November 2008
The Sabbath Day
D&C 59:9,10
How to observe the Sabbath, what to do and what not to do on the Sabbath, are questions that have been debated since the beginning of time. At least I suppose they have been. Why? Well, because of human nature, or better said, the natural man in each of us.
Sunday is an interesting dilemma. On the one hand it is a day of rest. On the other hand, were we to do the things that we are encouraged to do on Sunday we would be exhausted by day’s end.
We’ll talk about rest first. This is no doubt my favorite part of Sunday. After a week of hard work and worry it’s nice to just lay around. I looked up the word rest in a dictionary because I have heard over the years that resting on the Sabbath meant something different than just taking it easy, and that rest really meant doing a different kind of work. I have always felt guilty about it in a way. Here’s what I found:
REST
- NOUN
1 the refreshing quiet or repose of sleep.
2 refreshing ease or inactivity after exertion or labor.
3 relief or freedom, especially from anything that wearies, troubles or disturbs.
4 a period or interval of inactivity, repose, solitude, or tranquility.
5 mental or spiritual calm; tranquility.
6 the repose of death.
7 cessation or absence of motion.
8 a place that provides shelter or lodging.
9 any stopping or resting place.
10 a supporting device.
- VERB
1 to refresh oneself, as by sleeping, lying down, or relaxing.
2 to relieve weariness by cessation of exertion or labor.
3 to be at ease; have tranquility or peace.
4 to repose in death.
5 to be quiet or still.
6 to cease from motion, come to rest; stop.
7 to become or to remain inactive.
REST
- NOUN
1 the refreshing quiet or repose of sleep.
2 refreshing ease or inactivity after exertion or labor.
3 relief or freedom, especially from anything that wearies, troubles or disturbs.
4 a period or interval of inactivity, repose, solitude, or tranquility.
5 mental or spiritual calm; tranquility.
6 the repose of death.
7 cessation or absence of motion.
8 a place that provides shelter or lodging.
9 any stopping or resting place.
10 a supporting device.
- VERB
1 to refresh oneself, as by sleeping, lying down, or relaxing.
2 to relieve weariness by cessation of exertion or labor.
3 to be at ease; have tranquility or peace.
4 to repose in death.
5 to be quiet or still.
6 to cease from motion, come to rest; stop.
7 to become or to remain inactive.
I have included both the noun and verb usages because the Lord called the Sabbath day a day of rest, and also commanded that we rest on the Sabbath. Rest is both a state of being and an action, or lack there of I should say.
It is not my purpose here to give us all license to lay around all day on Sunday. But rather, to understand the purpose of the rest. I see several important purposes for Sabbath rest.
1 Physical Rest: The body needs some time off. Sunday provides an opportunity to physically rest. This includes a nap if needed.
1 Physical Rest: The body needs some time off. Sunday provides an opportunity to physically rest. This includes a nap if needed.
2 Mental Rest: After a week of dealing with the world and it’s challenges, a day of rest, or diversion to other mental activities is refreshing.
3 Spiritual/Emotional Rest: The definitions for rest included words such as peace, tranquility, solitude and repose (I don’t however recommend the "repose of death" prematurely). These are the conditions needed to make a connection with the spirit and to re-establish those lines of communication with God which result in the needed confidence before the Lord to deal with the day to day challenges that we face.
This appears to be more than just the absence of activity. It is the act of resting. Purposefully turning the world off and tuning up to the calming, rejuvenating effects of the Spirit.
Maybe we could list some things that might not be a good idea on the day of REST.
Such as, balancing the check book, going over the budget, paying bills, reading the newspaper, watching the news, or TV in general, watching the game, washing the car, doing homework, preparing for a test, picnics in the park, Sunday drives, fishing, shopping, etc. The idea here is that we must eliminate the activities that are common to every day and replace them with repose, tranquility, peace and rest.
There are Sunday activities that are encouraged: Go to church, visit the sick and afflicted, the widows and so on, write in your journal, read the scriptures and church publications, write letters to family and missionaries, genealogy, family council meetings, prayer and meditation to mention a few.
Another Sunday activity is service. I have learned some important lessons about this one. Jesus was once in a synagogue where a man entered with a withered hand. The Jewish leaders watched to see if the famous Jesus of Nazareth would perform a healing on the Sabbath day. To you and I that seems a bit strange, but for the apostate Jews healing was considered a labor and was not lawful to do on the Sabbath. So they watched, looking for something to accuse him with. Knowing their thoughts he asked, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? To save life, or to destroy it?"(Luke 6:9) On another occasion, again on the Sabbath in a synagogue, Jesus was teaching and noticed a woman there who had been bent over with an infirmity for eighteen years. Jesus called her to him and he healed her. Now the ruler of the synagogue responded to this wonderful miracle, an act of charity with these words, "There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefor come and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day." The Lord then answered him and said, "Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox, or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering? And ought this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, who Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?" (Luke 13:10-16)
After Hurricane Katrina worked her devastation in the New Orleans area, members
of my stake and others were called on to assist in the clean up effort. Because so many
potential hands had regular jobs to work during the week the brethren in Salt Lake asked us to go and work in the area on Saturday and Sunday. I wasn’t sure what to expect but found that we would work all day Saturday, and on Sunday until return travel time required our departure. We worked until about 2:00pm on Sunday leaving just enough time to get home by midnight. It just so happened that the weekend we were there was General Conference weekend. There were no special provisions made for us to see any of the conference sessions except for the priesthood session on Saturday night, after we had worked a full day. It was quite a site to see a stake center filled to capacity with dirty stinking men and boys, who didn’t have time to clean up, in their work clothes. There were church welfare personnel from Salt Lake there with their sleeping bags rolled out in the classrooms, and leadership there working in the cultural hall to sort goods for the Sunday work crews and they would be there all day on Sunday as well. Was this an unusual exception to the rule? What did I learn? I learned that it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. I’m afraid that we may miss badly needed service opportunity because the only opportunity to render that service may be on the Sabbath. When the game’s on we’ll compromise, or when it’s a trip to the park or lake, but if it’s visiting an old lady in the nursing home, or patching a leaky roof, we hypocritically point out that it is Sunday. I have been amazed at how many service opportunities there are all around us and sometimes the best time to serve may be on the Sabbath. It is lawful "to do good on the Sabbath days." The Lord completed His creative work on the seventh day, by performing the final labors relative to man’s salvation. Not that the work stopped, but that the nature of it changed.
of my stake and others were called on to assist in the clean up effort. Because so many
potential hands had regular jobs to work during the week the brethren in Salt Lake asked us to go and work in the area on Saturday and Sunday. I wasn’t sure what to expect but found that we would work all day Saturday, and on Sunday until return travel time required our departure. We worked until about 2:00pm on Sunday leaving just enough time to get home by midnight. It just so happened that the weekend we were there was General Conference weekend. There were no special provisions made for us to see any of the conference sessions except for the priesthood session on Saturday night, after we had worked a full day. It was quite a site to see a stake center filled to capacity with dirty stinking men and boys, who didn’t have time to clean up, in their work clothes. There were church welfare personnel from Salt Lake there with their sleeping bags rolled out in the classrooms, and leadership there working in the cultural hall to sort goods for the Sunday work crews and they would be there all day on Sunday as well. Was this an unusual exception to the rule? What did I learn? I learned that it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. I’m afraid that we may miss badly needed service opportunity because the only opportunity to render that service may be on the Sabbath. When the game’s on we’ll compromise, or when it’s a trip to the park or lake, but if it’s visiting an old lady in the nursing home, or patching a leaky roof, we hypocritically point out that it is Sunday. I have been amazed at how many service opportunities there are all around us and sometimes the best time to serve may be on the Sabbath. It is lawful "to do good on the Sabbath days." The Lord completed His creative work on the seventh day, by performing the final labors relative to man’s salvation. Not that the work stopped, but that the nature of it changed.
Recorded in the D&C section 59:9-10 are the words of the Lord "And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day."
"For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay thy devotions unto the most high;"
"For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay thy devotions unto the most high;"
There are several points to consider in these verses.
First, consider the meaning and importance of this phrase: "....more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world,...." The term "spotted" here refers to blood, the blood of those who have committed a crime. Our garments become spotted with the filthy blood of a wicked generation as we become accomplices to a crime, even participants in a heinous and gruesome murder. Through loving the world and embracing it we embrace also the murder of the Son of God by those who reject him. The evidence remains on our garments until they are washed clean, ironically, in the blood of the Lamb, the victim himself. (Alma 5:21,22). Furthermore, to "keep" yourself unspotted would assume a clean starting point with a maintenance program. The part of the phrase "more fully keep" refers to an augmented or increased capacity. The message here is that Sabbath observance will increase our capacity to "more fully keep" ourselves in a state of cleanliness. The world is constantly upon us and metaphorically speaking, blood is splashing everywhere. One can hardly escape getting splattered to some degree. Sunday is a wash day. A day to clean the garment, which by the way, is another metaphor. The garment refers to our
bodies. It is the body that is splattered with filthy blood and must be cleansed. How clean
you get it will depend on how well you observe the Sabbath, which includes the very essential bleach called the Sacrament.
Next, to "pay thy devotions unto the most high" means to demonstrate our loyalty and to reaffirm our commitment to the supreme authority through certain activities. The word devotion her means: 1. Relating to worship; a religious exercise, a religious service. 2. A piece of music or writing, of or pertaining to devotion or worship (usually religious). 3. Adjective; of, related to, or characterized by an act of prayer or private worship. (Princeton word.net, wikipedia, wiktionary) In other words, devotions are performed through the medium of music, prayer and speech wether in private, family, or in organized church services. Devotions are used to demonstrate to Deity that we in deed and in word do honor Him and are "devoted" to Him.
We are to offer up our sacraments on the Sabbath. At the time this revelation was given a sacrament was understood by most as follows: "A rite in which God is uniquely active,"(Hexams concise dictionary of religion) "A visible sign of an invisible reality,"(Augustine of Hippo) "An outward and visible sign of an inward and invisible grace."(the Anglican book of common prayer) Sacraments include what we call "ordinances" in the church today, such as baptism, confirmation, ordinations, healing blessings, marriage, endowment and so on. In the church today we attach the word sacrament to only one ordinance, that of the Lords Supper. Offering up our sacraments on the Sabbath day means to perform saving outward ordinances, to the end that the recipients would receive inward saving grace, by the Holy Ghost.
Notice also in verse 10 this phrase: "This is a day appointed unto you...." Here, the Lord makes it clear that this day is the day, not any other. Furthermore, the word appointed would indicate a rendevous. Perhaps, this is the day that the Lord would be present. This is the day that angels would attend. This is the day that the spirit would be in greater abundance. The badly needed recharging of spiritual power and strength to combat an ever increasing evil is set to occur on this appointed day. This is a rendevous that we do not want to miss.
The Sabbath day stands as a covenant between Israel and the Lord. Those who keep His holy day demonstrate their willingness to accept Him as their God, and He in turn accepts them as His people. "Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant." (Ex. 31:16) And, "Moreover also I gave them my Sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them." (Ezek. 20:12) Consider these words; "But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness: they walked not in my statutes, and they despised my judgements, which if a man do, he shall even live in them; and my Sabbaths they greatly polluted: then I said, I would pour out my fury upon them in the wilderness, to consume them." "Because they despised my judgements, and walked not in my statutes, but polluted my Sabbaths: for their heart went after their idols." (Ezek. 20:13,16) This sounds a lot like our day. It is our love of money, and our love of this world that leads us into breaking the Sabbath. A nation, or a people, or an individual, or a family, that willfully breaks the Sabbath covenant will have to "live in the judgements of God." This is really a test of devotion and priority. A day set aside for no other purpose
then to demonstrate that we will keep the covenant as evidence of our commitment to God. So important was the Sabbath that the Lord made it a capital offense to break the covenant.(Ex 31:13-15)
Isaiah 58 is devoted entirely to the Sabbath, describing blessings and promises by the Lord to those who would observe it. In criticism of the sullen, heavy piety of the day (another form of misusing the Sabbath) the prophet writes, "Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bullrush? and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord?"(verse 5) In other words, be happy, make it a good day. It’s suppose to be a positive day in which the Spirit of God is in abundance. In contrast, the prophet suggest this; "Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness?(probably our own personal release through repentance) to undo the heavy burdens?(for ourselves and others) and to let the oppressed go free?(a metaphor for freedom from enslaving sin) and that ye break every yoke?" (the yoke and burden of the world) (Verse 6). This verse seems to deal primarily with personal repentance, and change, and forgiveness. In the next verse we are given alternative Sabbath activities. "Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry? and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thy own flesh?(verse 7) Here we are shown that compassionate service and giving are appropriate Sunday activities, and that it is a day to spend with family, and not to go into hiding as we do sometimes during the week. The next few verses list the blessings that will follow if the Sabbath is properly observed: "Then shall thy light break forth as the morning (The spirit will be in abundance), and thine health shall spring forth speedily (physical health, immediate improvement in health): and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward."(verse 8) This speaks of reputation, and protection. Your reputation out in front, and the glory of God taking up your back. "Then shalt thou call, and the Lord will answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, here I am." (Verse 9) Answers to prayers will come more abundantly, help when needed, and the presence of I am, or God. "And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday: And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not. (This refers to both spiritual abundance as well as temporal) And they that shall be of thee (your children and posterity) shall build the old waste places:(promises made to Ephriam concerning the rebuilding of cities during the Millennium) thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called The repairer of the breech,(These lines are referring to the blessed status of one who has breeched the gap between ancestors and posterity, connecting generations from Adam to the Millennium. These are in other places called "Saviors on Mount Zion.") The restorer of paths to dwell in.(Paths here refers to a "way" or "course" connecting a lost state to state of safety, and peace.) If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; (stop doing your things and start doing the right things) and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:(act according to the spirit) Then shalt thou delight thyself in the
Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, (a metaphor meaning, that you will have the best of circumstances with little or few obstacles, with the best strategic location.) and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: (a metaphor pointing to the covenant of God with Abraham which includes the covenants of the house of the Lord, as well as the good things of the earth) for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.(verses10-14)
When looked at in light of the day that we live in, Sunday observance becomes a critical contributing factor to both our happiness, and our survival. As I observe the members of the church around me and others who are not members of the church I see a disturbing trend. As the world grows increasingly wicked in every conceivable way, the members of the church seem to make concessions to it. More are working on the Sabbath, going on outings, sports activities, movies and so on. Those who are at home get caught up all to often in movies, video games and popular literature, your’s truly included. The consequences for failing to observe the Sabbath are serious, just as the blessings are amazing, and badly needed.
Elder Oaks spoke of the need for the Sabbath and the Sacrament in order to combat the encroaching influences of our day. He said:
"We live in perilous times prophesied by the apostle Paul (2 Timothy 3:1). Those who try to walk the straight and narrow path see inviting detours on every hand. We can be distracted, degraded, downhearted, or depressed. How can we have the Spirit of the Lord to guide our choices and keep us on the path? In modern revelation the Lord gave us the answer in this commandment:"
He then quotes D&C 59:9&10. Let us look to the Sabbath as the delight of the Lord, and commit to making it what it was intended to be. (General Conference, Oct. 2008)
First, consider the meaning and importance of this phrase: "....more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world,...." The term "spotted" here refers to blood, the blood of those who have committed a crime. Our garments become spotted with the filthy blood of a wicked generation as we become accomplices to a crime, even participants in a heinous and gruesome murder. Through loving the world and embracing it we embrace also the murder of the Son of God by those who reject him. The evidence remains on our garments until they are washed clean, ironically, in the blood of the Lamb, the victim himself. (Alma 5:21,22). Furthermore, to "keep" yourself unspotted would assume a clean starting point with a maintenance program. The part of the phrase "more fully keep" refers to an augmented or increased capacity. The message here is that Sabbath observance will increase our capacity to "more fully keep" ourselves in a state of cleanliness. The world is constantly upon us and metaphorically speaking, blood is splashing everywhere. One can hardly escape getting splattered to some degree. Sunday is a wash day. A day to clean the garment, which by the way, is another metaphor. The garment refers to our
bodies. It is the body that is splattered with filthy blood and must be cleansed. How clean
you get it will depend on how well you observe the Sabbath, which includes the very essential bleach called the Sacrament.
Next, to "pay thy devotions unto the most high" means to demonstrate our loyalty and to reaffirm our commitment to the supreme authority through certain activities. The word devotion her means: 1. Relating to worship; a religious exercise, a religious service. 2. A piece of music or writing, of or pertaining to devotion or worship (usually religious). 3. Adjective; of, related to, or characterized by an act of prayer or private worship. (Princeton word.net, wikipedia, wiktionary) In other words, devotions are performed through the medium of music, prayer and speech wether in private, family, or in organized church services. Devotions are used to demonstrate to Deity that we in deed and in word do honor Him and are "devoted" to Him.
We are to offer up our sacraments on the Sabbath. At the time this revelation was given a sacrament was understood by most as follows: "A rite in which God is uniquely active,"(Hexams concise dictionary of religion) "A visible sign of an invisible reality,"(Augustine of Hippo) "An outward and visible sign of an inward and invisible grace."(the Anglican book of common prayer) Sacraments include what we call "ordinances" in the church today, such as baptism, confirmation, ordinations, healing blessings, marriage, endowment and so on. In the church today we attach the word sacrament to only one ordinance, that of the Lords Supper. Offering up our sacraments on the Sabbath day means to perform saving outward ordinances, to the end that the recipients would receive inward saving grace, by the Holy Ghost.
Notice also in verse 10 this phrase: "This is a day appointed unto you...." Here, the Lord makes it clear that this day is the day, not any other. Furthermore, the word appointed would indicate a rendevous. Perhaps, this is the day that the Lord would be present. This is the day that angels would attend. This is the day that the spirit would be in greater abundance. The badly needed recharging of spiritual power and strength to combat an ever increasing evil is set to occur on this appointed day. This is a rendevous that we do not want to miss.
The Sabbath day stands as a covenant between Israel and the Lord. Those who keep His holy day demonstrate their willingness to accept Him as their God, and He in turn accepts them as His people. "Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant." (Ex. 31:16) And, "Moreover also I gave them my Sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them." (Ezek. 20:12) Consider these words; "But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness: they walked not in my statutes, and they despised my judgements, which if a man do, he shall even live in them; and my Sabbaths they greatly polluted: then I said, I would pour out my fury upon them in the wilderness, to consume them." "Because they despised my judgements, and walked not in my statutes, but polluted my Sabbaths: for their heart went after their idols." (Ezek. 20:13,16) This sounds a lot like our day. It is our love of money, and our love of this world that leads us into breaking the Sabbath. A nation, or a people, or an individual, or a family, that willfully breaks the Sabbath covenant will have to "live in the judgements of God." This is really a test of devotion and priority. A day set aside for no other purpose
then to demonstrate that we will keep the covenant as evidence of our commitment to God. So important was the Sabbath that the Lord made it a capital offense to break the covenant.(Ex 31:13-15)
Isaiah 58 is devoted entirely to the Sabbath, describing blessings and promises by the Lord to those who would observe it. In criticism of the sullen, heavy piety of the day (another form of misusing the Sabbath) the prophet writes, "Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bullrush? and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord?"(verse 5) In other words, be happy, make it a good day. It’s suppose to be a positive day in which the Spirit of God is in abundance. In contrast, the prophet suggest this; "Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness?(probably our own personal release through repentance) to undo the heavy burdens?(for ourselves and others) and to let the oppressed go free?(a metaphor for freedom from enslaving sin) and that ye break every yoke?" (the yoke and burden of the world) (Verse 6). This verse seems to deal primarily with personal repentance, and change, and forgiveness. In the next verse we are given alternative Sabbath activities. "Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry? and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thy own flesh?(verse 7) Here we are shown that compassionate service and giving are appropriate Sunday activities, and that it is a day to spend with family, and not to go into hiding as we do sometimes during the week. The next few verses list the blessings that will follow if the Sabbath is properly observed: "Then shall thy light break forth as the morning (The spirit will be in abundance), and thine health shall spring forth speedily (physical health, immediate improvement in health): and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward."(verse 8) This speaks of reputation, and protection. Your reputation out in front, and the glory of God taking up your back. "Then shalt thou call, and the Lord will answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, here I am." (Verse 9) Answers to prayers will come more abundantly, help when needed, and the presence of I am, or God. "And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday: And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not. (This refers to both spiritual abundance as well as temporal) And they that shall be of thee (your children and posterity) shall build the old waste places:(promises made to Ephriam concerning the rebuilding of cities during the Millennium) thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called The repairer of the breech,(These lines are referring to the blessed status of one who has breeched the gap between ancestors and posterity, connecting generations from Adam to the Millennium. These are in other places called "Saviors on Mount Zion.") The restorer of paths to dwell in.(Paths here refers to a "way" or "course" connecting a lost state to state of safety, and peace.) If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; (stop doing your things and start doing the right things) and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:(act according to the spirit) Then shalt thou delight thyself in the
Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, (a metaphor meaning, that you will have the best of circumstances with little or few obstacles, with the best strategic location.) and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: (a metaphor pointing to the covenant of God with Abraham which includes the covenants of the house of the Lord, as well as the good things of the earth) for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.(verses10-14)
When looked at in light of the day that we live in, Sunday observance becomes a critical contributing factor to both our happiness, and our survival. As I observe the members of the church around me and others who are not members of the church I see a disturbing trend. As the world grows increasingly wicked in every conceivable way, the members of the church seem to make concessions to it. More are working on the Sabbath, going on outings, sports activities, movies and so on. Those who are at home get caught up all to often in movies, video games and popular literature, your’s truly included. The consequences for failing to observe the Sabbath are serious, just as the blessings are amazing, and badly needed.
Elder Oaks spoke of the need for the Sabbath and the Sacrament in order to combat the encroaching influences of our day. He said:
"We live in perilous times prophesied by the apostle Paul (2 Timothy 3:1). Those who try to walk the straight and narrow path see inviting detours on every hand. We can be distracted, degraded, downhearted, or depressed. How can we have the Spirit of the Lord to guide our choices and keep us on the path? In modern revelation the Lord gave us the answer in this commandment:"
He then quotes D&C 59:9&10. Let us look to the Sabbath as the delight of the Lord, and commit to making it what it was intended to be. (General Conference, Oct. 2008)
No comments:
Post a Comment