SECOND QUARTER 2024
SABBATH SCHOOL INSIGHT #9
JUNE 1, 2024
“THE FOUNDATION OF GOD'S GOVERNMENT”

It is a masterful trick of the enemy that the law of God should come to be viewed by the majority of professed Christians in a negative light. Instead of being viewed as something desirable, good and right, it is looked upon with scorn and even ridicule by many who claim to be church going, Bible believing people of God.  Such is the influence of false teaching and distorted perspectives on the Word of God. The law of God and particularly the Sabbath are viewed as a burden rather than a blessing. Our lesson author points out that Satan hates the Sabbath because it reminds people of the Creator and how He is to be worshipped. From the very beginning, the great controversy has been centered upon the law of God. The enemy first insisted that the law was unnecessary and then after the fall that it cannot be kept. He need not persuade us to cast aside the whole law but merely to discard a single precept in order to accomplish his purpose.  James 2:10 declares whosoever shall keep the whole law and yet offend in one point is guilty of all. When we view the law of God as a transcript of His character and the very definition of love - which is Agape, we may see the law in an entirely new light. In fact, Jesus began His summary of the law of God with the words "Thou shalt love..."  (Matthew 22:36-40; 1 John 5:3). In Galatians 5:14, the apostle Paul declares "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”  The first four commandments specify how we show our love for God and the last six detail how we show our love for our fellowman.

The fact that the law of God was in the Ark of the Covenant in the Most Holy Place of the Sanctuary on earth shows how important it is.  The Bible tells us plainly that the earthly tabernacle was a model or type of the heavenly and that law of God appears in the same position in the heavenly as it did in the earthly.  To suggest that the law of God has been done away with is to suggest that there is no such thing as sin since the law of God defines sin. Thankfully, the golden cover over the law was called the mercy seat.  It was here that God manifested His presence- He in whom justice and mercy are beautifully combined. What would faithful Methodists today think to read the words of John Wesley:  "Every part of this law must remain in force, upon all mankind, and in all ages; as not depending either on time or place, or any other circumstances liable to change.”  Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible and is essentially a poem about the law of God.

The teaching of the cleansing of a heavenly sanctuary is the only unique contribution of the Seventh Day Adventist church to Christian theology. Our teachings concerning the Sabbath, the state of the dead, the second coming and even the gift of prophecy or the perpetuity of spiritual gifts have been espoused by other denominations. However, our understanding of the sanctuary combines an entire system of truth which is connected and harmonious, for to accept the sanctuary teaching is to accept the law of God and with it the Sabbath truth and also the judgment. We are told in the book Great Controversy, "Here was the secret of the bitter and determined opposition to the harmonious exposition of the Scriptures that revealed the ministration of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary."  —Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 435.

Our lesson author points out that "Creation speaks of our value in God’s sight" and "Creation and Redemption are at the heart of all true worship." In 2016, on a flight from Phoenix to Chicago after attending ASI, I met a Baptist preacher whom I engaged in conversation for the better part of the three hour flight. At a certain point in the conversation, he turned to me and said, "Michael, define Sabbath for me." I thought it was an intriguing request. Notice, he did not ask me "Why should I keep the Sabbath?”, "What is your argument for the Sabbath?”, or “How do you explain the Sabbath in light of the New Testament?”. His request was, "Define Sabbath for me.”  I turned to him and immediately felt a sense of excitement because there was only one answer that came to my mind. I responded "One word - REST! The Sabbath is a symbol of our resting in the finished work of Jesus Christ for our salvation." He simply put his head down and said, "ummph!" I had in mind Hebrews 4. Unfortunately, most Adventist have not been taught to keep the Sabbath as a symbol of resting in the salvation we have through Jesus Christ.

When speaking to non-Adventists, if we appeal to the law of God as the reason we should keep the Sabbath, the argument often falls on deaf ears because the Bible clearly teaches "By the works of the law shall no flesh be justified" (Romans 3:20). Our lesson author beautifully points this out: “The Sabbath is a weekly pause to praise the One who made us."  "It is a symbol of rest, not of works; of grace, not of legalism; of assurance, not of condemnation; of depending upon God for salvation, not on ourselves." We should remember that the Sabbath was God's seventh day, but for Adam, it was his first day. God worked and then He rested, but Adam and Eve were created on the sixth day and so they rested first; after the Sabbath they began to work. The Sabbath indeed does connect the perfection of Eden past to the glory of the earth made new. 

Under Wednesday’s outline the lesson author provides a list of 11 verses from the book of Revelation, all of which mention worship. Indeed, this is the fundamental issue in the great controversy - who deserves our worship.  It is a lofty claim of the Adventist church to say that we have been called into existence to complete the Protestant Reformation and restore to the world true worship of the true God. It was the same mission and high privilege given to Israel which they failed to fulfill because of their unbelief (Hebrews 3:19). Those who worship the beast and his image will have been deceived into yielding allegiance to a counterfeit system of salvation. We have the high and holy privilege of warning the world and pointing men and women to the true God and the only hope of salvation, the Cross of Jesus Christ.

Thursday's outline is entitled The Three Angels' Messages. Ellen White wrote, "Many have been writing to me inquiring whether the message of justification by faith is the third angel's message and I have answered, it is the third angels' message in verity." The lesson author points out that at the end of time "These committed followers of the Savior will not only have faith ‘in’ Jesus but will also have the faith ‘of’ Jesus." This is a subject that deserves our careful study and attention.  The lesson author goes on to say "This ‘faith of Jesus' is itself a gift we receive by faith. It will carry us through the crisis ahead. When the final crisis breaks and we face an economic boycott, persecution, imprisonment, and death itself..."

Our lesson ends with a very important quote from The Great Controversy, p. 449:

“Christians of past generations observed the Sunday, supposing that in so doing they were keeping the Bible Sabbath; and there are now true Christians in every church, not excepting the Roman Catholic communion, who honestly believe that Sunday is the Sabbath of divine appointment. God accepts their sincerity of purpose and their integrity before Him."

This reminds us that Seventh-day Adventists are in no way morally superior to any other Christians. We all have misunderstandings about God and the Bible which only the Holy Spirit can rectify in time. Yet God is gracious and patient with each one of us and expects us to extend the same grace to others.

~Michael Duncan