Aunty, should we really put so much emphasis on the Sabbath?
24 June 2024 |
Dear Aunt Sevvy,
I have been a Seventh-Adventist Church member since 1975. Even after so many years, I am still puzzled by the amount of emphasis on the Sabbath in the Adventist Church.
Signed, Still Puzzled
Dear Puzzled,
Aunty is puzzled about why you are puzzled. You are, after all, a member of a church that didn’t think it necessary to put “Jesus” or “God” in its official church name, but did enshrine in it the seventh day of the week!
When our ancestors were disappointed by Jesus’ non-appearance in 1844, they reacted by trying to discover whether there was something additional required for Jesus to return. Under the influence of Seventh-day Baptists, they became convinced of the importance of the fourth commandment. Backed up by Ellen White’s prophetic authority, the pioneers declared that the Saturday Sabbath was the missing piece: the one commandment that had been neglected by nearly all other Christians. They read Revelation to say that keeping the Saturday Sabbath was the seal of God’s remnant church, identifying them as the people ready for Jesus’ return.
Aunty believes that the practice of the Sabbath—a day set apart for God and family—has been a blessing to us. However, using the Sabbath to identify us as the only true Christians (and in the minds of some, the only people God can save) has tended to make us snooty, complacent, and isolated.
Do all Christians have to keep the Sabbath to be saved? Aunty can’t believe that. Salvation is by faith in Jesus, and trying to model our lives after His. Aunty believes that being a real Christian is about more than what day you go to church.
Aunt Sevvy
Aunt Sevvy has collected her answers into a book! You can get it from Amazon by clicking here.
You can write to Aunt Sevvy at DearAuntSevvy@gmail.com. Your real identity will never be revealed.
