THE FORGOTTEN COMMANDMENT

"And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai,
two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God." (Exodus 31:18)

Though there were other ceremonial or sacrificial laws spoken to Moses upon Mount Sinai, only
the ten commandment law was written with the finger of God. This distinction should be as
important to advocates of the Bible today, as it was to the children of Israel in the days of
Moses. To further show their importance, God commanded Moses to place these sacred tables
inside of the Ark of the Covenant (Deuteronomy 10: 4-5), while the law of the
ordinances written in Moses' handwriting were to be placed in the side of the Ark (Deuteronomy
31:24-26.)

It would seem, that God went to great lengths to distinguish between the eternal law (The Ten
Commandments) and the law which was to be the "schoolmaster" (Galatians 3:25.) Still, many
Christians today teach that the Ten Commandments were nailed to Jesus' cross along with the
ceremonial laws. Citing such scriptures as Colossians 2:14 and Romans 6:14, they claim this
belief to be Biblical. The teaching that the entire Ten Commandment law has been
abolished can easily be disputed with a simple question and answer dialogue:

Q. "Are we free to have another god before God?

A. "No, of course not!
Q. "Are we free to make a graven image and bow down to it?
A. "No, of course not!"
Q. "Are we free to take the Lord's name in vain?"
A. "No."
Q. "Are we free to dishonor our mother or father?
A. "No."
Q. "Are we free to kill?"
A. "No!"
Q. "Are we free to commit adultery?"
A. "Of course not."
Q. "Are we free to steal?"
A. "No."
Q. "Are we free to lie?"
A. "No."
Q. "Are we free to covet?"
A. "No."
Q. "Are we free to break God's Sabbath day?"
A. "The sabbath was for the Jews. We are no longer under the law."

Upon concluding such a dialogue, it is evident that the person questioned has been
misrepresenting his or her belief that the Ten Commandments were abolished. It is apparent
now, that the belief is not that all ten have been nailed to the cross, but in fact, only one
commandment has been taken away by Christ's death. It seems ironic that this one
commandment (the fourth) is the only commandment God has warned us to "remember" Exodus
20:8-11.)

Other enemies of the Sabbath commandment are those who believe Sunday to be the sacred day
of rest. Citing scriptures pertaining to the breaking of bread (Acts 20:7) and to the laying aside
of offerings (1 Corinthians 16:2,) these followers of tradition believe that Paul (or Jesus himself)
changed the Sabbath from the seventh day to the first day of the week to celebrate the
resurrection of Jesus Christ. But nowhere in the book, believed by Christians to
be the sacred Word of God, can any evidence of this change be found. It is tradition, not
inspiration, which they are following. How this tradition came to be accepted by Christians is
well documented in the pages of history.

After the death of Christ, his followers or disciples traveled throughout Palestine, Asia Minor,
Greece, and even Rome preaching the Lord's message, converting both Jews and Gentiles to
Christianity. While many of the converted Jews brought into the church ceremonial laws such as
circumcision and sacrifices, many of the pagan converts brought in their traditions as well.

[1] Mithraic sun worship was becoming very popular among the Romans during the early
Christian era. In fact, during the reign of [2] Emperor Aurelian (A.D. 270-275,) this Sun cult
was made the official religion of the Roman Empire. The words, [3] "Sol Dominus Imperii
Romani" (The Sun, the Lord of the Roman Empire) can be found engraved on the coinage of this
period. The fact that the sun was referred to as "Lord" is of no small significance. We can easily
see how "dies solis" (Sun Day) came to be known in the Christian world as the "Lord's Day,"
considered by most modern day Christians as the day dedicated to God in celebration of Christ's
resurrection.
However, many Christians continued to keep the [4] Jewish Sabbath (Saturday) as a day of rest
into the middle of the fifth century. Although Emperor Constantine in his
Edict of Milan (321 A.D.) had called for the observance of the "venerable day of the sun"
(Sunday) as a day of rest, he also left the individual to choose his or her religion or doctrine. [5]
Thus many Christians were observing both Saturday and Sunday.

This did not satisfy the Bishops of the Roman Catholic Church. They felt there must be a
complete and utter break from Judaism. At the council of Laodicea, during the late fourth
century, it was decided by the Bishops that:

[6] "Christians shall not Judaize and be idle on Saturday, but shall work on that day; but the
Lord’s day shall they especially honor, and as being Christians, shall if possible, do no work on
that day. If, however, they are found Judaizing, they shall be shut out from Christ."

Being "shut out from Christ" began to mean much more to Christians than merely having their
names removed from the church records. As with other accused heretics, Sabbath keeping
Christians were persecuted by the Roman Church and either dispersed or driven underground.

Gradually, the edict of the council of Laodicea was forgotten by the people, and by tradition,
Christians kept Sunday as the Sabbath of God, not discerning the difference. This accepted
tradition prompted [7] the Archbishop of Reggio, during the council of Trent, to declare boldly
that tradition stood above scripture. The authority of the church could therefore not be bound to
the authority of the scriptures because the church had changed Sabbath into Sunday, not by the
command of Christ, but by its own authority. He concluded that tradition signifies continual
inspiration.

That the Roman Catholic Church has changed the Sabbath of the fourth commandment from
Saturday to Sunday is not a hidden fact. Many Catholic writings like the following, reveal, not
only the changes, but an uncanny pride in making the change:

[8] "Q. Which is the Sabbath Day?

"A. Saturday is the Sabbath Day.
"Q. Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday?
"A. We observe Sunday instead of Saturday be because the Catholic Church transferred the so
lemnity from Saturday to Sunday."

[9] "The Catholic Church for over one thousand years before the existence of a Protestant,
by virtue of her divine mission, changed the day from Saturday to Sunday."

[10] "Q. Have you any other way of proving that the church has power to institute festivals of
precept?

"A. Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree
with her; she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday the first day of the week, for
the observance of Saturday the seventh day, a change for which there is no scriptural authority."

As a follower of Christ, can the modern-day Christian truly justify the neglecting of the Fourth
Commandment of God simply because tradition has made it such a hardship to observe Saturday
as the Sabbath. Should the Christian not heed the words of Christ himself, in Mark 7:7-9, where
we read:

"Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For
laying aside the Commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men...Full well ye reject the
Commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition."

"In vain" we worship God, if we worship according to tradition, rather than according to the
Holy word or Commandment of God.

It is a real shame that the Christians of the world today have forgotten the one Commandment
that God, with his own finger, has admonished us to "Remember," the one Commandment that
reveals God as not only the God of the Catholics, or Baptists, or Jews, or Gentiles; but rather the
God of all creation.

Truly, God's people should... "Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy."
(God)

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