, 1859-08-02
THE SUNDAY QUESTION.
Tic Continued Obligation OF tho Sab
BATH

| Conclusion.
| The only questions then which remain arc,
how % Christ regard the sabba,A' did h
treat it With contempt, or With rexpec. and did
he teach bis disciples to houor the weekly day
OF rest and worship! Did lis inspired Apostles,
authorized to reguiate the worship Of his Church
| reeoguiz3 such day: And what day is it:
| ! eau ,bnt enuInerate the facts that Christ
hau,toalIy hcnored .ae Sabbath himself er at
tending public worship; that he slgnulized It as
the duS Of blessing by performing u gseuter
number OF works Of mercy on that day than any
| other; that he siadicatea bis conduct in So
| doing. from the chnrge Of Sabbath, breaking
brought against him by the Jews, BY references
10 the Law and to the conduct Of bis Father US
| one who still donors the Sabbath by bestowipc
special blessings on mankind on that day; aud
t!at be taught his disciples 10 pray that their
Hight from persecution Mt its Destruction 10
years after his death, might nut BE- on the Sab
bath day a1l which arc utterly inconsistent
with the notion that he abolished tic Sabbati.
H as Jewish ceremony. On the contrary We dnd
moral lass Of perpetual force. fton. the rubbish
Of fhafiseeisin affirming in the most general
terms that the Sabbath was made for nlnu !; aud
asserting lis own special authority oyer It aud
property in it us the Saviour Of mankind, by
saying" The Son Of Man is Lord Of the Sab.
bath" This is quite sufficient 10 prove tue
continued obligation Of The sabbath On Christ
inns; and if there were no more recorded in the
Bible, it would appear that the day all along
observed By the Church Of God should continue
still to be observed as the weekly Sabbath. So
far there is not tile shadow Of the abolition Of
tse Il. sacred day ofwcskIy worship. The changc
Of the day, from the last to the first dav of tie
week, il quite adifIerent question from, that Of
the abolition Of the weekly Sabbath; aud does
not IN any way suppose it, hut quite tho con-
trary-
TIE evidence for the change Of the day is Of
the same nature as the evidence for the ins,itu-
tion Of the ordinance-the example Of tue Lord
Of the Sabbath, ~ho selected tue ir.t tlav Of the
week, the day OF llis resurrection, for his first
vlslt to lis church to announce that great event,
and to t'tstow his 6enediction on thnsc asseni.
bled. (5ohn 800, ss}; and who. o.ai,ting the
Whole OF the intervening "eek, ! second time
cam INTO .s sse's on ths sae day and
been supposed that tho first visit on that
day Was accidental; but the second WIS er-
identity designed to put special honor
On that day. For how did it come to pass
that the disciples were all assembled OIL that
day-including Thomas who bad been absent
and there Chtist's design to give special hou1F
TO the first day Of the week by passing over the
others Is se1ferident; or which is more likely,
they met On that day By bis special appolnt-
ment; either Of which establishes ta.c po1at, Of
the transfer Of the special honor OF the sabbath
- o4y ~. III lntelcourSe Will tnt1st, u that
day which be thus plainly selected for meeting
with his disciples. Since that time the Worship
Ping assemblies Of Christians were held on that
day. Paul stopped on his journey the greater
part Of tue week ut Troas, shas be might wor-
ship with the church on the first day Of the
Eeek when the disciples came together to break |
bread {Acts XIII The apostles established |
hat rs the day Of public worship, aud directed
the mode OF its observance; 80 that it was n |
we'll known institution among tn, Greek
within 80 years nfter the death Of |
Christ, to gather together on the first daT Of !
!he week 4 Corinthians xvi. u i xas we'll |
known to the whole Christian world ~ the day |
specially devoted to the worship Of Christ, and |
bearing his nane-as it had previously been \
known to the heathen rs the day for the wur.
ship Of the Sun By the same mask-el.e John /
Ind not dated hia visious in the Apocalypse as
to him On tie Lords Day. From
which We further learn that ii in the solitude Of |
desert Patmos Christ garc 10 bis oan dav Tie
honor Of being the day of the revelation Of |
mans destiny and Of Gods purposes, the
Of the day does not consist merely
ia the assemblies for public worship; for here
IA solitude it Is fecog1ized as the Lords Dav
oy the venerable Apostle and by his Divine
Master
Against the observance Of the Lords dAy,
md Of any weekly day Of sacred rest and holy I
Eorship, II is attempted to bring three passages
soni ths APOSTLE f.nl, n it he 1ere opposed TO
rs AAss1T anu 10 Inc other Apostles, aud we're
likely 10 oycrth-ow With his pen what he had
9uils up BY bis presenee and example. The
inst Of these is Rom. xiv j. "Oue man es.
eemeth one day ADORE another: smother man
every day alike Let every man Ia
nily persuaded in his awn mind" The context |
'hows plainly that The days and meats here u |
uded to werc those Of the Jewish Law: that |
p5ul could not bring the Lords Day, which be
himself Observed, into this comparison. nor
Foud it be true, if the Lorl's dav were included
n his argument, that anr Of the Church Of Romo
.steerac1 every day alike. IL does not hero
eter Al al to tho Lords Dar Il stands gu q
liderent basis altogether.
The next passage is ono iu which he charges |
be Galatians viii observing days, aud months,
md times, and years, IS fault. II is quite evi-
lent both That the days, and months, aud lines,
md years here mentioned are those Of the Old t
)ispeusatiop !; for it is under a notion Of being |
Ircun1cised and keeping the law of Moses that
ney observed them aud also that it was not |
o much the fact Of their observance OF these
ays which ho condcmned-for he observed T.
aen himse1f-as their notirc for doing SO,
amely, to pnt their observance in place Of tbs
osptl Of Christ. Doubtless he would hare con-
emued, n MI Hbla Christians do, such super
tltanus obseErance even Of the Lorl's Day but
hat in 10 way initiates against It's proper ase-
The REMAINING pasesgs ID. in Col. e. Is, "Let
Q 1an judge Jon IN Esa2eet Of meats or Of
Flnk9, or O. new moons. or Of ula Sabbath
~, and j. pxeetssly Of ths s4ns import ~
10 other. Tbs Sabbath, w1s than appropriated
, common usage to tn Jswish SAbhath days;