John 8:47 states, “He that is of God hears God’s words.” Let’s see what He says about the Sabbath – the seventh day Sabbath. Scripture always has reference to the seventh day when it mentions the Sabbath. Many seem unaware that days in the scriptures did not begin and end at midnight. The Romans gave us that novel way of beginning and ending a day. How was someone to know it was midnight prior to the invention of clocks and watches? God’s reckons time differently than man. Scripturally a day began and ended at sunset. That way all but the blind could easily tell a new day had begun – it got dark. That’s why we read in Genesis 1, and the evening and the morning were the first day, etc. Thus, God’s Sabbath, first mentioned in Genesis 2, begins at sundown Friday and ends at sundown Saturday. Read the opening verses of Genesis 2. God blessed and sanctified that period of time. Now keep reading to the last verse of Revelation. (You’ll have about 1800 more pages to go). You’ll find that God nowhere, at no time, through no one de-sanctified HIS Sabbath. (He calls the Sabbaths such in scripture). Thus, it is still in 2025 sanctified, or holy, time. You’ll notice something else: nowhere, at no time, through no one does God sanctify or bless Sunday, the first day of the week.
Multitudes overlook the fact that at the very outset of His ministry on earth Jesus said, “Man (mankind, not just the Jew) shall live BY EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.” (See Matthew 4:4). I have had more than one “Christian” tell me, “I don’t get my doctrine out of the Old Testament.” Where on earth do they think the apostles and teachers in the early church got their doctrine? There was no New Testament until hundreds of years after the death of the last apostle! Do these believers think New Testaments were printed up by hand and distributed to the various assemblies shortly after the beginning of the Church Age? I found out a long time ago that the average believer thinks about as deeply as my neighbor’s cat. What do these mighty theologians do with Paul’s words to Timothy, a fellow minister of the Word: “ALL scripture (New AND Old Testaments) is given by inspiration of God, AND IS PROFITABLE FOR DOCTRINE, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect (complete, well-rounded, spiritually mature), thoroughly furnished (equipped) unto all good works” (2 Timothy 3:16-17) Those who crow, “I don’t get my doctrine out of the Old Testament” are actually saying, “I don’t agree with the apostle Paul, nor do I agree with Jesus Christ” – remember, Christ said we are to live by EVERY WORD that proceeds out of the mouth of God. They are in total agreement with their pastors and preachers, of course. That is where the average believer gets their doctrine – from fellow human beings – fallible, bickering, dissenting, disagreeing fellow human beings. Pathetic, isn’t it?
Christ’s Aged Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),
Donald Wiley