In this day of terror, we have many calling for national, or even world identification numbers. We also have a great number of people calling for a more sure method of identification. Certain methods being considered can fulfill these requirements and possibly have many other seeming benefits as well, such as greatly reducing black market trade such as drugs, prostitution, as well as muggings, robberies, etc. One of these methods even has the potential to fulfill the prophecy concerning the mark of the beast.

• It will be a man's number
• No one will be able to buy anything without it
• No one will be able to sell without it
• Those refusing it will be seen "enemies of mankind"
• It can be implanted in the right hand or the forehead

Many are familiar with the concept that this is possibly a computer chip identification code. Many have heard for instance of the "digital angel" technology, but all are not aware that these chips can actually be barcoded. We are all familiar with the UPC code; they can be found on nearly every product that can be purchased, but few are aware that the barcode operates on a "666" system.

In 1971, I was given the task by IBM management to design the best code and symbol suitable for the grocery industry. After considerable effort I conceived an approach and detailed the symbol. In May of 1973, IBM's proposal was accepted. Following the acceptance of the original UPC specification, I was asked to find a way to add another digit. The symbol already held twelve, the eleven required by UGPCC and a check digit I added to achieve the required reliability. The addition of the thirteenth digit could not cause the equipment to require extensive modification. Further, the original domestic version could not be modified. The extra digit would allow for "country identification" and make the UPC world wide. Again I found a way to accommodate the requirement and the EAN (European Article Numbering system) symbol was born. Many countries are using the same symbol with their identifying country "flag" (the 13th digit), but chose to call the symbol by other names. An example is JAN (Japanese Article Numbering system), the Japanese version. The symbol has truly become world wide. -George Laurer

Question: Why are there two ways to encode each digital value and when is each used?

Laurer: The UPC symbol is designed so that even a simple system can read it in halves. The scanner may read either the left or right half first. Also a half may be read from left to right, or right to left. It is necessary for the logic to be able to determine which data is from the left half and which data is from the right half, of the symbol. The two halves are mirror images of each other, in that from the margin toward the center, there are two guard bars, followed by 6 characters, and the center bars. The characters (from the guard bars) start with a space and each character is composed of 2 spaces and 2 bars. There are 2 sets of 10 characters. One set is called EVEN parity and the other is called ODD parity. Those with an even number of black modules, such as "6" coded "WWWWBWB" (0000101) are from the even set. While those with an odd number of black modules, such as a "6" coded "WBWBBBB" (0101111) are from the odd set.

Question: Rumor has it that the lines (left, middle, and right) that protrude below the U.P.C. code are the numbers 6,6,6... and that this is the international money code. I typed a code with all sixes and this seems to be true. At least they all resemble sixes.

Laurer: Yes, they do RESEMBLE the code for a six. An even parity 6 is:

1 module wide black bar, 1 module wide white space, 1 module wide black bar, 4 module wide white space

There is nothing sinister about this nor does it have anything to do with the Bible's "mark of the beast." It is simply a coincidence like the fact that my first, middle, and last name all have 6 letters. There is no connection with an international money code either.

Mr. Laurer later stated:

I am sorry, but as of November 2000, I will no longer respond to questions about the UPC and the New Testamant.

Do you think he got tired of responding to the same concerns over and over again? Now let's take a close look at the UPC code.

In this barcode I've dimmed the internal numbers to emphasize the "bracketing" system. First look at the construction of the barcode; there are two types of these, both containing three sixes, but here we will only concentrate on one type. Let's call it the long type. Notice in this picture how the barcode is "bracketed." The three sets of long double lines we'll call the brackets. One set of thin double lines at the very beginning, one set in the center and one at the end. The brackets actually separate the code into two halves. These brackets are also numbers and serve specific functions when they're scanned.

Notice also the numbers at the bottom of the bars. Each of these numbers are represented by two bars and the spaced distance between them. The width of the two bars and the distance between them determine which number they represent. Most barcodes will have a number outside and to the left of the first bracket. This number will be represented inside the coded by the first two bars just to the right of the first bracket. From this point, the next two bars will represent the first number inside the code, just above the number, but not necessarily centered over it. The next two bars will represent the next number and so on until you get to the center bracket.

Here is the code for the first half of the barcode, from the first to the center bracket. It may seem difficult to decode the barcode at first because the bars and the space between them (which represent the numbers below them) will change for the second half of the code.

 

Here is the code for the second half, which begins with the first two bars just to the right of the center bracket, which obviously represents the first number to the right of the center bracket. On the far right and outside the barcode there is usually another number, which is represented by the last two bars just to the left of the last bracket.

Now look for a product whose barcodee contains at least one "6" in the second half. Examine the bars and the space between. Now look at the chart of the second half of the code. What you should see is the second code representation for the "6" is identical to the bars which make up the three brackets, which means each of the three brackets represent an individual "6."

Here is a barcode which has been stretched out to clarify this process. First notice there are two "1s" in the left half and two "2s" in the right half. These codes represent the indivual numbers 1 and 2, not 11 and 22. On the left half we have a "0" outside the barcode, represented by the first two lines inside the first bracket. On the right side we have a "6" on the outside, which represents the last two lines before the last bracket. Again, these two lines with a value of "6" is identical to each of the three brackets. You can try this on any household item and see for yourself - all that is bought or sold is marked with these codes, which many people believe are decipherable only through a computer.

So we can see that nearly all that is sold in the marketplace has been marked with this number, what about the other side of the transaction? Is there a similar mark hidden in our currency? After all, the prophecy tells us no man may buy without the proper mark, or name or number of the name.

Yes, the beast has put his mark on U.S. currency as well. Take a look at the back of the $1 bill and you will see a pyramid with the Roman numerals MDCCLXXVI at the base. It's commonly believed these numerals stand for the founding of the U.S.A., but this occult symbol actually represents the founding of the Illuminati, which happened just a few months earlier that same year. The stripes on the eagle's shield are similar to the pattern on the flag of the United States, only inverted. A close look at these stripes reveals they are actually six bands, each consisting of three vertical lines.

As I've explained on the Occult Symbols page, the opposing sides of the Great Seal of the United States are designed to disguise an occult hexagram, which specifically resembles the devil's mark. Interestingly, if you draw the hexagram image over the pyramid, you'll see the symbol point to letters M-A-S-O-N...but that is just a coincidence.

The roman numeral for 666 is DCLXVI which is each numeral used only once in descending order. The numeral which depicts the date 1776 is eerily similar to this number.

666=		D	C		L	X		V	I
1776=	M	D	C	C	L	X	X	V	I

Occult symbolism often employs the power of a trinity, or tri-angle; the pyramid is a clear example of this. The roman numerals on the pyramid are symbolically linked to this pyramid. So take the 9-character numeral MDCCLXXVI and separate it into its three separate parts: MDC | CLX | XVI.

Now start at the top of the pyramid and place (counter-clockwise) each set of three numerals at each point of the triangle, as is shown in this image. What you see is the number 666 as it's compared to the ancient Babylonian numbering system, which is not based on 10, but 60. For example, 600 would be 1000, 60 would be 100, and 6 would be 10.

So what about putting a mark in the right hand or the forehead?

And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. -Revelation 14

Why would anyone want to receive one of these implants when we've had the warning of this prophecy for nearly two thousand years? In today's world, there is an (illusion of) increasing need for security, which happens to be an issue the prophetic scriptures specifically and repeatedly mention. The fact is the entire world will very soon be ruled as one giant international kingdom; this process will not take much longer to be completed. As I've stated in the Occult section, the dream of a new world order has always been coupled with the fantasy of utopia. Not only will this new order bring an end to all war, but with innovative RFID technology (in addition to countless surveillance cameras being discreetly installed in or above every building, intersection - and many homes) the powers that be are able to provide us with an impeccably secure environment worldwide. The propaganda is already spreading like wildfire...

Just imagine the convenience and security a tiny unnoticeable chip implant under your skin can provide for you and your family...

• -You can keep your home, car and office safely locked at all times - it will unlock as soon as you reach for the door!
• -Never worry about losing your wallet again - you'll no longer need a driver's license, insurance card, ATM & credit cards, social security card, cash, or even a library card. All of that private information will be available by scanning the chip.
• -Never lose track of your child again thanks to the wonders of GPS!
• -Keep your medical, legal, and other private records safe in your hand at all times.
• -And spending money will never be faster or easier when there's no bills to count, when you can literally buy another drink with a wave of the hand.

And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name... -Revelation 13

Notice there is no mention of force in this prophecy. Instead we see every man and woman willfully receiving the mark simply be-cause of the times we live in; i.e., a world consumed with shades of grey - the superficial light created by darkness. Therefore the mark will be easily warranted by one (seemingly) logical and benevolent reason after another.

The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. -Matthew 6

Notice Jesus describes our place in the world in terms of black and white, light and darkness; there is no grey area here - no compromise between what is good and what is evil. No one can serve two masters - and that is what the mark of the beast is all about. The world has been gradually rebuilding the tower of Babel, that remarkable symbol of self-righteous humanism, ever since God frustrated the masons' efforts in Genesis 11. The Bible describes the mark of the beast as a physical mark which exhibits one's faith in and loyalty to the new Babylon. This mark is the final spiritual Rubicon: the point of no return and its acceptance worldwide will be shrouded in deception.

Top of tab

The books of Revelation describes the last great conflict between Christ and Satan and this conflict is ultimately a conflict of authority. We read in Revelation 12 how the dragon would make war on those which keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. There are thus two issues that the enemy will target in particular in the final conflict: the commandments of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.

And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail. -Revelation 11:19

The prophet John is alerting us to the fact that this last great controversy will center around the law of God. The enemy will challenge the authority of the Creator and try to establish his own seal of authority.

History tells us that during the fall of Babylon, its priesthood fled to Pergamum in Asia Minor, and there the Babylonian religion, its rites and rituals as well as its hierarchy were maintained. The last pontiff king of Pergamum, King Attalus, bequeathed his title (Pontifex Maximus), structure of the Babylonian priesthood, and vestments to Rome. Initially only the pagan high priest of Rome used this title, but when pagan Rome fell, this Babylonian title was transferred to the pope.

The first thing you see as you enter St. Peter's is this Babylonian title, Pontifex Maximus and this title is to be seen in the entrance to the Vatican and on every papal statue. Interestingly, the statue of pope Gregory XIII shows the title, but also shows him on top of the dragon, and according to Revelation 13 it is the dragon that gave his power to the sea beast, the Papacy. In a special sense, the Roman Pontiff is thus the spokesman of the dragon and it is through the papacy, the heir of the Roman Empire, that the dragon exercises his authority.

After Emperor Constantine left Rome in AD 330 to make Constantinople, present Istanbul, his new capital, Pagan Rome transferred its power and throne, to papal Rome. Cardinal Henry Edward Manning of England says that the abandonment of Rome was the "liberation" of the Pontiffs. With the passage of time, he says, "the Pontiffs found themselves alone; the sole fountains of order, peace, law, and safety," in western Rome.

The Roman pontiff claims to possess extraordinary powers in both moral and civil matters, even to the point of asserting his authority over the precepts of God. The Roman Decretalia states:

He can pronounce sentences and judgments in contradiction to the rights of nations, to the law of God and man... He can free himself from the commands of the apostles, he being their superior, and from the rules of the Old Testament.

The Pope has power to change times, to abrogate laws, and to dispense with all things, even the precepts of Christ. -Decretal, de Translat. Episco, Cap

A further statement to illustrate this point is:

The Pope's will stands for reason. He can dispense above the law; and of wrong make right, by correcting and changing laws. -Pope Nicholas, Dist.96, Quoted in Facts for the Times, pp 55,56. 189

If, as we have seen, the commandments of God, and thus the government of God, are targets of the ire of Satan, then it stands to reason that these supposed powers of the papacy will be used in the final conflict between good and evil and will culminate in the enforcing of the mark of the beast on all the citizens of earth. The warnings concerning the mark of the beast are the most serious and solemn message to be found in the Bible and it is essential that we apply careful exegesis to unravel its meaning.

And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. -Revelation. 13:16,17

If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation: and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb; and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever; and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. -Revelation 14:911

The mark of the beast carries with it the greatest punishment, which God has ever pronounced upon man. It is the punishment of eternal separation from God. The mark of the beast must therefore be an issue of vital importance, and since God searches hearts and characters, the issue must pertain to man's relationship with God.

There are many remarkable theories about this mark, ranging from computer-generated IDs to RFID implants, but how much bearing do these have on a man's character, personal relationship with God or subjection to the government of God?

If we are going to accurately identify the mark of the beast, then we must do so within the framework of the great controversy and how it effects God's plan of salvation. It is through sin (transgression of God's law, 1 John 3:4) that separation between God and man came about, and this rebellion against His government has brought about the consequences which the human race is experiencing.

But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear. -Isaiah 59:2

The wages of sin is death. -Romans 6:23

Justice demanded that the penalty for sin be paid, and Christ fulfilled these requirements by paying the price Himself. Through this sacrifice, grace could abound, and the broken relationship between man and God could be re-established. The renewed heart is one that keeps the commandments, and the faith of Jesus (Revelation 14:12).

For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord. I will put My laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts, and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. -Hebrews 8:10

A restored relationship implies a life that is once again in harmony with God's precepts. He who says that he knows God and keeps not His commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him (1 John 2:4). If separation is the consequence of sin, then the mark of the beast must also pertain to sin, as this is the only cause for separation. If sin is transgression of the law, then, as in the beginning, the final cause for ultimate separation must be sought in the breaking of God's law.

One of the official titles of the pope is Vicarius Filii Dei - Vicar of the Son of God. This can be verified in the papal canons issued during the past years. Latin letters have a numerical value and the title Vicarius Filii Dei adds up to 666

The beast and its number were identified in The Two Beasts of Revelation 13. Revelation 13 tells us that the mark would be enforced by the image of the beast. An image is something that has the attributes of the original, like a mirror image. The first beast of Revelation 13 (the Roman Catholic system) was a power that utilized state resources in order to enforce its doctrines even when these doctrines were contrary to the word of God. According to Revelation 13, the image is developed in the second beast, which was identified as the United States of America. The United States of America as the superpower in the world will likewise tend to use the power of the state to enforce religious doctrines even when contrary to the Scriptures. If the United States is to exercise all the authority which the papacy had and is to force all to worship the papacy, then it follows that they shall become like Rome was during the 1260-year period when she enforced her doctrines through the law and persecution. The United States will, however, enact papal laws and enforce their observance internationally. In becoming like Rome, by forming a union between church and state and using the power of the state to enforce such laws, the United States will make an image of the beast, a system that is like the original, or a reflection of the original. This religio-political giant will then enforce the mark of the first beast.

The manner in which the mark will be enforced, according to the Scriptures, is by first imposing economic sanctions on any organization or individual that would be unwilling to accept the mark.

And that no man might buy nor sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast or the number of his name . . . and his number is six hundred, three score and six. Revelation 13:17,18

A mark is something which distinguishes one thing from another. A mark of a religious power would be some outstanding belief that distinguishes it. The best way to determine the distinguishing mark of the Roman Catholic Church is to consult her teachings directly. Cardinal Gibbons claimed that Sunday-keeping was the mark of Roman Catholic authority.

Of course the Catholic Church claims that the change was her act. It could not have been otherwise, as none in those days would have dreamed of doing anything, in matters spiritual, ecclesiastical and religious without her. This act is a mark of her ecclesiastical power and authority in religious matters.[v]

The sun was a foremost god with heathendom . . . The sun has worshippers at this hour in Persia and other lands . . . There is in truth, something royal, kingly about the sun, making it a fit emblem of Jesus, the Sun of Justice. Hence the church in these countries would seem to have said, �Keep that old, Pagan name. It shall remain consecrated, sanctified.� And thus, the pagan Sunday, dedicated to Balder, became the Christian Sunday, sacred to Jesus.[vi]

Sunday worship has no Scriptural authority, and rests solely upon tradition. Protestants have always claimed that the Bible and the Bible alone should be the standard for our religious beliefs. To meet this challenge, the Roman Catholic Church called the Council of Trent in 1545, and proclaimed that tradition stood above Scripture. The archbishop of Reggio, in a speech concerning this issue, maintained that proof for tradition superceding Scriptural authority could be found in the changeover from Sabbath to Sunday.

The Church has changed Sabbath into Sunday, not by the command of Christ but by its own authority.[vii]

Tradition, not scripture, is the rock on which the Church of Jesus Christ is built.[viii]

Protestants who observe Sunday as the day of worship are honoring the mark of Roman Catholicism. Roman Catholics claim:

The Christian Sabbath is therefore to this day the acknowledged offspring of the Catholic church, as spouse of the Holy Ghost, without a word of remonstrance from the protestant world.[ix]

Sunday is our mark of authority...the church is above the Bible, and this transference of Sabbath observance is proof of that fact.[x]

Q: Have you any other way of proving that the church has power to institute festivals of precept?

A: Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her, she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday, the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority.[xi]

You will tell me that Saturday was the Jewish Sabbath, but that the Christian Sabbath has been changed to Sunday. Changed! But by whom? Who has authority to change an express commandment of Almighty God? When God has spoken and said, 'Thou shalt keep holy the seventh day', who shall dare to say, nay, thou mayest work and do all manner of worldly business on the seventh day, but thou shalt keep holy the first day in its stead? This is a most important question which I know not how you can answer. You are a Protestant, and you profess to go by the Bible and the Bible only; and yet, in so important a matter as the observance of one day in seven as a holy day, you go against the plain letter of the Bible, and put another day in the place of that which He has commanded. The command to keep holy the seventh day is one of the ten commandments; you believe the other nine are still binding; who gave you authority to tamper with the fourth? If you are consistent with your own principle, if you really follow the Bible and the Bible only, you ought to be able to produce some portion of the New Testament in which this fourth commandment is expressly altered.[xii]

Why is the Sabbath commandment so relevant to God�s law, and why is there such importance attached to the keeping of the particular day? The answer lies in the wording of the commandment which contains the seal of God.

The Sabbath commandment is not only the heart of the ten command�ments, but it is the seal of the commandments. Remove it and the commandments have no authority or official seal.

A seal contains three specifications:

- the name of the writer of the law,

- his office, and

- the name of the territory over which he rules.

Only the fourth commandment has these three items:

- Yhwh God (God�s Name)

- Creator (His office, position)

Heaven and earth (His territory).

Remove this commandment and any adherent of any religion could subscribe to the other nine. A change in the seal means a change of rulership, it implies a new authority with power to implement laws. Obedience to new laws ratified by the seal of authority entails submission to that authority. This was ever Satan�s aim - to place his authority above that of the throne of God. By claiming authority as lawgiver, and enforcing his seal, in opposition to the seal of God, Satan shifts the position of authority from God to himself. Obedience to his seal (or mark) of authority means subjection to his government in direct opposition to that of God. This is the ultimate apostasy. When mankind submits to this spurious seal and openly confesses it by the proclamation of laws for the maintenance of Sunday, then man would have fully subjected himself to Satan�s reign. Until such laws are enacted, freedom of choice is still possible. The mark of the beast only leads to ultimate separation from God once individuals are forced to choose whom they wish to obey. If they choose to obey God in this issue, then the penalty is persecution. If they choose to obey the earthly authorities, then the penalty is separation from God. All will have to make this choice.

Throughout the Scriptures, the Sabbath of God is treated with the utmost solemnity.

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. Ezekiel 20: 20

For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled. Matthew 5:18

Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? Matthew 15:3.

But in vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. Matthew 15:9.

Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted shall be rooted up. Matthew 15:13

Choose you this day whom ye will serve. If the Lord be God, follow Him. Joshua 24:15

The Church of Rome claims that Sunday is her mark of authority. Moreover, she claims that it is her right to legislate moral issues and that governments should subscribe to her directives. This is not only a right which she claimed for herself during the middle ages, but is a right which she claims for herself today. The official Catechism of the Catholic Church, sanctioned by Pope John Paul II, has this to say on the issue:

The Church, the pillar and bulwark of the truth, has received this solemn command of Christ from the apostles to announce the saving truth. To the Church belongs the right always and everywhere to announce moral principles, including those pertaining to the social order, and to make judgments on any human affairs to the extent that they are required by the fundamental rights of the human person or the salvation of souls.[xiii]

According to this Catechism, moral issues are dictated by the Ten Commandments, but not the Ten Commandments as found in the Bible, but the Ten Commandments as defined by Augustine, the Catholic Church father.

Ever since St. Augustine, the Ten Commandments have occupied a predominant place in the catechesis of baptismal candidates and the faithful. The catechisms of the Church have often expounded Christian morality by following the order of the Ten Commandments. The division and numbering of the Commandments have varied in the course of history. The present catechism follows the division of the Commandments established by St. Augustine, which has become traditional in the Catholic Church.[xiv]

What an amazing confession! Not the ten commandments as they occur in the Bible, but as defined by Augustine form the basis for Catholic morality. Since Sunday is also the mark of the Catholic Church�s authority, it follows that this mark is in direct opposition to the declared will of God and that compromise on this issue is thus not possible. Sunday worship can be defended only on Catholic principles. The Catholic Church itself has this to say on the issue:

Sunday is a Catholic institution, and its claims to observance can be defended only on Catholic principles. From the beginning to the end of Scripture there is not a single passage, which warrants the transfer of weekly public worship from the last day of the week to the first.[xv]

The Christian Sabbath is therefore to this day the acknowledged offspring of the Catholic Church, as spouse of the Holy Ghost, without a word of remonstrance from the protestant world.[xvi]

If Protestants would follow the Bible, they should worship God on the Sabbath Day. In keeping the Sunday they are following a law of the Catholic Church.[xvii]

Protestantism, in discarding the authority of the Roman [Catholic] Church, has no good reasons for its Sunday theory, and ought logically to keep Saturday as the Sabbath.[xviii]

Reason and common sense demand the acceptance of one or the other of these alternatives: either Protestantism and the keeping holy of Saturday, or Catholicity and the keeping holy of Sunday. Compromise is impossible.[xix]

One might think that some of these statements are dated, and that Rome would not pursue the issue as vigorously in our age. If, however, the enforcing of the mark of the beast is to become a reality, then one would expect this controversy to escalate and one could expect calls for legislation enforcing the maintenance of Sunday. This is precisely what John Paul II did just prior to the new millennium. Moreover, the Church has introduced strict obedience laws into its canon requiring total submission to the Pope in matters of doctrine. Strangely, words such as heretic and punishment, used in these Papal letters for dissenters, remind one of the persecutions in the time of The Inquisition. In his apostolic letter on Sunday sanctity, the pope repeatedly asks for Sunday legislation to enforce its observance:

The day of rest 64. Only in the fourth century did the civil law of the Roman Empire recognize the weekly recurrence, determining that on �the day of the sun� the judges, the people of the cities and the various trade corporations would not work. (107) Christians rejoiced to see thus removed the obstacles which until then had sometimes made observance of the Lord�s Day heroic. They could now devote themselves to prayer in common without hindrance. (108)

It would therefore be wrong to see in this legislation of the rhythm of the week a mere historical circumstance with no special significance for the Church and which she could simply set aside. Even after the fall of the Empire, the Councils did not cease to insist upon the arrangements regarding Sunday rest...

When, through the centuries, she has made laws concerning Sunday rest, (109) the Church has had in mind above all the work of servants and workers, certainly not because this work was any less worthy when compared to the spiritual requirements of Sunday observance, but rather because it needed greater regulation to lighten its burden and thus enable everyone to keep the Lord�s Day holy. In this matter, my predecessor Pope Leo XIII in his Encyclical Rerum Novarum spoke of Sunday rest as a worker�s right which the State must guarantee.. Therefore, also in the particular circumstances of our own time, Christians will naturally strive to ensure that civil legislation respects their duty to keep Sunday holy.[xx]

This papal letter prompted the Sunday Times of London to write: "Pope launches crusade to save Sunday."5-7-1998

Just a few days after issuing the directive on the maintenance of Sunday, on 18 May 1998, the Vatican issued its apostolic letter, AD TUENDAM FIDEM by which certain norms are inserted into the Code of Canon Law and into the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, which makes some strong statements with regard to submission to the pope on issues of doctrine.

Can. 1436 � 1. Whoever denies or places in doubt any truth that must be believed with divine and catholic faith, or repudiates the Christian faith as a whole, and does not come to his senses after having been legitimately warned, is to be punished as a heretic or as an apostate by major excommunication; a member of the clergy, furthermore, can be punished by other penalties, not excluding deposition.

� 2.Aside from such cases, whosoever rejects a doctrine proposed, as definitively to be held, by the Roman Pontiff or the College of Bishops exercising their authentic Magisterium, or else accepts a doctrine condemned by them as erroneous, and does not come to his senses after having been legitimately warned, is to be punished by an appropriate penalty.

5. We order that everything decreed by Us in this Apostolic Letter motu proprio be firm and valid and we command that it be inserted into the universal law of the Catholic Church that is, into the Code of Canon Law and into the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, respectively exactly as set forth above, anything to the contrary notwithstanding. Given at Rome, St. Peter�s, 18 May 1998, in the twentieth year of Our Pontificate.[xxi]

Whoever denies or places in doubt any truth that must be believed with divine and catholic faith will be branded a heretic? Punished by an appropriate penalty? That certainly sounds ominous and reminds one of the days when heretics received a penalty appropriate to their transgression. That penalty, of course, was death. The Bible says that history will repeat itself and that just as refusal to observe Sunday led to economic measures and eventually death in the middle ages, the same will happen just before the close of probation. However, this time the decree will be universal and the whole world will have to choose between allegiance to God or allegiance to man. Then, according to Daniel and John, will follow a time of trouble such as never was.

Referring to the destruction of Jerusalem and the events to occur just prior to the second coming of Christ, Jesus warned of the abomination that would make desolate. What Jesus and Daniel spoke of ties in with what John the Revelator saw. The destruction of Jerusalem serves as a type of what will happen in the whole world, and if we heed the warnings of the Bible, then God will protect His faithful people according to the promises.

So when you see standing in the holy place �the abomination that causes desolation�, spoken of through the prophet Daniel � let the reader understand. Matthew 24:15

What is this �abomination� that causes desolation? In Luke 21:20 we find the answer.

When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. Luke 21:20

This parallel text tells us that the Roman legions were referred to as the abomination that makes desolate. Pagan Rome was thus called an abomination, and we know that the Prince of Peace was crucified by this power. Moreover, they also persecuted God�s people and mercilessly tried to exterminate them off the face of the earth. Their religion was also an abomination. Not only did they worship the emperor, but they also forced upon the world a false day of worship in 321 A.D. The Romans had a sacerdotal system, or priesthood where priests exercised supernatural powers, which the Bible also calls an abomination.

A further reason for referring to Rome as the abomination that makes desolate is the idolatrous nature of their religion. They worshipped a pantheon of gods among which the female goddess played a prominent part. The Roman goddess Diana, whom the Greeks called Artemis, was worshipped as the main goddess in the pantheon of Roman goddesses, and 2 Kings 23:13 and Isaiah 44:19 call idol worship an abomination.

Since Jesus is referring to two time periods in the history of His people, the term �abomination that causes desolation� can not only apply to pagan Rome but must apply also to papal Rome which will repeat the atrocities at the end of time. In other words, when Jesus refers to pagan Rome who persecuted God�s people and destroyed literal Jerusalem, He speaks of a type of which papal Rome is the antitype. Papal Rome is thus also an abominable system, a false religion that persecutes spiritual Jerusalem, God�s worldwide people. Like the emperor�s of old, the Pope possesses ecclesiastical as well as secular powers and the pantheon of gods is replaced by Mary and the saints, which all have the capacity to intercede on man�s behalf.

To understand the antitypical fulfillment of the prophecy of Jesus in Matthew 24, it is necessary to study the type, the literal destruction of Jerusalem when the Roman armies besieged Jerusalem. Historians tell us that Cestius Gallus arrived at Jerusalem in October 66 A.D., he destroyed a section of the wall that protected the city, but after the Jewish defenders fled to the confines of the temple, Josephus, the Jewish historian tells us that for no reason whatsoever, he suddenly withdrew from the city and headed back to Antioch. His decision however, was disastrous, as Jewish resistance fighters manning the ridges above the northbound mountain road succeeded in killing almost six thousand of the Romans. This respite gave the Christians who heeded the words of Jesus the opportunity to flee from Jerusalem.

So when you see standing in the holy place �the abomination that causes desolation�, spoken of through the prophet Daniel let the reader understand then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let noone on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house. Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. Matthew 24:1520 NIV

Why did Jesus here mention the winter and the Sabbath? Everything that Jesus said was important, and so we can assume that the Sabbath issue will be prominent at the end of time. We too will have to flee from the coming persecution of Rome, the �abomination that desolates.�

The Sabbath is the symbol of rest in His completed work on Calvary, and history tells us that God answered the prayers of those Christians who lived in Jerusalem in 70 A.D. They fled Jerusalem in November, just before winter and the day was a Wednesday. They founded a colony at Pella, south east of sea of Galilee and not one of those early Christians who accepted the prophetic word of Jesus died. In the same way, those living at the end of time, when the mark of the beast is promulgated, will have the opportunity to flee to solitary places, as did those early Christians in Jerusalem and God promises protection during these times.

Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. Isaiah 26:20

A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Psalm 91:7,8.

If we ignore the prophecies we will eventually perish as the disobedient Jews perished in the year 70 A.D. In the spring of that year, thousands of Jews flocked to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast of the Passover. Suddenly the city was surrounded by the Romans who came to avenge their 66 A.D. defeat. The inscriptions on the Titus arch in Rome tell us that Titus besieged the city after the Jews had gathered inside Jerusalem. As the siege progressed, disease, filth, and famine took their toll, and amid the panic, three gangster groups added to the horror by terrorizing their fellow Jews and competing viciously for control of the dwindling supplies. The historian Josephus even records that mothers ate their babies.

In spite of Titus� orders to preserve the temple, the beautiful temple complex was burned down and destroyed just as Jesus had predicted. Not one stone was left upon another because, in their search for molten gold, the Roman soldiers overturned every single stone. All that is left of the original Jerusalem from the time of Christ is the Wailing Wall, which formed part of the outer court of the temple.

Two hundred fifty thousand Jews perished in Jerusalem in 70 A.D. After the Romans captured the city they sacrificed pigs on the temple site to show their contempt for the Jews and also worshipped their heathen Roman banners. Ninety-seven thousand men, women and children were taken prisoner and many others were sent to Egypt and other countries as slaves. Moses had predicted the results of disobedience.

But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statues which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee. Deuteronomy 28:15

And he shall besiege thee in all thy gates, until thy high and fenced walls come down, wherein thou trustedst, throughout all thy land: and he shall besiege thee in all thy gates throughout all thy land, which the Lord thy God hath given thee. And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the Lord thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee. Deuteronomy 28:52, 53.

God told His people exactly what blessings they would enjoy should they obey and what curses they would experience if they should disobey. The choice was theirs. God�s law is not designed as a means of punishing the disobedient, but the consequences of disobedience are self-inflicted. God does not ask us to keep His law in order to be saved, but rather the law is given to those who are redeemed to protect them from harm. Obedience to God�s law is an expression of love; it is the means whereby we develop a friendship with Him.

If ye love me, keep my commandments. John 14:15

What Jesus told those early disciples, He is also telling us. Rome will once again persecute God�s people and we should read the signs of the times which tell us that the second coming of Jesus is nearer than ever before. When we study the prophetic word, we discover where we are in the stream of time. It is later than we think. It is time for us to wake up from our slumber and get ready for the second coming of Jesus.

The mark of the beast is the ultimate test of obedience. It will determine who will remain faithful to the precepts of Christ at all costs and who will fall under the banner of Satan. The keeping of the Sabbath is the greatest signal to the world that we believe that God is our Creator and our Redeemer. It is the signal that we acknowledge His authority and His authority alone in our lives, in terms of religious matters. In our time, anyone upholding the seventh day Sabbath will be subject to ridicule. The question might well be asked, �How can one keep the seventh-day Sabbath commemorating a six-day creation when the rest of the world adheres to evolutionary principles?� The question may also be asked how the whole world can be wrong, particularly in the light of miraculous signs among Sunday adherents, and only a few so-called fanatics be right. It will take courage to stand on God�s side. The issue is not a day. The issue is the acknowledgement of the entire government of God, for which the day is merely a sign.

...If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation: and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb; and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever; and they shall have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Revelation 14:911.

This article is excerpted from the book 'Truth Matters' by Professor Veith

REFERENCES:

 

 

 

 

[v] Extract from a letter written by the Chancellor of Cardinal Gibbons; 11 November 1895.

[vi] The Catholic World, March 1894, p.809.

[vii] Canon and Tradition, by Holtzman.

[viii] Catholic Doctrine as defined by the Council of Trent, by Nampon

[ix] The Catholic Mirror, Sept 23, 1893

[x] The Catholic Record, September 1, 1923

[xi] A Doctrinal Catechism, Stephen Keenan.

[xii] Library of Christian Doctrine, pp. 3,4

[xiii] Moral Life and Magisterium of the Church, 2032, The Catechism of the Catholic Church.

[xiv] 2065-2066, The Catechism of the Catholic Church.

[xv] Catholic Press (Sydney) August 25, 1900

[xvi] The Catholic Mirror, Sept.23, 1893

[xvii] Albert Smith, Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, replying for the Cardinal in a letter dated February 10, 1920

[xviii] John Gilmary Shea, in The American Catholic Quarterly Review, January 1883.

[xix] The Catholic Mirror, December 23, 1893.

[xx] Apostolic Letter "Dies Domini" of the Holy Father John Paul II to the Bishops, Clergy and faithful of the Catholic Church on keeping the Lord's Day Holy - Dies Domini of John Paul II on keeping the Lord's Day Holy (May 7, 1998)

[xxi] Apostolic Letter "Dies Domini" of the Holy Father John Paul II to the Bishops, Clergy and faithful of the Catholic Church on keeping the Lord's Day Holy - Dies Domini of John Paul II on keeping the Lord's Day Holy (May 7, 1998)

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it. -Exodus 20

---

 

In Leviticus 26, God admonishes Israel to walk in His ways and then He proceeds to list the blessings that would flow from obedience and the calamities that would plague them should they decide to turn their back on Him. In the great conflict between good and evil, there are only two sides - those aligned under the pagan standard of Satan and those aligned under the blood stained banner of Prince Emmanuel. Paganism is Satan�s answer to the Gospel. It is pleasing to the senses, it is tangible and because it is a system of salvation by works, it appeals to the fallen nature of man. To see, to feel, to touch, to do, to experience elation, these are things that are real to the human psyche, and because of this, paganism is so alluring and dangerous. The introduction to God�s list of blessings and curses, recorded in Leviticus, is very revealing:

Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the LORD your God. Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord. Leviticus 26:1,2

First there is the warning against idolatry, then the admonishment to keep the Lord�s sabbaths and reverence His sanctuary. Idolatry is directly opposed to these ordinances of God. The Sabbath of the ten commandments and the sabbaths of the ceremonial law distinguished the people of God from all other nations and bound them to God as His covenant people. God called the Sabbath of the Ten Commandments a sign between them and Him forever, for He was the One that sanctified them. (Exodus 31:17) The sanctuary pointed the way to salvation by the blood of the lamb and not salvation by works. The sanctuary teaches us that salvation lies outside ourselves. It is a gift of God, and only through Jesus Christ can it be obtained. What a humbling thought to the unrenewed mind.

The ten commandments are a transcript of God�s character. The first four commandments pertain to our relationship with God and the last six commandments pertain to our relationship with our fellow man. Taken individually, there is an inescapable logic to each of these commandments. It is obvious why we should not kill, why we should not lie to each other or steal from each other. And coveting that which belongs to one's neighbour has caused much misery in the history of mankind.

Chipping At Law The Sabbath commandment is different. There is no implicit logic in this commandment. There is no specific reason why one should keep the seventh-day Sabbath, other than that God specifically commanded it. More than any other commandment, the Sabbath is thus a test of faith. The Sabbath commandment contains elements not contained in any of the other commandments. It states the name of the Lawgiver (Lord or YHWH), His territory (heaven and earth), and His title (Creator). These three components comprise what is known as a seal, and lend authority to the law. The ten commandments gain their validity only from the royal seal of the Creator God embodied in the Sabbath commandment.

Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. In it thou shalt not do any work: thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy man servant, nor thy maid servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord (name) made (Creator) the heavens and the earth (jurisdiction), the sea and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day, wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it. Exodus 20: 8-11

In ancient times, kings were required to ratify decrees or commands with the royal seal. (Daniel 6:8, 1 Kings 21:8) Without a royal seal, no law would be valid. Moreover, even with a royal seal, a law is only valid in the area of the king�s jurisdiction. (Canadian law would not be applicable in Switzerland. Decrees issued by a president of any country would likewise not be applicable in another country.) So in a sense, it can be said that without a seal, no law would be valid anywhere. Likewise the ten commandments.

In order to understand the significance of the Sabbath, we have to turn to its very origins. The Sabbath was established at creation (Genesis 2:1-3). It is thus not a Jewish institution, but an institution deriving its origin from the very cradle of man. In the Sabbath commandment, the Sabbath serves as a reminder of God’s creative act. And in Deuteronomy 5:15, the Sabbath serves as a sign of God’s redemptive act:

Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand, and by an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day. NKJV

All human beings are slaves to sin, and God in Jesus Christ brought us out of sin with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. The Sabbath thus serves as a constant reminder of God’s redemptive act. The Bible teaches us that Christ Himself is the Creator. (Ephesians 3:9, Colossians 1:16, Hebrews 1:2) The Sabbath was a test of obedience (Exodus 16:4,5) and a memorial that would stand forever (Exodus 31:16,17).

The significance of the Sabbath as a test cannot be overestimated. God could have chosen any memorial to His creative act, but He chose a memorial set in time. Time cannot be eradicated or eliminated in the same way that a physical memorial, such as a city or holy place, could be eradicated.

If Christ Himself, the Creator, instituted the Sabbath for man (Mark 2:27) , then one could well ask why would He change it? Jesus, in fact, kept the Sabbath day faithfully. He even used the Sabbath day to announce His mission on earth (Luke 4: 16,18,19, John 9:14, Matthew 12: 8,12, Luke 13:14-17). In Isaiah 42:21, the prophet predicts that the Messiah would come to magnify the law, not to change it or declare it null and void. And in Matthew 24:20, Jesus eludes to the Sabbath in connection with future generations. The disciples of Jesus likewise kept the Sabbath day. (Acts 13:14,42; 16:13; 17:1,2; 18: 3,4,11) Christians, determined to prove that the Sabbath has been transferred from Saturday to Sunday, use eight texts in the Bible to support this viewpoint. These are:

First text:

In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. Matthew 28:1

This was written after the resurrection, and inspiration makes no mention of a change of the Sabbath day.

The New English Bible (NEB) renders the verse:

The Sabbath had passed, and it was about daybreak on Sunday when Mary of Magdala and the other Mary came to look at the grave.

Where the Authorized Version or King James Version says “First day of the week”, the NEB says "Sunday".

An historical record of the fact that the two Marys came to look at the grave at about daybreak on Sunday is Matthew’s one and only witness. Two days are mentioned. One is given a sacred title, “in the end of the Sabbath,” and the other numerical value, ‘’first day of the week.” Note also the first day did not begin until “the end of the Sabbath.” Since both Sabbath and Sunday (first day of the week) occur here, why did not Matthew link the transference from Saturday the Sabbath to Sunday the first day of the week as an holy ordinance?

Sunday sanctity is missing here, and it is not explained in either the verses before or after the verse in question. In fact, Mary did not attend to Jesus on the Sabbath day, because she rested in accordance with the commandment.

Then they returned and prepared spices and fragrant oils, and they rested on the Sabbath, according to the commandment. Luke 23:56 NKJV

Second text:

And when the Sabbath was passed, Mary Magdalene and Mary the Mother of James, and Salome had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint Him. And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun. Mark 16:1,2

Mark’s record was, according to some scholars, approximately ten years after the resurrection. Mark refers to the same event as was described by Matthew, and he agrees with Matthew that the Sabbath was passed. Again, we have Biblical evidence that the Sabbath and the “first day” are two distinct and separate days. Certainly Mark places no sacredness on the first day in this reference. These close followers of Jesus had come on Sunday to engage in labor the customary “embalming” of the body of the crucified Christ. They knew no sacredness attached to the day and were prepared to toil at a very unpleasant task.

Third text:

Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene out of whom He had cast seven devils. Mark 16:9

This verse declares that Christ “was risen early the first day of the week”, but there is not a word indicating that Sunday should henceforth be the new Christian Sabbath.

Fourth text:

And that day was the preparation, and the Sabbath drew on. And the women also which came with Him from Galilee followed after, and beheld the sepulchre and how His body was laid. And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments and rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment. Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. Luke 23:54,56, Luke 24:1

Christ was crucified on Good Friday in the afternoon before sunset and “that day was the preparation, and the Sabbath drew on.”

Friday was called the “Preparation”, implying preparation for the Sabbath. The Sabbath drew on at sunset. (Leviticus 23:32) The Sabbath was observed from Friday evening until Saturday evening. God ordained the reckoning of the day from sunset to sunset right from the very dawn of history as we read from Genesis 1:5,8:

The evening and the morning were the first day .... the evening and the morning were the second day...

Fifth text:

The first day of the week, cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre. John 20:1

We are all aware that the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John each give parallel accounts of the work of Christ on earth. This is the reason for the repetition in the above verses quoted. Nothing is said about Sunday sacredness, nothing to suggest that Sunday should be kept as the Sabbath.

Sixth text:

Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst and said unto them 'Peace be unto you.' John 20:19

The text says nothing about the disciples holding a meeting in honor of Christ’s resurrection. In fact, they took the resurrection report of Luke as “idle tales, and they believed them not”. (Luke 24:11)

It was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles. And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not. Luke 24:10, 11

As is stated clearly in John 20:19, “the doors were shut” not for a meeting or celebration of the resurrection, but “for fear of the Jews”. They were hiding from the Jewish persecutors. They assembled for fear and not for worship! While it is true that Christ rose from the grave on Easter Sunday, there is no evidence for keeping Sunday in honor of the resurrection. The Bible teaches that baptism is the memorial to the resurrection of Christ - not Sunday.

Seventh text:

The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us . . by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. I Peter 3:21 (See also Romans 6:3,4; Colossians 2:12)

While there are recorded by Luke in the book of Acts as many as eightyfour Sabbath services, there is only one 'first day' verse in Acts, and it does not support Sunday sacredness. This verse is:

And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight. Acts 20:7

The New English Bible identifies the time:

When the disciples came together to break bread, on the Saturday night in order to assemble for the breaking of bread, Paul, who was to leave the next day, addressed them, and went on speaking until midnight. Acts 20:7 NEB (Emphasis supplied)

An evening meeting is recorded on the first day of the week. This means that since the Sabbath ended at sunset (Sabbath from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday as already noted), the first day of the week began according to Bible reckoning. The New English Bible puts it in modern language and uses the words “on Saturday night”. It is recorded that Paul continued his speech until midnight on Saturday. Verse 8 says:

And there were many lights in the upper chamber, where they were gathered together.

Evidently, Paul had visited all day Sabbath with them, and was persuaded to stay on that night and speak further. Verse 11 of the chapter says:

...he talked a long while even until break of day, so he departed.

Paul did not stay on the Sunday, as one would have thought, if Sunday had obtained sanctity. Indeed, it was only after the Sabbath that the disciples came together to break bread (to have a meal together), and Paul spoke to them until daybreak (Sunday morning), and then left on a long journey by foot. In this case he traveled nearly 30 kilometers from Troas to Assos, where he joined the rest of the missionaries on board their ship. On the same day, they went to Metylene - a distance of 65 kilometers, and all this traveling was undertaken on the Sunday. (Acts 20: 13,14) The text is thus in support of Sabbath sanctity, rather than Sunday sanctity. The fact that they broke bread together on the Sunday is often used as a support of Sunday worship. This is however not the case, as the disciples came to break bread together every day of the week.

And they continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their food with gladness and singleness of heart. Acts 2:46

The partaking of communion is not limited to Sunday:

For as often as ye eat this bread and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till He comes. 1 Corinthians 11:26

Eighth text:

Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come. 1 Corinthians 16:1,2

Paul here is referring to tithes and offerings set aside for God's work. This was to be done on the first day of the week. As everywhere else in the world, at the end of the week (Friday), the laborer received his pay. Paul regarded the sanctity of the Sabbath so highly that he suggested that the laying aside and calculating of tithes and offerings should not be carried out in the preparation time before the Sabbath nor on the Sabbath. He suggested rather that this work be done on the first day of the week, so that it wouldn’t be spent on other less necessary items in the course of the subsequent week. Rather than to detract from the Sabbath, once again, this verse supports the Sabbath.

References to the Lord's Day

Verses that are often quoted in support of Sunday as the Sabbath, yet which do not refer to Sunday (the first day), are:

I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day. Revelation 1:10.

Therefore the Son of Man is Lord also of the Sabbath. Mark 2:28.

If Christ is the Lord of the Sabbath, then it follows that the Sabbath is the Lord’s day. The commandment calls it: “the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.” Exodus 20:10. (See Isaiah 58:13).

The original Sabbath, Saturday, is the Lord’s Day. However, in an effort to bolster Sunday sacredness, Bishop Sylvester in A.D. 325 applied the term Lord’s Day to Sunday without any Biblical authority.

The only other text that refers to the Lord’s Day is that of the prophet in the book of Isaiah, where the Sabbath is referred to as the Lord’s holy day. (Isaiah 58:13)

Colossians 2 and the Sabbath

Figure 5.1 Comparison Of God And His Law

God

His Law

God is Spiritual,
John 4:24

His law is Spiritual,
Romans 7:14

God is Love,
1 John 4:8

His law is Love,
Matthew 22:37-40

God is Truth,
John 14:6

His law is Truth,
Psalms 119:142

God is Righteous,
1 Corinthians 1:30

His law is Righteous,
Psalms 119:172

God is Holy,
Isaiah 6:3

His law is Holy,
Romans 7:12

God is Perfect,
Matthew 5:48

His law is Perfect,
Psalms 19:7

God stands Forever,
James 1:17

His law stands forever,
Psalms 111:7,8

God is Good,
Luke 18:19

His law is Good,
Romans 7:12

God is Just,
Deuteronomy 32:4

His law is Just,
Romans 7:12

God is Pure,
1 John 3:3

His law is Pure,
Psalms 19:8

God is Unchangeable,
James 1:17

His law is Unchangeable,
Matthew 5:18

The observance of the Seventh-day Sabbath is criticized by modern theologians on the grounds of Paul’s writings in Colossians. In Colossians 2:11-17, Paul admonishes the followers of Christ not to have a religion of legalism. He refers to the handwriting of ordinances which were nailed to the cross, and finally admonishes:

So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ. Colossians 2: 16, 17 NKJV

The handwriting of ordinances refers to the ceremonial law or shadow laws which pointed to the ministry of Christ. (See An Advocate for Our Time). The sabbaths referred to in verse 16 are mentioned together with food, drink, and festivals, none of which occur in the moral law. Paul is thus stating that the ceremonial law together with all the special sabbaths find their fulfilment in Christ. They were a “shadow of things to come” (Christ), as he states in verse 17. The Sabbath of the ten commandments is a memorial to creation and redemption, and are not a shadow of things to come. Christ did not abolish the law. Indeed, he states:

Do not think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets, I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. Matthew 5:17 NKJV

If you love Me, keep My commandments. John 14:15.

The Bible teaches us that the Lord does not change.

I am the Lord, I change not. Malachi 3:6

As one can readily see in Figure 5.1, God's law is a transcript of His character. It can no more change or end than can the eternal God Himself.

Jesus and the Sabbath

Did Jesus change the law or the Sabbath? No. He kept His Father’s commandments, for He said:

...I have kept My Father’s commandment and abide in His love. John 15:10

He kept the Sabbath according to Luke 4:16:

He came to Nazareth . . . and, as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day.

He also indicated that the Sabbath would be sacred forty years after the cross when, with reference to the coming fall of Jerusalem, He said:

Pray that your flight (from the city) be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day. Matthew 24:20

The Disciples and the Sabbath

I

Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.
Matthew 4: 10

II

Little children, keep yourselves from idols.
1 John 5:21

Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.
Acts 17:29

III

That the name of God and His doctrine be not blasphemed.
1 Timothy 8:1

IV

Pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day.
Matthew24:20

The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath; therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath.
Mark2:27,28

For He spake in a certain place on the seventh day on this wise. And God did rest the seventh day from all His works.... There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into His rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from His.
Hebrews 4:4,9 10

For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth.
Colossians 1: 18

V

Honor thy father and thy mother.
Matthew 19: 19

Vl

Thou shalt not kill.
Romans 19:9

Vll

Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Matthew 19: 18

Vlll

Thou shalt not steal.
Romans 19:9

IX

Thou shalt not bear false witness.
Romans 19:9

Thou shalt not covet.
Romans 7:7

The disciples and followers of Christ were not taught anything about a change of the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday, for they too kept Saturday according to the commandment. Luke 23:55,56 reads,

And the women also, which came with Him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulchre and how his body was laid. And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments: and rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment.

As we have seen in chapter 2, the entire moral law of God can be found reiterated in the New Testament.

Did Paul or the apostles change the Sabbath day from Saturday to Sunday?

The inspired Word of God in the book of Acts, as written by Luke, records the keeping of 84 Sabbaths by Paul and his companions, as mentioned earlier. We note first in Acts 13:14:

But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day...

This event occurred in 45 A.D., fourteen years after the resurrection, and Paul and his associates were still observing the Sabbath. He did not go to church only to preach to the Jews, for verses 42 and 44 add:

And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath. And the next Sabbath came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. Acts 13:42-44

The Gentiles also observed the Sabbath with Paul, and they heard the “word of God." No indication of a change is found. Besides worshipping in the synagogues, they also "on the Sabbath ... went out of the city by a river side." Acts 16:13 This was twenty-two years after the resurrection, in A.D. 53. Reading further, we come to Acts 17:2:

And Paul as his manner was, went in unto them, and three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures.

And finally:

...Paul departed from Athens, and came to Corinth; and he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks. Acts 18:1, 4

The eleventh verse adds:

And he continued there a year and six months teaching the word of God among them.

As this amounted to seventy-eight weeks in all, (he preached on 78 Sabbaths), which added to the above, makes 84 Sabbaths in which the Scriptures state that Paul and his companions worshipped.

Saturday, the seventh day Sabbath is taught and enjoined upon Christians throughout the Bible, while Sunday sacredness is not taught in a single text in all the Bible. If the Sabbath was not changed by God or Christ or the apostles, who changed it? We have to go outside the Scriptures for the change from Saturday to Sunday.

 

---

 

Papal Authority and the Change from Sabbath to Sunday

The papacy is the one organization on earth which claims that it is responsible for the change from Sabbath to Sunday. The Catholic priest, Father T. Enright, C. SS.R. of Redemptor Col­lege, quotes in The American Sentinel as follows:

I have repeatedly offered $1,000 to any one who can prove to me from the Bible alone that I am bound to keep Sunday holy. There is no such law in the Bible. It is a law of the Holy Catholic Church alone. The Bible says: “Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath day." The Catholic Church says: “No by my divine power I abolish the Sabbath day, and command you to keep holy the first day of the week." And lo! The entire civilized world bows down in reverent obedience to the command of the Holy Catholic church.2

James Cardinal Gibbons declared:

You may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day that we (Catholics) never sanctify. 3

Sunday is a Catholic institution, and its claims to observance can be defended only on Catholic principles ...From the beginning to end of Scripture, there is not a single passage that warrants the transfer of weekly public worship from the last day of the week to the first. 4

The Catholic Church, for over one thousand years before the existence of a Protestant, by virtue of her divine mission, CHANGED the day from Saturday to Sunday.5

In the New Jersey News of March 18, 1903, Father Brady had an article in which he said,

It is well to remind the Presbyterians, Methodists, and all other Christians that the Bible does not support them anywhere in their observance of Sunday. Sunday is an institution of the Roman Catholic Church and those who observe the day, observe a commandment of the Catholic Church.

The Catholic Virginian, of October 3rd, 1917 made this declaration:

Nowhere in the Bible do we find that Christ or the apostles ordered that the Sabbath be changed from Saturday to Sunday . . . Today, most Christians keep Sunday because it has been revealed to us by the Church (Roman) outside the Bible.

The Catechism of Catholic Doctrine states:

Question: Which is the Sabbath Day ?

Answer: Saturday is the Sabbath day.

Question: Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday?

Answer: We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church in the Council of Laodicea (A.D. 336), transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday. 6

On the 25th of January 1910, this catechism received the “apostolic blessing” of Pope Pius XI. In the East African, the Catechist is asked:

Question: What is the third commandment?

Answer: The third commandment is, “Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath day."

Question: What are we commanded by the third commandment?

Answer: By the third commandment we are commanded to keep Sunday holy.7

In a copy of The New Revised Baltimore Catechism:

The early Church changed the day of worship from Saturday to Sunday on the authority given to it by Christ. The New Testament makes no explicit mention that the apostles changed the day of worship, but we know it from tradition.8

What exactly is our authority - the Bible or Tradition? What did Christ have to say on this matter?

Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?...Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition ...But in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. Matthew 15:3,6,9

As the Sabbath is the commandment emphasizing the authority of the lawgiver, it is significant that this commandment has been changed. By changing the Sabbath, there is also a change in the authority of the lawgiver. Another day grants the authority to another entity. God is not the one that is paramount, but the substitute, the counterfeit, grasps this position for himself. Another god on earth has attempted to replace the true God.

Behind papal authority, there must thus be even a higher authority, that of the prince of the air, who was worshipped in pagan traditions under the symbol of the sun. He was the hidden one, the god behind the scenes. Sunday was the day dedicated to sun worship. Paul called it “the worship of demons”.

Sunday ... so called because this day was anciently dedicated to the sun, or to its worship. 9

Sunday, so called because it was dedicated to the worship of the sun.10

Sunday (Dies Solis of the Roman calendar, ‘day of the sun,’ being dedicated to the sun), the first day of the week11

This is a Jewish authority:

The day which the heathens in general consecrated to the worship and honour of their chief god, the sun, which, according to our computation, was the first day of the week.12

The most ancient Germans being pagans, and having appropriated their first day of the week to the peculiar adoration of the sun, whereof that day doth yet in our English tongue retain the name Sunday. 13

In the Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, it states:

It must be confessed that there is no law in the New Testament concerning the first day. 14

Through the influence of Mithraism (Persian sunworship) in the Roman empire and the heathen festival of Sunday, the pure church of Christ gradually fell into apostasy. Even in the days of the apostles the great apostasy had begun to develop. Paul wrote,

For the mystery of iniquity doth already work. 2 Thessalonians 2:7

He declared again:

For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves, shall men arise speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Acts 20:29,30

This departure from the faith would widen and grow to great proportions, said the apostle. A great “falling away”, or apostasy, would ultimately disclose “that man of sin”:

...the son of perdition: who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped, so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 2 Thessalonians 2:3, 4.

Sunday actually made very little headway as a Christian rest day until the time of Constantine the Great in the fourth century. Constantine was emperor of Rome from A.D. 306 to 337. One of the finest arches of triumph stands in his honour in Rome close to the Colosseum. He was a sun worshipper during the first years of his reign. Later he professed conversion to Christianity, but at heart remained a devotee of the sun. Edward Gibbon, in his Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire says:

The sun was universally celebrated as the invincible guide and protector of Constantine. 15

Constantine promulgated the earliest Sunday law known to history in A.D. 321. It reads:

On the venerable day of the sun let the magistrates and people residing in cities rest, and let all workshops be closed. In the country, however, persons engaged in agriculture may freely and lawfully continue their pursuits: because it often happens that another day is not so suitable for grain sowing or for vine planting: lest by neglecting the proper moment for such operations the bounty of heaven should be lost.16

The Encyclopedia Britannica (11th ed.), “Sunday”, makes the following claim:

The earliest recognition of the observance of Sunday as a legal duty is a constitution of Constantine in 321 A.D., enacting that all courts of Justice, inhabitants of towns, and workshops were to be at rest on Sunday (venerabili die solis), with an exception in favour of those engaged in agricultural labour.

Chamber’s Encyclopedia, reads:

Unquestionably the first law, either ecclesiastical or civil, by which the Sabbatical observance of that day is known to have been ordained, is the edict of Constantine, 321 A.D.17

Following this initial legislation, both emperors and popes in succeeding centuries added other laws to strengthen Sunday observance.

What began, however, as a pagan ordinance, ended as a Christian regulation. Close on the heels of the Edict of Constantine followed the Church Council of Laodicea (circa 364 A.D.):

Christians shall not Judaize and be idle on Saturday (Sabbath), but shall work on that day: but the Lord’s day, they shall especially honour, and as being Christians, shall, if possible, do no work on that day. If however, they are found Judaizing, they shall be shut out from Christ.18

Protestant Testimony

The notion of a formal substitution (of the first for the seventh day) ... and the transference to it, perhaps in a spiritualised form, of the sabbatical obligation established by ... the fourth Commandment, has no basis whatever, either in Holy Scripture or in Christian antiquity.19

Augustus Neander, celebrated church historian:

The festival of Sunday, like all other festivals, was always only a human ordinance, and it was far from the intentions of the apostles to establish a Divine command in this respect; far from them, and from the early apostolic Church, to transfer the laws of the Sabbath to Sunday.20

There never was any change of the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. There is not in any place in the Bible any intimation of such a change.21

Congregationalist testimony:

It is quite clear that however rigidly or devoutly we spend Sunday, we are not keeping the Sabbath ... The Sabbath was founded on a specific Divine Command. We can plead no such command for the obligation to observe Sunday ... There is not a single sentence in the New Testament to suggest that we incur any penalty by violating the supposed sanctity of Sunday. 22

The current notion that Christ and his apostles authoritatively substituted the first day for the seventh, is absolutely without any authority in the New Testament.23

Baptist testimony:

Dr. Edward T. Hiscox, author of the Baptist Manual:

There was and is a commandment to keep holy the Sabbath day, but that Sabbath day was not Sunday... It will be said, however, and with some show of triumph, that the Sabbath was transferred from the seventh to the first day of the week ... Where can the record of such a transaction be found? Not in the New Testament, absolutely not. There is no scriptural evidence of the change of the Sabbath institution from the seventh to the first day of the week.

In a paper read before a New York Ministers’ Conference held November 13, 1893, Dr. Hiscox goes on,

Of course, I quite well know that Sunday did come into use in early Christian history as a religious day, as we learn from the Christian Fathers and other sources; but what a pity that it comes branded with the mark of paganism and christened with the name of the sungod, when adopted and sanctioned by the papal apostasy, and bequeathed as a sacred legacy to Protestantism.

Lutheran testimony:

The observance of the Lord’s day (Sunday) is founded not on any command of God, but on the authority of the church.24

Methodist testimony:

It is true there is no positive command for infant baptism ... nor is there any for keeping holy the first day of the week.25

Take the matter of Sunday...there is no passage telling Christians to keep that day, or to transfer the Jewish Sabbath to that day. 26

Episcopal testimony:

Is there any command in the New Testament to change the day of weekly rest from Saturday to Sunday? None.27

Bishop Seymour writes:

We have made the change from the seventh day to the first day, from Saturday to Sunday, on the authority of the one holy Catholic and apostolic church of Christ.28

Presbyterian testimony:

A change of the day to be observed from the last day of the week to the first. There is no record, no express command, authorizing this change.29

The Christian Sabbath (Sunday) is not in the Scripture, and was not by the primitive church, called the Sabbath. 30

Church of Christ testimony:

I do not believe that the Lord's day came in the room of the Jewish Sabbath, or that the Sabbath was changed from the seventh to the first day. 31

David Lipscomb, editor of the Gospel Advocate says:

The question comes up: What are you keeping? The Sabbath? If so, our Seventhday friends are right. God never authorized any day but the seventh day to be observed as a Sabbath day. He never changed the Sabbath from the seventh to the first day of the week.32

Anglican testimony:

Many people think that Sunday is the Sabbath, but neither in the New Testament nor in the early church, is there anything to suggest that we have any right to transfer the observance of the seventh day of the week to the first. The Sabbath was, and is, Saturday and not Sunday, and if it were binding on us, then we should observe it on that day, and on no other.33

With all this protestant testimony, it is not surprising that the Roman Catholic church could state:

The Christian Sabbath is therefore to this day, the acknowledged offspring of the Catholic church, as spouse of the Holy Ghost, without a word of remonstrance from the protestant world.34

References:

* 2The American Sentinel (N.Y.) June 1, 1893, p.173
* 3The Faith of Our Fathers( 110th edition.) p.89.
* 4Catholic Press (Sydney, Australia), August 25, 1900
* 5Catholic Mirror, September. 23, 1893.
* 6Quoting from the Rev. Peter Geiermann, “The Converts’ Catechism of Catholic Doctrine”, page 50.
* 7The Catechism Simply Explained. Canon Cafferata, New Revised Edition 1959, p. 84.
* 8The New Revised Baltimore Catechism (1949) by Rev. F.J. Connell, C. SS.R. page 139
* 9Webster’s International Dictionary, 19th. edition.
* 10McClintock and Strong’s Biblical and Theological Encyclopedia , “Sunday"
* 11SchaffHerza Encyclopedia, “Sunday.”
* 12Jenning’s Antiquities, book 3, chapter 3.
* 13Verstegan's Antiquities, p. 10.
* 14McClintock and Strong, Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. 9, p. 196.
* 15Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Chapter 20, par. 3.
* 16(Given the 7th day of March, Crispus and Constantine being consuls each of them for the second time.) Codex Justinius, lib 3, tit. 12,3: translated by Philip Schaff, D.D., History of the Christian Church (sevenvolume edition, 1902). Vol. 111, p.380.
* 17 Chamber’s Encyclopedia(1982 ed.) Vol. Vl 11, p.401, “Sabbath”
* 18 A History of the Church Councils, Rev. Charles Joseph Hefele, D.D. (R.C.), from 326 to 429 (Vol.II, p. 316). Edinburgh: T. and T. Clark, 1896.
* 19Smith and Cheatham, A Dictionary of Christian Antiquities, “Sabbath”
* 20The History of the Christian Religion and Church, Rose’s translation, p. 186.
* 21First-Day Observance, pp. 17,19
* 23 Dr. Lyman Abbott (Congrega­tionalist) in Christian Union, Jan. 19, 1882.
* 24 The “Augs­burg Confession” quoted in Catholic Sabbath Manual, part 2, chapter , section 10.
* 25 M.E. Theological Compendium, p. 103.
* 26 Harris Franklin Rall, Christian Advocate, July 2, 1942.
* 27 Manual of Christian Doctrine , p. 127
* 28 Why We Keep Sunday?, p.28.
* 29 N.L. Rice, D.D., The Christian Sabbath, p.60.
* 30 Dwight's Theology, Volume 4, p. 401
* 31 Alexander Campbell, Washington Reporter, October 8, 1821
* 32 Lipscomb and Sewell, Questions Answered, p. 558,559.
* 33 Rev. Lionel Beere, Anglican AllSaints Church, Ponsonby, New Zealand, in Church and People, September 1st 1947.
* 34 The Catholic Mirror, Sept 23, 1893

This section is under development.

Top of tab

Just Another Man?, an episode from Dr. Walter Veith's Total Onslaught series.

Top of tab

Just Another Man? Dr. Walter Veith

Roy Allan Anderson. Unfolding the Revelation. Pacific Press Publishing Association.

The Temporal Power of the Vicar of Jesus Christ, p. 27

Decretal, de Translat. Episco, Cap

[iv] Pope Nicholas, Dist.96, Quoted in Facts for the Times, pp 55,56. 1893

Top of tab