The Test of Loyalty
As you study the Book of the Apocalypses you quickly discover that Chapters 12-14 give some insights into the ISSUES of the final conflict between good and evil. Careful examination reveals that TWO WORDS—‘Commandments’ and ‘Worship’ that are sort of PROMINENT. That is what you want to do when you study any text—you look for the prominent words. Key words. And one of many way to determine which words are central is to see how often they are used. So, two words are prominent and they are: COMMANDMENTS and WORSHIP.
Let’s look first at the word COMMANDMENTS:
The best place to begin is Revelation 12:17:
“Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her offspring—those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.”
These two are the same description of faithful is found in Revelation 14:12: “This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus.”
Since everyone in the Christian world says that they ARE ‘faithful’ to Jesus, is hard to use as an objective test of LOYALTY at the time of crisis. Obeying God’s Commandments on the other hand is more easily measurable and observable. Text also implies that the Commandments of God will somehow will be an ISSUE between God’s faithful people and those who are deceived.
Another focus of these Chapters is on the word ‘WORSHIP’:
The conflict between the dragon and the remnant centers on another word that appears over and over in Revelation 13-14—“worship.”
· In Revelation 13:4 “Men worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast.”
· Revelation 13:8 “All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast.”
· In Revelation 13:12 “He exercised all the authority of the first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed.”
· Revelation 13:15 “He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.”
· And so it goes in Chapter 14:6, 9-11.
· Eight times just in these two Chapters 13 and 14 attention is called to WORSHIP.
It is a crucial word throughout this section of the Book. At the END the TESTING TRUTH for the world is CENTERED on the matter of PROPER WORSHIP.
So TWO words, Commandments and Worship are the CLUES that Bible gives us to understand the Issue of the Final Conflict.
Now, how these two words relate to each other? Through ‘SABBATH KEEPING’!
Think of this for a moment: Can you come to the Church on the right day, and never really worship?
· Yes, if you come with the wrong offering, like Cain(Genesis 4:3-9)
· Yes, if you worship someone else, like Israel at the Mount Carmel, (1Kings 18:16-46)
· Yes, if you want to achieve a good goal (salvation) through bad means like Satan tempted Jesus (Matthew 4:8-10)
There is big difference between keeping the Sabbath and worshipping of Sabbath.
Every genuine Sabbath keeper is Sabbath worshiper. But not every Sabbath worshiper is genuine Sabbath keeper.
Why Would God pick an issue like this (SABBATHKEEPING as the central focus of the end-time crisis?
I would like to suggest three reasons.
1. Sabbathkeeping is the ideal response to the Gospel.
The Gospel tells us that Jesus has earned for us what we could not earn for ourselves—a right standing with God. “Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law… But now righteousness from God, apart from the law, has been made known, to which the Law and the prophets testify.” Romans 3:20-21.
We can add nothing to the perfect work of Christ that makes us right with God. All we can do is with the repentant spirit to ENTER into God’s REST. Sabbath is the ideal response to the Gospel because it is founded on the principle of REST after finished work.
It is so natural for humans to try to earn our salvation that we need a regular reminder that first work of the Christian is to REST in what Christ has done.
“There remains, then a Sabbath-rest for people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work… Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest.” Hebrew 4:9-11
At the heart of the Gospel is RESTING IN JESUS’ accomplishments, not mine…
2. Sabbathkeeping is the ideal test of loyalty.
The Sabbath command is different from any other nine Commandment. All others have a certain basis in reason and self-interest. The one part of the Ten Commandments that is not ‘logical’ is the command to “keep the Sabbath holy.” Rather than any other day! After all, no one has been able to demonstrate scientifically a significant difference between Saturday and any other day of the week. The only difference between Saturday and any other day of the week IS THAT GOD HIMSELF MADE DISTINCTION between them. There can be NO real test of loyalty where self-interest is involved.
“Do it just because I ask you to.”
At the END, the Sabbath test becomes the ideal test to see if WE SERVE GOD because of who He is OR because of what we can get from Him.
3. Finally, I believe the Sabbath is important at the END because it is part of following Jesus all the way.
And what is the message of this great heart of the Ten Commandments? “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it Holy.”
“When the Lord finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, He gave Him the two tablets of the Testimony, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God.” Exodus 31:18 (NIV)
Moses clearly declares here in Exodus that God wrote these Ten Commandments with His own finger on two tablets of stone.
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, not your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maid servant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.
For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but He rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”
Exodus 20:8-11 (NIV)
When Jesus was on this Earth, He never kept Sunday; He kept Saturday. He set an example of Sabbathkeeping. If we want to follow Jesus all the way we will follow Him also in His observance of the Sabbath.
When the world is falling apart and every wind of doctrine is blowing, full loyalty to God will prove to be the ONLY SENSIBLE WAY to live…
“If you love Me, you will obey what I command.” John 14:15 (NIV)
Pastor Victor Dyman
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