Installment thirty-seven

Mr. Anderson is now trying to answer some of the questions
about the Sabbath presented to him by Mrs. Gregory.
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Installment thirty-seven:

"The Sabbath is one of the great blessings. It was designed to
preserve a sacred relationship between the human family and
the creator. The most casual reading of the fourth commandment
shows the great purpose of the Sabbath. It was to help men keep
in mind the making of the heaven and the earth. It is the memorial
of that great work. It reminds us of God's creative power. It calls
upon us to obey Him because He is creator. True Sabbath keeping
means constant surrender to God. It has been always helpful in
keeping man from idolatry."
"This is beautifully brought out in the words of Exodus 31:17; 'It
is a sign between me and the children of Israel forever.' Ezekiel
tells us: 'I [the Lord] gave them my Sabbaths to be a sign between
me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify
them.' The reason is that God puts Himself, his own presence, into
the day, and through its acceptance, also into the Sabbath keeper's
heart. So every Sabbath renews and strengthens faith in the creator."
"You will note that the Sabbath is a sign between God and Israel for-
ever. This does not refer only to Jews, the descendants of Abraham,
for they soon gave up real Sabbath keeping, and therefore did not
know the Sabbath as a blessing. 'Israel' means more than Jews. The
term is one that includes the true believer in all ages, and down to the
end of time. All Christians are spiritual Israelites. All who would be
kept in the way of righteousness will keep Sabbath and find it a sign,
a memorial, of His redeeming power. Creation and redemption, you
see, are the same, both calling for the Sabbath memorial."
"Yes, I can see that," said Mrs. Gregory.
"It is very easy to see why the Lord has always emphasized the truth
of the Sabbath. As you remember, it was the test that God brought to
Israel in Egypt (Exodus 5:5); it was the test thirty days before they
came to Sinai (Exodus 16); and at Sinai, the fourth commandment was
revealed (Nehemiah 9:14).
"Listen also to the striking word of Isaiah, the Gospel prophet: '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,
and shalt honor Him... then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I
will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth' (Isaiah 58:13-14).
How plain the prophet makes it! All spiritual power and uplift are to be
found in the Sabbath of God!
"I have said that Isaiah is 'the Gospel prophet.' He is. What we have read
has reference to our own Gospel time. God is calling, in Isaiah's message
for us to turn our feet from the Sabbath, to stop trampling it underfoot.
And the promise is actually fulfilled to those who obey."
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To be continued...