SDA Open Letter - Why is the NT Silent

This is part 4 of the series of questions that I posed to the SDA Leadership in Vanuatu

IF THE SABBATH IS ESSENTIAL FOR SALVATION AND IS A MANDATORY REQUIREMENT, WHY IS THE NEW TESTAMENT SILENT ON THIS?

I am going to throw one of your own arguments right back at you: If I read the New Testament, I cannot find one clear reference that insists on the Church worshipping on the Sabbath.  [actually, the New Testamemt is not completely silent about the Sabbath as you will read in other posts later, but the news is not good for you.]


I do read where the Apostles regularly went to the Synagogues on the Sabbath. However that would be understandable in the context of the period they were living in. One of the first responsibilities of the Apostles was to preach to the Jewish people. It therefore seems logical that if you are to preach to Jews, the best place would have been where Jews congregate, and that is in the Temple Compound and in the Synagogues. (Acts 13:14, 42; 17:2; 18:4)

[The Jews would attend the Synagogue for prayer and  for public reading from the Torah.  An example of this reading is seen whem Jesus read (Luke 4:16-20).

Morning prayer in a synagogue.

They did not spend time singing although singing was incorporated into the reading of certain scriptures. This however was limited to a few chosen people  such as the levitical priesthood and not for the congregation]


As I have stated, the fact that Paul and company went to the Synagogues on the Sabbath cannot be used as an argument for Sabbath keeping because as well as preaching on the Sabbath, Paul and others also preached on every other day. I have also stated that there was no corporate worship on the Sabbath. All references through the Old and New Testaments never mention or command Corporate Worship. What I find interesting is that in every case where the Sabbath is mentioned, this occurred outside Jerusalem and even outside Israel (or Judea, Palestine and Samaria) in Gentile cities. It seems obvious to most that the Apostles intended to meet Jews and Jews could be found in Synagogues.

I will give a Vanuatu example. If I want to meet chiefs, where do I go and when? The best place is in a Nakamal in the afternoon when they go and drink kava. There is no point in trying to find them in a café. Sure they may drink coffee at a café, but a nakamal is my best chance of talking to them. If I go too late, the kava works on them and I am wasting my time talking!

I notice an interesting verse in Acts as well that happened on a Sabbath. This was in a place called Philippi (Paul wrote a letter to them once, it is called Philippians and is in your bible). Anyway, on this occasion, we read where Paul and others went outside the city gates for prayer and there they met some women, and so they preached to them. One woman called Lydia was there. She was described as a “God Fearing Woman.” (Acts 16:13-15). Why I find this interesting is that if the Apostles and women like Lydia were truly observant of the Sabbath, then they would know that by walking out of the city (outside the limits of one’s place of residence) violated the Sabbath law (Ex 16:29)?

BONUS MATERIAL
Let's expand by what I mean by Lydia and the others not being truly observant of the Sabbath.. This example shows a group of Godfearing women meeting on the Sabbath away from their homes with an Apostle.  We read earier that some disciples met on Sunday(or the first day of the week) in Acts 20:7.  Here we have believers meeting on the Seventh Day.  A thing to note from Acts is that the believers (disciples) met ANY day and EVERY day.


Here we will introduce some other things that the rabbis also outlawed.  Here is what an Orthodox Jew today would adhere to (taken from chabad.org):

Let's start with some basic activities from which we refrain on Shabbat: 

1. writing, erasing and tearing;
2. business transactions;
3. driving or riding in cars or other vehicles;
   
4. shopping;
5. using the telephone;
6. turning on or off anything which uses electricity, including lights, radios, television, computer, air-conditioners and alarm clocks;
7. cooking, baking or kindling a fire;
8. gardening and grass-mowing;
9. doing laundry;
 

Notice the things that seem to matter  most to SDAs, no shopping,  no business transactions, no cooking or lighing fires, no laundry.  but what about the rest such as no driving or even being driven.  And how about not using phones? Does the SDA church intend on banning those? 
 Of course, you wont find a reference in the bible telling you not to use your mobie phone or to drive, but as new things emerge, the rabbis try and ascertain whether it fits into the law or not.

Let's look at number 6 above.   You cannot turn a light on or off. So strict Sabbath observers will actually disable the icebox light before Sabbath, so that when they open the icebox door, the light wont come on!

Here is some more instructions that the modern Sabbath keeper is required to adhere to:

On Shabbat one may not carry or transfer objects between a "reshut ha-yachid" (private, enclosed domain, such as the house); and a "reshut ha-rabim" (public domain, such as the street). Examples of this prohibition include: carrying in one's pocket; carrying anything in the hand; wheeling a baby carriage or shopping cart, going outside with gum or food in the mouth.(Source: chabad.org

So it therefore violates the Sabbath to carry a bible to church or putting your tithe money in your pocket, or carryingon your person your mobile phone.

This modern list have evolved out of what are known as the 39 traditional sabbath laws of the Talmud that were used by the pharisees in the time of Jesus. (Please note that I am not endorsing the Talmud here) You read all of them here.

So what is the overall theme here when looking to see if something  violates Sabbath or not? It all comes down to one thing - You must do no work on the Sabbath.  Sabbath means one thing - rest, or cessation.

The irony is that by the SDAs DRIVING or BEING DRIVEN to church, and often TURNING ON a light or lighting candles on Friday night, and USING MOBILE PHONES on Saturday begs the question - are SDAs violating the Sabbath every week?  The short answer is no they are not, but the longer answer and reason will surprise you.

To be continued...

[The Telmud is the Orthodox Jewish (Rabbinical Judaism's) recordings of interpretation of the Hebrew Scriptures (The Law, the writings and thd prophets) that we Christians would refer to as the Old Testament.  The Telmud is thereforea collection of interpretations by historical Rabbis through the ages.  In essence, the Talmud is to the Jew what the Doctrines and Covenants and Book of Mormon are to Mormons, and what the teachings of Ellen G White are to SDAs - that is, NOT scripture  and therefore dangerous to use for forming sound doctrine.]