The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1899-04-24
AS TOTHE SABBATH DAY
Remember the Sabbath Day to Keep
Il Holy"
INTERESTING SERMON BY REV. J. DUNCAN
Df the second Baptist Church-one
OF series ON the Ten Conn
mHndmcnts.

ali thy work; but the seventh day is tho
sabbath Of the Lord, thy God. In IL thou
shalt not do any work; thou, nor thy son.
nor thy daughter, shy man servant nor
thy maid servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy
stranger that is within thy gates. ''-Exo-
dus Xxx. Sill.
In this course OF lectures on the ten
commandments 1t is understood that | adj
dress myself to men aud women who be-
iieve in the Bible and the God who gave
lis the Bible. We have nothing to do with
the atheist or even the skeptic who would
have us think that he believes that parts
OF the Bible are to be trusted, while other
parts are only the suggestions OF frail, in
fallible men. To the man who rejects the
penary inspiration of the Bible, what we
may say Will be of little weight or worth,
but to the man who heartily receives the
Bible as a message from the only true,
infinite God our deductions from these
commandments, we trust, viii be helpful.
We proceed, then, with the understanding
that the Fourth commandment of Jehovah
was spoken by Himself to mankind.
through the assembled hosts of Israel.
from the summit of awful Sinai.
Our English word Sabbath Is only
transitcration of the Hebrew word Shob-
both, which means "a rest from labor.
il will be observed that the word implies
work. for there must first be labor before
there can be rest. When Inc Son ~ God
came into this world in human BOG lie
interpreted many portions of the moral
law, correcting many hurtful errors into
which the ritualstic times had fallen. The
pharisees Of his time attached an import
sncc to tho Sabbath as an institution not
.lta H..
OF ritualism which put the institution
above the man. the law above the princi-
pie IL was meant to uculcate. When
Christ was accused OF being volator of
the Sabbath law for healing The sick on
tho sabbath he affirmed that "the sabbath
was made for man, not man for the Sab
bath. Mark IT,. 93-2S Let all men know,
therefore, that God did not lay any un-
necessary embargo on man in giving him
command 10 observe His sabbath Il
was for mans good and its observance
has always been for the best interests OF
the individual and the race.
u Will not be out of place hero 10 note
the elementary fact that demands the
existence OF the Sabbath, which Is that
human life IS essentially one OF toll. There
is very hurtful and erroneous teaching
abroad in Christian lands, which is that
labor came TO man as punishment for
his early sin. The truth is, mans normal
condition is one of labor Before the fall
Adam was commanded to cultivate the soil
OF which he was n part. After his sin, the
soil was cursed with thorns for his sake
may we add for his good. In the first
era he was to dress pliabe nature, in
The second he was commanded to subdue
the earth. to keep the earth from sub
DUNG him Another has we'll said that
man was commanded to work. Ia For the
earth's sake, that he might subdue It,
ataa lx.t.s
beautify 1t and make it a Joy rather than
a place of sorrow and shame tb) He
was commanded to work for his own sake
He is so constituted that he can't reach
any profitable degree of development with
out due physical exercise. He did not
have his food and raiment furnished him
ready cooked and ready made for the
good reason that this would have fallen
out TO his utter undoing. There Is nothing
achieved in this life worth having without
the expenditure OF great labor The most
arduous laborers. who do so wisely, are
AS a rule, most successful. CO. He was
commanded for Gods glory After all.
this is the chief object of mans existence.
After all has been said about mans noble
individuality and personal liberty. he is
only a steward u servant one. with a trust,
whose chief thought should be service
TO Him who created and directs human
lie. 1t is hardly necessary, in this age.
In this country, to urge upon the average
man the necessity OF labor ali realize H.
out properly directed labor is the all i'm
portant question, In this restInss rusbinp
age Wherever Christian civilization has
gone we need rather to urge men To lahnr
along iudcous lines, at proper time and
In proper ways.
An organisms endowed with life must
observe regular periods OF work and rest
III suner IN consequence of such failure.
me vegetable kingdom has its Sabbaths-
us rests from work. Tho trees Ehor in
spring and summer, bear their hnrvests
IN autumn and rest in winter. Even mo
SOL must have regular periodic labor and
rest 10 DO It's best work, The husbandulan
mas learned that his trees may be over
worked and as result Inferior fruit 4,
gathered. The lower animals have tbair
sapbaths, or rests. They instinctiveIy toll
Tor food, and when full lie down to rest
ana sleep, allowing tired nature to re-
cuperate, Those who work horses mud
other cattle have discovered that their
cattle can not thrive on every day toll /;
tney DO better service and last longer II
allowed TO rest one day out OF seven. IL
the vegetable and the lower animal king
doms need regular periods OF rest for their
Wen being how much more does man d?
IL left to themselves the lower Kingdoms
do that which is best for them but man.
created in the image of God, was not en-
.'NNNH WIN AhSSc uutItluk INSTINCTS. But
he has reason, a higher law. but since the
fall he has become so depraved that reason
can not always assert itself. hence God In
mercy has supplied reminders in the form
Of commands to enable man to avoid those
things which. IN their nature, work his
undoing, and practice such virtues as In .
sure his happiness. The Sabbath law aomes
to us as one of the greatest Blooms known
TO our race, AS little as we are able 10 ap-
preciate II. Man can not keep In health
apd do his best longer than about SIX DAYS
at time. His physical organism demands
r3st and relaxation. Poor illguided France
once legislated God out OF her realm, as
she thought. She said there is no God.
but human reason. Then she did the most
unreasonable thing the world. ever knew.
set up base woman as the goddess OF
reason and offered to her that homage
which belongs alone TO God France did
away by law with the Christian Sabbath
and substituted every tenth day as a rest
dc. It took her only a short tim to see
her folly, and she again formally aclxnowl-
edged the God of the Universe and re-
turned 10 His seventh day Sabbath as the
lawful day OF rest. The wsest scientists.
many OF them not in love With Christianity
or the Christians God. have given their
unstinted Testimony to the blessings com :
ing TO the race through the Sabbath OF the
Bible. Or. William Draper. the great
physical Scientist. not lover Of Christian
ity In his human Physiology says Out
OF the numerous blessings conferred on