed to the cross (Col. 2:14), 12) it was simply a schoolmaster/tutor to bring (escort) men to Christ, and as a result we are no longer under it (Gal. 3:25).
        What more would God have to say to convince people that the Old Testament Law is no longer binding? The entire system of the Old Testament has been replaced with the New Testament system. This was exactly God’s plan all along. Even when the old law was given, it was only temporary. It was never intended to be permanent (Deut. 15:18-19; Acts 3:23-24). All this being true, “Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator” (Gal. 3:19).
        (7) It is wrong to go to the Old Testament to support a doctrine when we clearly live under the New Testament today. In fact, Paul said those who seek to be justified by the Old Law “are fallen from grace” (Gal. 5:4).
        Seventh Day Adventists also forbid the eating of certain foods. This is a clear violation of 1 Timothy 4:1-5 which teaches that all foods are good to eat if they are received with thanksgiving. Too, they teach the false doctrine called “soul sleeping” which is contrary to the Lord’s teaching in Luke 16:19-31. In addition to these other false doctrines, they deny eternal punishment, but the Bible clearly teaches it (Matt. 3:12; 25:46).
        The church of the Bible was established by Jesus Christ (Matt. 16:18), not Ellen G. White. It began in Jerusalem, not Battle Creek, Michigan (Acts 2)! It was established in 33 AD, not in 1863. The church of the Bible is known as “the churches of Christ” not “the Seventh Day Adventist Church” (Rom. 16:16). Which one of the two is from God? The one that bears the Lord’s name!
        There were many Christians long before Ellen G. White claimed to have her revelations from God. There has never been a need for anything but the Gospel to save us from our sins (Rom. 1:16). Long before Ellen G. White was born, the apostle Peter wrote that God has given us “all things that pertain unto life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3). We do not need Ellen G. White or any of her so-called revelations to be saved. Nor do we need the Seventh Day Adventist Church. The church of Christ was in existence 1,800 years before the Seventh Day Adventist Church.
        We can obey the simple Gospel which was preached in the first century and we can be added by the Lord to the church which He Himself built (Matt. 16:18; Acts 2:36-47). Are you willing to study about it, come to the knowledge of the truth on it, and then obey the truth?
                Edited by Garland M. Robinson
               
               


Table of Contents

        Sabbatarians believe strongly that the day of worship is Saturday (the seventh day of the week), not Sunday (the first day of the week). There are dozens of such groups such as Seventh Day Adventists, the Worldwide Church of God, and others. They go to great lengths to defend their observance of the sabbath (seventh day of the week). They appeal to the Old Testament book of Exodus and read from chapter 20 verse 8: “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.”
        They claim that man, not God, changed the day of worship from the seventh day to the first day. They twist the Old Testament (and the New Testament) in an effort to make it appear that Sabbath keeping was given to Adam and Eve and has never been rescinded or removed; therefore, it is still binding to this very day upon Christians and the world. However, the order to keep (observe) the Sabbath was not made known until the children of Israel left Egyptian bondage and received the ten commandments at Mt. Sinai. Even then, we learn the ten commandments were only given to the Israelites that were present on that occasion — not their ancestors or the rest of the world. “And Moses called all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and keep, and do them. The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. [Sinai] The LORD made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day” (Deut. 5:1-3).
        Deuteronomy 5:1-3 says the covenant (the ten commandments), which included keeping the sabbath, was made with Israel. Verse three says it was NOT made with their “fathers“, i.e., their ancestors, those who came before them such as Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This extended all the way back to even Adam and Eve. It was not made with any other people in the world that were not present at Mt. Sinai when the Law (two tables of stone) were given to them. It was made with the children of Israel and only with the children of Israel. That being the case, it obviously did not include the Gentiles.
        This very point is made abundantly clear, not only in Deuteronmy, but also in Nehemiah chapter nine. When the children of Israel returned from Babylonian captivity, they confessed their sins in returning to God. Nehemiah reminds them of their history. He speaks of: 1) Abraham coming into Canaan, 2) the children of Israel’s bondage in Egypt, and 3) their deliverance from that land. He reminds them of when they received the Law of Moses (the ten commandments) and tells them that God came “...down also upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and commandments: And madest known unto them [children of Israel] thy [God’s] holy sabbath, and commandedst them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses thy servant” (Neh. 9:13-14).
        The order for man to keep the sabbath (the day God rested from His work of creation, Gen. 2:2-3), had never been given before Mt. Sinai (there’s no record of it). It was there (Mt. Sinai) that God made known to the children of Israel that he wanted them to remember the Sabbath day.
        Since the Old Testament Law (the Law of Moses, the ten commandments) was “nailed to the cross” (Col. 2:14), it is no longer valid today. Galatians 3:25 says the Jews are no longer under it, nor is anyone else! It has been replaced with a New Law. The Law of Christ replaced the Old Law of Moses.
        In the New Testament, we learn of:

1. A new, better, covenant/law (Heb. 8:6; 10:9-10; Jer. 31:31-34; Heb. 8:6-13).
2. New ordinances — commandments, the apostles’ doctrine (1 Cor. 11:2; Acts 2:41),
3. New law giver, mediator (Matt. 17:5; Phil. 2:10; Heb. 9:15; 8:6; 12:24),
4. A new, more excellent, glorious ministry, service (Heb. 8:6; 2 Cor. 3:7-11),
5. A new institution — the church of Christ (Eph. 1:20-23; Col. 1:18; 2:10),
6. A new place of worship — the church of Christ (Eph. 3:21),
7. A new day of worship — the first day of the week (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:1-2),
8. New words to express the new day &# 151“Lord’s Day,” “Lord’s Table,” “Communion” (Rev. 1:10; 1 Cor. 10:16-21).
9. A new worship — in spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24),
10. A new organization (shepherds, overseers, elders) to see to it that what is done is done according to God’s Word (Acts 14:23; 20:28; Heb. 13:17),
11. A new work, the great commission of preaching the Gospel to the whole world (Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 16:15-16),
12. New terms of entrance into the fellowship of God: Hear the Lord’s words (John 6:45), Believe in Jesus the Christ the only begotten Son of God (John 8:24), Repent of sins (Luke 13:3,5), Confess faith in Christ (Acts 8:37), Baptized into Christ to have sins washed away (Acts 2:38; 22:16),
13. A new name, Christians (Acts 11:26; Isa. 62:2),
14. A new high priest, Jesus the Christ (Heb. 4:14-15; 7:11),
15. A new priesthood, Christians (1 Peter 2:9; Rev. 1:6),
16. A new realm/sphere of worship — spiritual in nature (John 18:36; 1 Peter 2:5).

1. Jesus rose from the dead (Mark 16:1-9; Luke 24:1, 13,21,46).
2. Jesus was declared to be the Son of God (Rom. 1:4),
3. Jesus met with his disciples repeatedly after his resurrection (John 20:1,19,26),
4. Pentecost was always on the first day of the week (Lev. 23:15),
5. The apostles received the baptism of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4),
6. The church began (Acts 2),
7. The Gospel was preached for the first time (Acts 2:14-40),
8. Three thousand people (the firstfruits of the new church harvest, Lev. 23:17), obeyed the Gospel and were added to the church (Acts 2:41,47),
9. The church assembles to worship (Acts 20:7; 2:42, 1 Cor. 16:2; 11:2; Heb. 10:25),
10. The church partakes of the Lord’s supper, a memorial of Christ’s suffering and death on the cross (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 11:23-29).
11. Christians give an offering as they have been prospered (1 Cor. 16:1-2).

If the sabbath had been intended for all the world to keep, it could not have been a sign of Israel’s distinction. Jesus fulfilled the law and “took it out of the way” — with it went the observance of the sabbath.

        Mark tells two stories, back to back, of Jesus and the sabbath. They come at the end of Mark chapter two and at the beginning of Mark chapter three. They begin peaceful enough, with Jesus walking with his disciples through a field of grain on a sabbath morning (Mark 2:23), but they end with the Pharisees and the Herodians taking counsel together how they might destroy Jesus (Mark 3:6). To understand their anger, we need to understand something of the sabbath.
        The sabbath is first mentioned in Genesis 2:3. By inspiration Moses said, “God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work.” That passage does not tell us WHEN God set the sabbath apart, only that he did. From Adam to Moses there is no command to keep the sabbath, no example of anyone keeping it, and no penalty for failing to keep it. Nehemiah said that God, “made known unto them thy holy sabbath” at Mount Sinai (Neh. 9:14). It was not known earlier.
        The keeping of the sabbath was a distinguishing feature of the Jew’s culture in the first century. Like circumcision, and like their dietary restrictions, it was one of their customs that gave them their identity. It was given to make that distinction. In Exodus 31:17 God said, “It is a sign between me and the children of Israel...” — therefore exclusive of other nations. In Ezekiel 20:12 God said, “Moreover also 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.” In sanctifying them, God set the children of Israel apart from all the families of the earth. The sabbath was a sign of that sanctification. In Exodus 20:19-20 God said, “I am the LORD your God; walk in my statutes, and keep my judgments, and do them; And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God.” If the sabbath had been intended for all the world to keep, it could not have been a sign of Israel’s distinction.
        God prepared the children of Israel for the sabbath in the wilderness (Exodus 16:22-26), but with the giving of the Ten Commandments, God bound the sabbath on Israel for generations to come. “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy...in it thou shalt not do any work” (Exodus 20:8-11). Further instructions concerning the sabbath were given in the law of Moses, but these instructions did not go far enough for the Pharisees. With an appeal to the authority of their father’s traditions, they had imposed such restrictions on the sabbath that they had turned their day of blessing into a day of oppression. Jesus did not recognize their authority; that is why they felt threatened; that is why they wanted to destroy him.
        The disciples plucked ears of grain on the sabbath, and because that violated the Pharisees own stipulations, they accused his disciples of doing that which is not lawful. Jesus appealed to a greater authority when he said; “Have ye never read” (Mark 2:25)? His authority was the scriptures themselves. David even did that which was not lawful (according to the Scriptures), yet they would excuse David because he had been anointed king, but Jesus was the Anointed himself, and a greater authority than David. The sabbath law was His law; He was “Lord of the sabbath” (Mark 2:25-28).
        They followed Jesus into the synagogue, “...and there was a man which had a withered hand. And they watched him, whether he would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse him.” Jesus took the initiative and said to the man, “Stand forth.” He put the accusers on the spot when he asked, “Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill?” They “held their peace” because they refused to be taught. This angered and grieved Jesus. Doing nothing whereby they could accuse him, Jesus said to the man, “Stretch forth thy hand.” The text says, “And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other.” Jesus demonstrated his authority by his power. It was because of the hardness of their hearts that “the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him” (Mark 3:1-6).
        Jesus went on to fulfill the law. Having fulfilled it, “he took it out of the way” (Col. 2:14), and with it went the sabbath (Col. 2:16). The new covenant (New Testament) did not distinguish between Jew and Gentile. The sabbath had fulfilled its purpose, and in breaking down this “wall of partition” (Eph. 2:14) the “Lord of the sabbath” (Mark 2:28) showed himself to be “Lord of all” (Acts 10:34-36).
                wmhboyd@aol.com
                647 Finger Bluff Road
                Morrison, Tennessee 37357


Table of Contents

The scope of the Catholic Rosary is far removed from the teachings of Jesus and the apostles. It is nothing more than an invention of man.

        Most people not affiliated with Roman Catholicism do not understand what the Rosary is all about. We may have heard it mentioned here or there and we possibly have seen it used in an occasional movie scene, but many do not know of its origins or understand its intended purpose.
        The Roman Catholic church began in 606 AD with Boniface III, but the use of the Rosary was not seen for another 600 years in the 13th century — about 1200 years after Jesus established the church. So, this “religious device” is clearly not a part of Christianity as found in the pages of the New Testament.
        The Rosary originated when a priest by the name of Dominic supposedly had a vision of “the Blessed Virgin” Mary who presented him with a Rosary along with five special prayers to be introduced into the religion.
        Dominic traveled widely, promoting and honoring Mary. His inordinate devotion was evident in the attention his Rosary placed upon this woman. In the ensuing years the Rosary would become another of many religious traditions integrated into Catholicism.
        Though there are various forms of the Rosary, the standard Rosary is a necklace-type string consisting of 59 beads (or knots) and one crucifix (cross). Along the enclosed circuit, fifty-three smaller beads are arranged into five groups of ten beads each, and a final group, outside of the loop, which consists of three beads. The five prayers Dominic supposedly receive from Mary are recited in coordination with each section of beads. The prayers read:
        The Apostles’ Creed. I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.
        Our Father. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.
        Hail Mary. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
        Glory Be. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
        Hail, Holy Queen. Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve, to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us. O Holy Mother of God that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. [Note: “clement” is the Latin word for “merciful“]
        The “Rosary” (prayer, recitation) begins by making the sign of the cross on the crucifix and reciting the Apostles’ Creed, followed by one Our Father, three Hail Marys and one Glory Be. This is followed by reciting, at each of the six bead groupings, one Our Father, ten Hail Marys and one Glory Be.
        The “Rosary” is concluded by praying the Hail, Holy Queen. Additionally, participants recite portions of the Rosary as penance for various sins. For example, in the confession booth, a priest may instruct one to say the “Hail Mary” prayer fifty times for penance of a sin to which they had confessed.
        This man-made religious practice is completely absent from the scriptures and is contrary to the truth found in God’s word. Notice the following obvious contradictions:

• The Apostles’ Creed is not from Jesus’ apostles. The apostles did not write such a creed. Their only teaching is found in the New Testament. This Catholic “creed” was conceived in the minds of uninspired man centuries after the first century church.
• Mary is referred to as a virgin. That she remained a virgin throughout her life is paramount to Catholicism, but this much desired idea can be easily refuted in the pages of the Bible. Jesus is called Mary’s “firstborn,” meaning that she had other children (Matt. 1:25). Jesus had four brothers and at least two sisters (Matt. 13:55-56).
• An obvious over-emphasis is given to Mary in the Rosary prayers. The belief that she is to be “hailed” as “Holy Queen” is blasphemous, as it suggests that Mary is virtually equal to God.
• The repetitious nature of the Rosary prayers is excessive. Repeating the same phrases over and over is superfluous and needless. Some Catholics might take up to twenty minutes to complete the repetitive words of the Rosary prayers. This reminds us of Jesus admonition, “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words” (Matt. 6:7).