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The Vice-President's Message
by Tom Justus
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As I sat down before my computer to write this article,
I closed my eyes, and in my mind went back some
forty-five years ago. At that time, I was a much younger
man with four small children. My wife, Thelma and I were
active in the Church of Christ. As a young preacher in
this church in Southern California, I firmly believed
God's laws were no longer needed. In fact I taught that
they were a burden.
At this point in my life my goal was to become
wealthy. I worked from 7:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. on my
regular job. There was also a second job, where I
worked from 6:00 p.m. until midnight, running a press
for an in-house plant. To add to this, I worked on some
weekends. Soon enough, I was able to have a new house
built, as well as start my own small printing plant.
Then, disaster struck. Thelma became quite ill with
rheumatic fever. She was unable to get out of bed for
several months. With four children, one of them being
under one year old, we had to pay to have someone take
care of our family. Since there was no health insurance
at that time, it became necessary for me to file for
bankruptcy-and, in what seemed like a flash, I lost
everything that I had worked so hard to acquire.
The year was 1955, and it was at this particularly
difficult time in my life that first I heard the
preaching of Herbert Armstrong on the World
Tomorrow radio broadcast. Not long after that, I
learned that the Sabbath was still Holy, and that we
should cease from our regular work on that
day. ... There were many things that I did not yet
understand, but it seemed clear that I could no longer
work on the Sabbath: It was Holy to God. God's Sabbath
rest was a great joy-for which there were no feelings of
guilt associated with ceasing from work.
Now, after forty-five years of keeping the Sabbath (and
being a Minister many of those years), I have remained
thankful for this wonderful, blessed Holy
Day. Throughout this time, I have made it a habit to
think about what can be done that is pleasing to God on
this Day. ... Such is simple and easy to develop, yet
oddly enough, you can ask a hundred Sabbathkeepers how
to observe the Sabbath, and you will likely be told-a
hundred different dogmatic ways-of what you must do to
observe this day.
Thankfully, I learned early that how I observed the
Sabbath was just between me, myself, and God: It was not
to be legislated by man. This was the problem with the
Jewish traditions in Christ's time (Matthew 12)-and
sadly, it is still a problem in the Sabbath keeping
Churches. The fact is that the Bible does not define
each detail of Sabbath observance.
We must always remember that the Sabbath was made for
man (Mark 2:27). God knew that mankind would not only
need physical rest, but that there would also be
required a means to perpetually remember that God was
the Great Creator of all things and that He was Holy. In
His infinite wisdom, God's solution was to set aside the
seventh day.
The word Sabbath appears in our Bible 116 times, and the
plural (Sabbaths) is there 33 times. Of the verses that
include these, very few set forth the way to observe the
Sabbath. Certain Scriptures are explicit about not doing
your regular work on this day, but other Scriptures are
not so clear on what we should do on the Sabbath.
What are we as individuals to do then? I feel this falls
into the same category as what Paul states in
Philippians 2:12, "work out your
own salvation with fear and trembling." This
Scriptural direction becomes an attitude of mind-a
desire to draw close to God and please Him. Through the
Scriptures and the guidance of His Holy Spirit, God has
brought (and continues to bring) us to His
Truth-including the Sabbath-yet, He allows us the
freedom to make the decision as to how we shall keep it.
When our children were young, Friday night became family
night. We all came together in the living room. Each
child had their opportunity to talk. We had prayer
together, we talked about God and Jesus, and Bible
stories were read. As a family, we all really looked
forward to the beginning of the Sabbath.
Thelma packed lunches on Friday for the Sabbath. Early
Sabbath morning, we headed out for Pasadena (125 miles
one way), to make it for services that afternoon. Along
the way, we would stop at a park and have lunch
together. For many years we did this, making it a happy
trip for the children, and it was always an enjoyable
day for all of us. Right up until today, the Sabbath day
is one of the things that has helped us remain a very
close family.
Remember, the Sabbath day is a day of rest and
refreshing, not just for the body, but for the mind
also. It is a period of putting out of your mind the
past weeks work or the work that needs to be done the
following week. It is not only a time of drawing closer
to God, but also a time when the family can come
together.
If the Sabbath seems to be a burden, we need to find out
why-since it should be a happy time. We need to think of
how great God is, and of all the blessings that He
grants us. For me, Sabbath is a time when I tell God how
grateful I am for my family, and how grateful I am for a
day away from the hassle of this society.
When I observe the Sabbath each week, I think about what
God said in Exodus 31:13 "...
Verily my Sabbaths you shall keep: for it is a sign
between me and you throughout your generations; that you
may know that I am the Lord that does sanctify
you." These words help me to be more thankful for
this day.
Each person and family needs to plan for the Sabbath;
don't "ust let it happen." Since it is a Holy time, we
need to view it as such. We should always approach it in
a positive way, realizing that God knows what is best
for us. Too many Sabbathkeepers approach this as a
negative day-thinking of what they cannot do-rather than
utilizing this wonderful positive opportunity inherent
in coming under God's sign.
Many years ago, in Southern California, our Worldwide
Church of God (Santa Barbara) had a three day
outing-camping in a beautiful mounting setting. This was
for all the families in the church. We ate together,
played games, and on the Sabbath, had services and a
sing-along.
During Sabbath, after services, we let the children play
along the stream that flowed through the
campground. There was one man who would not let his
seven year old son play. He made the boy sit on a stump
all afternoon and read the Bible. He felt this was
teaching his son "not to do his
own pleasure on the Sabbath day." (Isaiah
58:13). ... What do you think this young boy thought of
God's Sabbath?
Today, many Christian Sabbathkeepers have their own set
of "rules" about how to observe the Sabbath. This would
be fine, if they would only not try to force others to
keep it "their way." Interestingly enough, many of these
same people also think that the way some Orthodox Jews
observe Shabbat is non-Scriptural. You see, in the New
York high-rise buildings where many Orthodox Jews live,
all Sabbath day long, the elevators (having been
pre-wired) continually stop and open on each floor, so
that no elevator buttons will have to be pushed. (This
is not criticizing Orthodox Jews, it is just one example
of the extreme tenets that are taught.)
We must be careful of the dogma that we try to impose on
each other. Let no man (or
church) judge you in the observing of the Sabbath day
(Colossians l 2:16). This is a Spiritual matter between
you and God! We should be happy and rejoice in this day.
TSS
November - December 2000 The Sabbath Sentinel
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