SDA church at Matatufu

Last month leaders of the SDA church in the South Pacific Division (SPD) met again in Australia with pastors from Samoa and Samoan pastors representing Samoan churches in New Zealand and Australia. The bible conference discussed the impasse in Samoa which is detrimental to a fundamental doctrine of the SDA church where there are now two seventh-day Sabbaths, some worshipping on Saturday and the majority worshipping on Sunday.

An outcome of the meeting is the matter to be referred to the Biblical Research Committee of the South Pacific Division for further research.

But in Samoa, the local church administration has instructed the law office of Schuster-Betham-Annandale to write to the Leauva’a-uta SDA members who are worshipping on Saturday to refrain from using the church facility there. The letter dated 6^th February warns that failure to comply within 7 days will result in the matter been taken to the High Court for an order regarding ownership, demolition and removal by the church of assets.

Leauvaa-uta Sabbath keepers in front of their church building.

The letter from the lawyer however states that the church does not dispute the land belongs to the title Sala (held by Fonoti Peteli). This is further confirmed in a letter from the Register of the Lands and Titles Court stating the ownership of the land known as Laumasa is with Sala Fonoti Peteli and is not being disputed. The Register however goes further advising the parties involved to seek legal advice from lawyers in regards to dividing of church assets.

The SDA Sabbath dilemma in Samoa today centers around which day is the seventh-day of the week after the IDL change in 2011, the second time Samoa has changed its location to the IDL. Is it Saturday or Sunday?

Seventh-day Adventists keep the Sabbath on the seventh day of the week which is Saturday like everywhere else in the world. Most Christian churches in Samoa however also call Sunday the Sabbath but for a different reason – to commemorate the day of Jesus’ resurrection which falls on Sunday, the first day of the week.

On the TVNZ program Tagata Pasefika last year, President of the SDA church in Samoa, Pastor Uili Solofa stated that “now in Samoa, the seventh-day falls on Sunday.” The same argument was published in the Samoa Observer 1^st July issue saying, “The practical result in terms of Sabbath keeping is that Sunday not Saturday has become the seventh day of the week.”

In a document dated 29^th December 2011, Pastor Uili Solofa wrote,

“The majority of church leaders, worshippers and villages (in Samoa) are not saying they are happy that Seventh-day Adventists are keeping Sunday, instead what they are saying is that – we are going to keep the Sabbath of the Seventh-day Adventist church; praise God!”

In a separate correspondence, Pastor Uili Solofa also wrote, “You have to know that all the other Christian religions in Samoa have publicly testified that they have moved to keep the seventh–day Sabbath of the Bible.”

Catholic Chancellor Ono does not appear to share that view. Asked about casinos opening on Sunday, Father Ioane says that personally, he had no problems with it. “For Catholics or any Christian for that matter, Sunday is a day of rest, a day of giving thanks and praise to the Lord. It is also a day of joy and celebration because for the Catholic Church, Sunday is the day of resurrection of Jesus.” (Samoa Observer, March 12, 2013)

Such statements by SDA leaders in Samoa and the Pacific that Sunday is the “seventh-day” in Samoa today appear to contradict the reason Christian churches worship on Sunday, the first day of the week, to commemorate the day of Jesus’ resurrection.

Also see related articles: Leauvaa-uta Official Opening and  Leauvaa-uta Church Members Continue to Meet on Sabbaths Despite Opposition

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Mulivai Cathedral, Apia

In an article regarding casinos in Samoa in the Samoa Observer Online, March 12, 2013, Father Ioane Ono, Chancellor of the Catholic Church in Samoa, confirmed that in Samoa Sunday is currently recognized as the day of the resurrection, that is the first day of the week. This is contrary to claims by representatives of the Seventh-day Adventist Church who have said that Sunday is now the seventh-day Sabbath, which would make it the day before the resurrection.

Asked about casinos opening on Sunday, Father Ioane says that personally, he had no problems with it. He says the church on Sunday is a day of “celebration.”

“For Catholics or any Christian for that matter, Sunday is a day of rest, a day of giving thanks and praise to the Lord.It is also a day of joy and celebration because for the Catholic Church, Sunday is the day of resurrection of Jesus.” (Samoa Observer, March 12, 2013)

According to a news item published on EventPolynesia.com, August 15, 2013,  Samoa-Tokelau Seventh-day Adventist Mission President Uili Solofa has written that other churches are now keep the seventh-day Sabbath, along with Seventh-day Adventists:

In a written statement, Pastor Uili Solofa wrote, “The majority of church leaders, worshippers and villages (in Samoa) are not saying they are happy that Seventh-day Adventists are keeping Sunday, instead what they are saying is that – we are going to keep the Sabbath of the Seventh-day Adventist church; praise God!” (EventPolynesia.com, August 15, 2013)

Chancellor Ono does not appear to share that view.

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What is the nature of this day line, and what is its source?

I believe that we must first understand the nature of the 7th-day Sabbath. Jesus told us that “the Sabbath was made for man.” He did not say the Sabbath was made for the earth, the rocks, or the trees. From this we can see that, where there are no people, there is no Sabbath. Where human habitations exist, however, there must be a Sabbath, and by extension, a 7-day week.

Now, let’s go back to the creation of man.

God placed us on a round world and commanded us to keep the 7th day of every week holy. (See Genesis 1:1-2:3 NKJV.) This implies the existence of a place on the revolving earth where one day changes to another — what we call a “day line.” But, where was it? With no people, and thus no Sabbath or weekly cycle, anywhere on the globe except in the Garden of Eden, there would have been nothing but the Garden to define the location of the day line. So, depending on the concept one prefers, the day line was at some undefined longitude not passing through the Garden, or it was exceedingly broad, encompassing all other longitudes. Our choice between these two descriptions probably doesn’t matter much, just so we understand there must have been a place for one day to end and another to begin, a “day line.”

After Creation, how did the day line develop?

Changes in the bounds of human habitations, prior to the flood, along with any corresponding developments in the day line, would not affect us today, as the survival of just one family returned the day line to much the same state as at Creation.

In the events connected with the Tower of Babel, we see that God deliberately scattered the human race over the face of the entire globe. [See Genesis 11:8-9 (NKJV).] Part of the earth would have been inhabited by those migrating westward from Babel, and other parts by those migrating eastward. Had all of those migrants kept track of the weekly cycle and observed the true Sabbath, and had they immediately met up on the other side of the world, they would have found that their respective day counts were off by one day! A day line would have been immediately apparent, passing between the habitations of the easterly migrants and the homes of the westerly migrants.

The Nature of the Day Line

All migrants keeping the Sabbath, and the farthest migrants meeting soon after their dispersion from Babel, represent a hypothetical scenario. However, this does serve to illustrate the nature of the day line. It is not something drawn on a map by force of international agreement, and then imposed on every society on earth. It is not based on any theory of what might be ideal. Rather, it is something which develops naturally, and is defined by the question of which societies are following the easterly migrant week, and which are following the westerly migrant week. This is the true nature of today’s “International Date Line” or IDL, and it explains why the IDL does not necessarily follow a straight line. We should be thankful that one can at least chart the reality by drawing just one line on a map!

What do we know about the history of the day line/IDL?

The actual history of the day line, from the flood until relatively modern times, can only be known as well as those early migration patterns. Thus our review of the day line must include a certain risk of inaccuracy. That said, to the best of our knowledge, the westerly migrants initially settled only about as far as the Atlantic. The Pacific islands, and even the Americas, appear to have been settled by easterly migrants. (See “Early Human Migration Map.“)

Because much of the world seemed to have abandoned the 7-day week, I believe it would be fair to define the early day line by those migration patterns, and by the weekly cycle which ought to have been remembered in any given place. From this, the day line would seem to have been in the vicinity of the Atlantic Ocean for a very long time.

How did the day line get from the Atlantic to the Pacific?

I believe that this massive shift was largely an unconscious one. The Mayans, as advanced as their civilization appears to have been, had no 7-day cycle in their calendar. (See ”The Mayan Calendar.”) If this is at all representative of other cultures in the Americas, the mass migration of Europeans across the Atlantic, following the early explorers, would probably have allowed the westerly migrant week to take over the “New World” without creating any awareness that a day line shift was even taking place.

What area was affected by this massive, unconscious day line shift?

There are many gaps in my knowledge. However, is seems clear that Alaska, the Cook Islands, Tahiti and the Leeward Islands were initially excluded, while such places as Hawaii, and even the Philippines, were included in the effect. Neither Tonga nor Samoa was a part of this shift. They remained on the easterly migrant week, in accordance with the way they had first been settled.

What do we know about intentional day line shifts?

Between 1840 and 1867, Alaska, Tahiti, and the Leeward Islands all experienced a known and deliberate day line shift, moving to the westerly migrant week by means of a one-off 8-day week. The Philippines adjusted in the opposite direction, dropping Tuesday, December 31, 1844 and moving back to the easterly migrant week.

Lastly, Samoa (including present-day American Samoa) followed Tahiti in adopting the westerly migrant week – by repeating Monday, July 4, 1892.

The Existing Day Line, as of 1895

Now, with some degree of confidence, we are prepared to say just where the existing day line was in 1895, when our first Adventist missionaries arrived in Tonga. It passed between Alaska and Siberia, staying to the west of Hawaii and to the east of Fiji. Interestingly, one would have had to draw the line to the west of Samoa, double it back northward between what is now American Samoa and the Cook Islands, and then bring it back down to the east of the Cook Islands. That might have been rather interesting! The day line would have stayed west of Tahiti, but east of Tonga and New Zealand. That’s where the existing day line was in 1895. Shortly afterward, in 1899, the day line (already known as the International Date Line?) was shifted to the west of the Cook Islands, doubtless making it much easier to draw on a map.

More Recent Developments and the SDA Problem

In more recent times, we have seen the IDL shifted to the east of Kiribati, Wallis/Futuna, and Samoa/Tokelau. With all of the day line shifts of history, Tonga has not been involved in any way, yet it was in Tonga where “Adventist” Sunday observance was first revived. It seems that this error was largely the result of popular misconceptions concerning the day line.

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In the week previous to November 10, 2012, a delegation from the Samoa Tokelau Mission, together with the Leauva’a-uta Sunday Sabbath keepers, called on the Saturday Sabbath keepers to persuade the latter not to use the church building on Sabbath (Saturday) for worship. The delegation suggested other alternatives, but the Saturday Sabbath keepers kept their resolve to keep the church open on Saturday, the seventh day of the week in Samoa.

Some of the influential high chiefs of Leauva’a village were approached to intervene in the impasse, to stop the church being used for worship on Sabbath (Saturday). However, when the village’s high chiefs met with high chief Salā Kuresa on whose land the church is situated, they affirmed that the Village Council of Chiefs does not interfere with internal church disputes, but will only become involved if there is a breach of the peace amongst opposing factions.

Paepae and young son in the Leauvaa-uta Church. Behind her is her husband.

When the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Samoa started observing “sabbath” on Sunday, the first day of the week, after the IDL realignment in December 2011, Falaniko and Paepae Vaifale and family resolved to continue to honour God and observe His Sabbath on the 7^th day of the week as God instructed. They noted that notwithstanding the IDL realignment, the 7^th day of the week in Samoa remained unchanged and continued to be Saturday. Because the main Leauva’a-uta congregation then began having Sabbath church services on Sunday, Paepae and her family traveled a number of miles each Sabbath to worship with the Samoa Independent Seventh-day Adventist Church (SISDAC) at Vaitele since that church continued to observe Sabbath on Saturday. When Falaniko heard that the Leauvaa-uta Church was re-opening for Sabbath services a couple of weeks ago, he joined them immediately. Paepae however was cautious. But last Sabbath, November 10, she and her young son returned for the first time in eleven months to worship in her much-loved Leauvaa-uta Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Alesana Ah San sharing his testimony with the Leauvaa-uta church members

Last week Alesana Ah San, his wife and children, of Leauva’a-uta were pressured by some of their non-Seventh-day Adventist relatives with whom they were living to cease attending church on Saturday and to keep Sunday like other members of the family. In order to keep the peace, Alesana moved out to stay with one of his brothers, so that he could continue to keep God’s Sabbath. He looks forward to the time when he, his wife and children can be reunited again to worship with other members of the Leauvaa-uta church on Sabbath.

Paepae (middle of front row) joined the Salā Kuresa Family as they sang the special item during Sabbath School on 10 November 2012

A view of the worshipers on the right side of the Leauvaa-uta Church on Sabbath, 10 November, 2012

That Sabbath morning at Leauva’a-uta, Tagaloa Enoka Puni facilitated a training session on practical ways to enjoy effective and meaningful study and teaching of the Sabbath School lessons.

Tagaloa Enoka Puni explained the purpose of Sabbath School Lesson/Bible study to the Leauvaa-uta members. The knowledge gained from such study should be translated into incremental Christlike behavoural changes.

Matalena Kuresa, Peka Ah San and Ioane Ah San led out during Sabbath School

Some of the “Lighthouse” Group Worshipers on November 10

L-R: Mataafā Ratami Fatilua and Uta Uta

Tupa’i Pio (Faleula) and Lofa Lolesio (Siusega)

Lepapa Mulama Notoa of Lalovaea

L-R: To’ailoa Vaosa and Fuimaono Esera Rimoni

L-R: Tiana, Fiavaai, Sipiki and Rosalia

Epenesa A Pua and young relative

Temukisa Rimoni and Fiapule Lockington

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Leauvaa-uta Sabbath keepers now have exclusive use of their church building for seventh-day Sabbath worship

Seven private vehicles and a bus transported the Lighthouse members from Alafua to Leauvaa-uta. The ride took us through Aleisa and we enjoyed the lush green scenery of the countryside.  About ten minutes from the right turn-off at Aleisa, we came across two of our Leauvaa-uta brethren, in white shirts, black wrap-arounds and neckties, waiting with bright smiles by the roadside to show us the way to the SDA church.  When we arrived, Salā Peteli Kuresa (on whose land the church is built), elders and members of the Leauvaa-uta Group were waiting with wide smiles to greet us in front of their church building.

With happy faces, Leauvaa-uta members (facing camera) met the Sabbathkeepers (Tagaloa with back to the camera) on arrival

The week before this Sabbath had been a very challenging one for our members at Leauvaa-uta.  Right from the start, it had been their wish to remain on good terms with their other SDA members who worship on Sunday. For that reason, they (the Saturday Sabbath keepers) were cautious and courteous in their approach in dealing with the Leauvaa-uta pastor and Sunday-keeping members, requesting that the Saturday Sabbath keepers be allowed to use the church building for their worship on Sabbath with the Sunday keepers to worship there on Sunday. Their requests were denied and all attempts were made to prevent the church being opened on Sabbath (Saturday).

After two meetings, with the last one being quite ‘frosty,’ and the Saturday Sabbath keepers being told that they could not use the church, the Sabbath keepers stood their ground, and informed the Sunday keepers courteously but firmly that the church will be opened for worship on God’s seventh-day Sabbath, commencing 3 November, 2012. The Sunday keepers did not accept this decision and the suggestion for them to continue to use the church on Sundays until the Sabbath dilemma in Samoa is resolved. So as of today (Sunday, 4 November 2012) they have gone elsewhere for their Sunday services. Thus the Leauva’a church building is now the first formal church building in Samoa to be exclusively reopened on Saturday for Sabbath worship.

Approximately 21 families used to worship at the Leauvaa-uta SDA Group until the ‘seventh-day Sabbath issue’ came up in December, 2011, as a result of Samoa’s re-alignment to the date line. Today, seven families are ‘Sabbath keepers’ at Leauvaa-uta, and it is their aim to start witnessing to their people and community. This is not easy, as their firm stand has put a wider rift between them and their Sunday-keeping sisters and brothers.

Our Leauvaa-uta Sabbath keepers are courageous people who, despite the challenges and complications in their way, are determined to “obey the Lord — come what may.”

There are now five Seventh-day Adventist Sabbath-keeping groups in Samoa:  Samatau, Lighthouse, Pu’apu’a (Savaii), Multicultural group in Apia and Leauvaa-uta.

Please pray for our Leauvaa-uta members; they need your prayers, especially at this time, as their ship sails through the treacherous and hazardous seas.  These days, it is that much more meaningful when we sing the favourite hymn:  “Jesus, Saviour, pilot me over life’s tempestuous sea.”

Lighthouse members who traveled to worship with Leauvaa-uta Sabbath keepers in their church

Leauvaa-uta and Lighthouse Sabbath keepers
in front of the Leauvaa-uta church building

On 3 November, 2012, the Leauvaa-uta SDA Church opened its doors for the first time on the seventh-day Sabbath, since 29 December, 2011

Tagaloa Enoka Puni leading out during Sabbath School lesson time

Fuimaono Esera Rimoni (standing) sharing a message of encouragement during Divine Service. Seated are Ioane Ah San (L) and Lofa Lolesio (R).

Leauvaa-uta’s brave ‘forwards’ (L-R): Muliaga Vaea, Taleni Milovale, Ioane Ah San and Salā Peteli Kuresa with Fuimaono Esera Rimoni of the Lighthouse Group

Maulolo Lino Pogai and wife, Leone, with baby daughter

Maulolo Lino Pogai’s five daughters sang a special item during Sabbath School

A view towards the left side of the congregation

A view towards the right side of the congregation

Tupa’i Pio (left) with his children and wife, Piliopo (right) from Faleula, singing a special item during Sabbath School

The Leauvaa-uta baptismal font has not been used in 2012. This is a challenge to the Leauvaa-uta Sabbathkeepers — to witness and win souls for the Lord

Ioane Ah San, Matalena S Kuresa and Peka Ah San led out during Sabbath School on 3 November, 2012

Tamua Senituli and wife, Malae, of Solaua

‘Manu-iti Singers’ (L-R) Tia-Gene Collins, Fuaoa Collins, Pule Lockington, Vaimalama Tariu and Charity Malaga singing during Divine Service

L-R: Tupa’i Pio, Matalena Kuresa, Tagaloa Enoka Puni, Salã Peteli Kuresa, Lofa Lolesio

L-R: Muliaga Vaea, Ioane Ah San, Tupa’i Pio, Matalena, Salā Kuresa, Tagaloa Enoka, Lofa Lolesio, Maulolo Lino; Front (kneeling) Falaniko

Ta’i, Lepapa, Uta and Leauvaa-uta members

Name of bus which took the Lighthouse members
to Leauvaa-uta is “Brothers for Life”

Words of thanks after lunch

Last view of the Leauvaa-uta Sabbath keepers as the Lighthouse Sabbath keepers reluctantly bid farewell to their sisters and brothers

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Nowhere in God’s Word does it state that He changed the 7th-day Sabbath to the 1^st day of the week. Quite the contrary. Jesus tells us:

“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.

Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. (Mathew 5:17-20)

We all know that the calendar used globally to determine the day and date is the same for all countries, including Samoa, whether the countries lie east or west of the International Date Line (IDL). That means that the 7th-day Sabbath is the same day and date on both Asian or American time – the day named Saturday, or something similar, everywhere on the planet.

BACKGROUND

The premise of the SPD Sunday worship recommendation to Samoan SDA’s is adherence to an unbroken 1-7-day cycle as defined in Genesis 1 and  Gen. 2:1-3. This was accepted and implemented by the Samoan Tokelau Mission (STM) leaders in Samoa, after December 29, 2011.

However, the New Testament clearly defines which day is the Sabbath that Jesus kept. In Mark 15:42 and Luke 24:1-7 it states that the Sabbath is after “preparation day” (commonly known as Friday) and therefore Saturday, before the “first day of the week” (commonly known as Sunday).

1. Samoa was keeping Asian Time prior to July 4^th 1892

Prior to July 4^th, 1892, Samoa kept Asian Time and was aligned with the same day and date as Australia and New Zealand. Therefore, the calendar below was followed until the first time zone shift on July 4^th, 1892. This is how the calendar looked in the context of the 7th-Day Sabbath worship:

2. King Laupepa Malietoa shifted Samoa from Asian time to American time in 1892

In 1892, King Laupepa Malietoa brought Samoa time into line with American time for trade and economic reasons. That resulted with Monday July 4^th being repeated on the 3rd day of the week. (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Date_Line#Samoan_Islands_and_Tokelau)

In the context of an “unbroken 7-day cycle,” transitioning from Asian to American time would have resulted with the 7th-day Sabbath falling on Friday July 8^th, 1892, Preparation Day, as demonstrated in the following calendar:

3. One-time 8-Day Week Adjustment

In fact we know that this did not happen, because a 1-time 8-day week adjustment was made to enable Samoa to transition from Asian to American time, as shown in the following calendar. This ensured continuity of the 7th-day Sabbath on Saturday from July 4^th 1892 until 29 December 2011.

It is important to note that while the week-day count was +1 day, with Monday, 4^th July, repeated, the day and date sequence remained constant, and therefore, the 7^th day Sabbath was July 9^th, 1892.

4. God’s Word Defines the 7th-day Sabbath as the Day Before Sunday:

It is important to know what God’s Word says about the sequence of the 1-7-day cycle and where the 7th-day Sabbath is relative to Preparation Day and the 1^st day of the week. We have no real way of tracing the 7-day cycle back to creation week, except by the New Testament account. There we find confirmation that Jesus kept the Sabbath on the same day currently known as Saturday, the day before Sunday:

Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath (Mark 15:42)

Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments. Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them,

“Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.” (Luke 24:1-7)

In today’s society, we recognize the names of these days as follows:

• Preparation Day = FRIDAY in the current world calendar
• 7th-Day Sabbath = SATURDAY in the current world calendar
• 1^st day of the week = SUNDAY in the current world calendar

We know that Sunday is same first day of the week as it was in the time of Jesus because it is recognized and celebrated as the day of the resurrection of Christ by most Christian churches.

5. Samoa Seventh-day Adventist 7^th-day Sabbath prior to December 29^th, 2011

Samoa Seventh-day Adventists followed the calendar that resulted from a one-off 8-day week until Thursday, December 29^th, 2011, based on American Time:

After December 29^th, 2011, the Samoa government shifted the country back across the IDL from American to Asian time for trade and economic reasons because Australia and New Zealand had become its predominant trade partners, just as it had shifted to American time for economic reasons in 1892. Thus Samoa reverted to its previous Asian time zone prior to July 4^th, 1892.

However, the South Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventists, supported by the STM, issued a directive that the SDA Samoan community are to keep Sunday as the 7th-day Sabbath. The stated reason for their directive was to maintain an “unbroken 1-7-day week cycle” according to creation week.

Unfortunately the SPD and STM leadership have not provided any compelling reason to believe their apparent claim that American time is more in harmony with the 7-day creation week than is Asian time. This claim becomes doubly perplexing when we remember that American time was adopted under the influence of American traders. Thus they have not provided a compelling reason why Samoan Seventh-day Adventists ought to worship according American time.

The SPD  directive to keep Sunday as the 7th day has caused confused understanding in time-keeping for a number of reasons:

• The majority of Samoan SDA’s follow the SPD directive and live by the Asian time-cycle during weekdays, but on weekends they shift to American time. This results in their treating Saturday as Preparation Day and Sunday, the first day of the local calendar, as the 7^th day. They must repeat this practice each week.
  At the same time, a small remnant of SDA’s continue to worship on Saturday, the local 7^th day of the week, as they did previously.

• To compound the confusion, the global Seventh-day Adventist Church community keeps the global calendar, on both the Asian and the American side of the International Date Line. Seventh-day Adventists around the world and a small remnant of SDA’s in Samoa worshiped on Saturday, December 31^st, the 7^th day of the local and global week, designated as Sabbath by SDA’s world-wide. However,  the majority of Samoan SDA’s worshiped on Sunday, January 1^st, as their Sabbath. (See diagram below.)

• This places the 7^th-day “Sabbath” mandated the SPD directive in an odd “No man’s Time,” since the 7^th-day Sabbath is December 31^st in both the Asian and American (global) calendar, as observed by Seventh-day Adventists around the globe. But Samoan SDA’s who went along with the SPD directive viewed January 1^st as their Sabbath, even though it was the local 1^st day of the week.

• It also poses a situation of disarray in keeping the global calendar on Asian time during the week. By adopting the SPD Sunday worship directive, the week for Samoan SDA’s starts on Monday, the 2^nd day of the week, and the 1^st day of the week does not exist for them, as it has been replaced by the 7^th day. Instead their “Preparation Day” follows the 6th day of the week, but, according to the Bible, the day that follows the 6^th day of the week is the 7^th-day Sabbath.

6. Plus 1-day adjustment to American Time and minus 1-day reversion to  Asian Time

On July 4^th, 1892, Samoa shifted time zones from Asian to American time and added +1 day. On December 29^th 2011, Samoa reverted to its previous Asian time kept prior to July 4^th 1892 by subtracting -1 day.

In the first time change, Samoa shifted from west of the date line to east of the date line, apparently adding 24 hours to the week. And in the second time zone shift, Samoa shifted back to the west of the datelined and apparently deducted 24 hours from the week, as demonstrated in the diagram below.

Re-aligning a country to the other side of the IDL is effectively the same as moving the country over the IDL. It is similar to individuals traveling over the IDL, which happens routinely. In each case, 24 hours are either added or subtracted from the personal week in order to be in harmony with local time. For Samoa, this adjustment allowed the sequence of the day and date to remain constant according to the global calendar, just as it does for individuals who cross over the IDL.

Therefore, the 7th-day Sabbath of the Bible is still on Saturday and correctly situated between Preparation Day, on Friday and the 1^st day of the week on Sunday.

Notice that Samoa dropped one 24-hour period (Friday) at the end of 2011 and thus removed the 24-hour period that was added in the first time zone shift of 1892. This enables Samoa to be synchronized with the Asian time cycle followed in New Zealand and Australia.

7. The SPD/STM Calendar for Samoa SDA’s out of sync with Global Calendar since December 29^th, 2011

Since the transition back to Asian time, most Samoan SDA’s have adopted Sunday worship, as far as all the world can see. However, the majority SDA community explanation is that it is keeping the 7^th day according to is former time cycle. At the same time a remnant of SDA’s is keeping the 7^th-day Sabbath on local time.

But in reality the majority SDA community follows a combination of keeping the 7^th day according to American time on weekends, and then switching back to Asian time during the week days. By contrast, a remnant of Seventh-day Adventists are being consistent in abiding by local time throughout the whole week and keeping the 7^th-day Sabbath on Saturday as they have done in the past.

It is a confused situation whereby the majority Samoan SDA calendar has changed the 7th-day Sabbath to Preparation Day and renumbered the 1^st day of the week as the 7th day, thus promoting the observance of an exclusive SDA calendar distinct from the global calendar that the rest of the world observes.

It is clear that this is a private and inconsistent calendar, and to the world it is only evident that Samoan SDA’s have joined other churches in keeping Sunday as their day of worship.

8. The Global Calendar – 2012

(Refer to http://www.timeanddate.com & http://www.timehall.com/calendar)

Since December 29, 2011, confusion continues in the Samoan SDA community because the Samoan SDA calendar is different from that used by the global Seventh-day Adventist community. There is no justification for a different SDA calendar in Samoa, as the following country calendar examples show that the Samoa calendar is identical with that used in New Zealand, Singapore, United States and the United Kingdom, countries representative of Asian and American
time cycles.

The global calendar also follows the same day and date sequence regardless of the week starting on Sunday or Monday. And it is the same on either side of the date line. (Samoa has actually had two calendars for a number of years. The usual local calendar begins the week with Sunday, but the ISO calendar, used in some businesses, begins the week with Monday.)

As demonstrated by the different calendars below, the 7th-day Sabbath is on May 5^th, both on Asian and American Time. It is always on Saturday, whether the calendar is from Asia, America or Europe and whether the calendar week ends on Saturday or Sunday:

9. Conclusion

The following are indisputable facts about the Samoan SDA’s Sabbath dilemma. These facts support keeping the 7^th-day Sabbath on Saturday, both on the Asian and the American time-cycle:

• “Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.” (Genesis 2:1-3 NKJV)

• The 7th-day Sabbath is the day after Preparation Day and before the 1^st day of the week, commonly known as Sunday. (See Luke 15:42 and Mark 24:1-7)

• God’s law is unchangeable (See Mathew 5:17-20)

• Samoa Time zone shifts are recorded in history:

~ The first shift on July 4^th 1892 from Asian to American time added a day to the week.
~ And the second shift from American back to Asian time, on December 29^th 2011, subtracted a day from the week.

• The global calendar is the same for Samoa, with identical sequence of day and date, whether on Asian or American time.

• Whether crossing from Asian to American Time, or vice versa, the 1-7-day cycle is unbroken by a one-time adjustment of 1-6-day or 1-8-day week, whichever is applicable, just as happens when travelers cross the date line.

• The Polynesia people migration was from Asia, keeping Asian time. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polynesia) The following illustrates the Polynesian migration and populating of the Pacific on route from Asia to Oceania. Thus the people would have brought Asian time with them.

10. Clarifying Questions

Contemplating these facts, I ask you, who are created in God’s image with His bestowed intelligence and powers of reasoning, the following questions:

• Why, if Polynesians migrated from Asia, would their original time-keeping be misconstrued as anything other than Asian time?

• With the first time-change on July 4^th, 1892, when King Malietoa shifted the nation from Asian to American time, why would there be any dispute about the original time being Asian?

• Before the first change, the 7^th day was Saturday on Asian time. From July 4^th 1892 until December 29^th 2011, the 7^th day was Saturday on American time, the continuity enabled by 1-time 8-day week. Why would the principle of a 1-time 8-day week  adjustment be acceptable in 1892 and not acceptable after the second change in 2011 by a 1-time 6-day week in order to transition from American back to the previous Asian time-cycle?

• God’s Word is absolute, and in Mark 15:42 and Luke 24:1-7 it indicated clearly that the 7^th day is after preparation day and before the first day of the week, commonly known as Sunday. Why does the SPD contradict this identification of the Sabbath by the directive for Samoan Adventists to consider Sunday the 7^th day of the week when it is really the 1^st day of the week according to the local and the global calendar?

• If, according to Mathew 5:17-20, God’s law is unchangeable, on what basis does the SPD and STM have the authority to change the 7^th day to the 1^st day of the week?

• Is it possible that the sequence and the names of these days could be any other days of the week and not as read in these Bible references? Are there other Bible references to the contrary?

• Why would the global calendar be the same in all the world and show the 7^th day as Saturday May 5^th while in Samoa, the SDA calendar shows the 7^th day to be Sunday May 6^th?

• If God represents order as opposed to chaos, does the SPD Sunday worship directive enhance Seventh-day Adventist community harmony or create disharmony?

• Does Seventh-day Adventist Sunday worship in Samoa prepare believers for the final crisis that will be experienced throughout the world as foreseen by Ellen White and written out in the last chapters of the Great Controversy? (See references at end of post.)

• According to God’s Word and allowing the Holy Spirit to guide your reactions to the above questions, do you believe that the 7th day is Saturday or Sunday?

Finally, to be a true Seventh-day Adventist is to keep the 7th-day holy as a sign that the Lord is our righteousness and sanctification. The Sabbath is a sign that distinguishes God’s remnant people from the rest of professed Christendom. (See Exodus 31:13; Ezekiel 20:12,20)

Is it possible that the same Sunday that is the mark of Rome’s authority can also be a sign of God’s remnant people?

Which day will you keep?

• the Sunday which is the mark of Rome’s authority?
• or will you keep the Sabbath Jesus kept?

Some Sunday Sabbath Resources:

• 7 Facts about the Seventh Day
• Historic Denominational Statements on the Sabbath
• The Sabbath In Prophecy
• Ellen White. The Great Controversy, Chapter 35 and on. Also see particularly these references to Sunday: page 573, page 448, page 577, page 588, page 615)

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Prayer of dedication at the end of the Samoa Saturday Sabbath Keepers of the SDA church leaders’ meeting after appointment of steering committee.

The Steering Committee of the Samoa Saturday Sabbath Keepers (SSSK) of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Samoa met for the first time on September 30, 2012.

This Steering Committee, through its authorized officers, will be the official collective voice of the SSSK with regards to communications and dialogue with the Samoa-Tokelau Mission (STM), Trans-Pacific Union Mission (TPUM), the South Pacific Division (SPD), the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists (GC) and others in relation to the current Sabbath dilemma in Samoa and related issues.

The collective name and identity for members of the Seventh-day Adventist church in Samoa who keep Saturday as the seventh-day Sabbath will be ”Samoa Saturday Sabbath Keepers of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.” In Samoan, it is “Mafutaga Tausi Sapati Aso Toonai i Samoa a le Ekalesia Aso Fitu o le Toe Afio Mai.”

While the name may appear long, the committee wished to ensure that the identity of the Saturday Sabbath Keepers in Samoa is clear and unambiguous, including the fact that SSSK continue to be members of the official Seventh-day Adventist Church.

The steering committee was appointed by a general meeting of the SSSK on September 2, 2012, to steer the future course for the fellowship and to plan and organize activities for the collective good of its members.

This action was deemed necessary because the Samoa, American Samoa and Tokelau Mission (STM) of the Seventh-day Adventist Church has formally abandoned and refused to provide any pastoral or other church related services to the SSSK who are also members of the Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church of which STM is a part.

SSSK Chairperson, Fuimaono Esera Rimoni

The Steering Committee declared the purpose of the SSSK to be “To demonstrate our love and respect for God by obeying all His instructions including the Sabbath on the 7th day of the week from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday. In addition, to comply with the same instructions reiterated by the General Conference in Session as recorded in the Church Manual and in the Exposition of the Church’s Fundamental Beliefs authored by the General Conference.” STM has made clear that it cannot accept the SSSK choosing to continue to keep Saturday as the seventh-day Sabbath after the Samoa IDL re-alignment in December 2011, even though the seventh-day Sabbath is defined as being Saturday in the world-wide Seventh-day Adventist  Church in its Church Manual.  That Manual defined God’s Sabbath is on the 7th day of the week from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday.

Chair person of the SSSK is Fuimaono Esera Rimoni, a former member of the executive committees for the Samoa Tokelau Mission (STM) for several years and most recently the committee which discussed the Sabbath issue in 2011. In the past he has also been a leading elder for the several SDA churches including Alafua, Togitogiga and Sapunaoa and currently the Lighthouse church, as well as a former representative in the world Seventh-day Adventist annual church council meetings. Before becoming a Seventh-day Adventist, he was a member of the LMS.

Fuimaono is also a retired accountant and former director of finance for the NZ government office which controlled affairs for Tokelau for 23 years. He holds five chief titles and tausi aiga, nuu and itumalo for over 40 years to date. Having been a commercial cattle farmer for over 40 years now, he remarks, with a twinkle in his eyes, “I can talk about animals and understand them maybe better than people.”

The SSSK’s mission statement is “To play our part to the best of our abilities to spread the Gospel (including God’s instructions concerning the Sabbath) to hasten His return so we can enjoy Heaven and the New Earth with our Almighty God.”

The Committee agreed on the goal of the SSSK to be “to assist to reunite all Seventh-day Adventists in Samoa in obeying God and the General Conference in Session by keeping God’s Sabbath from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday.”

Currently some members within the SSSK are raising the question of whether to become an independently registered entity. Thus far SSSK’s have been sending tithes and offerings to the STM in obedience to God’s instructions and SDA polices, but the local Mission leadership refuse to provide any pastoral and other church-related services. Furthermore, besides denying SSSK’s the use of Seventh-day Adventist churches, the STM, some local church pastors and a number of Sunday Sabbath keepers continue to take actions to frustrate the Saturday Sabbath Keepers from observing the Sabbath on Saturday.

In spite of the frustrations of the current situation, many Saturday Sabbath Keepers are cautious about being registered as an independent entity. They argue that more study and understanding is needed regarding the likely implications before such a collective decision is made. They advise patience and allowing time for dialogue with the Mission, Union, Division and General Conference as an official group with regards to the Sabbath dilemma in Samoa and related issues. Accordingly, the SSSK, will not be registered as an independent entity at this stage. They will continue to remain members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Samoa.

The Committee was informed that a multi-cultural group will be formed, and the Steering Committee fully supports the establishment of this group for the benefit of those who do not understand Samoan or prefer to be members of this group through which they serve and worship God.

A group of about 40 or so adults and children from the Salelavalu Mission church in Savai’i made a stand for God’s Sabbath (Saturday, the 7th day of the week), left the Mission Church a couple of months ago and joined the SSSKs in Savai’i for a few weeks. The group then moved on to join the Samoan Independent Seventh-day Adventist Church (SISDAC) which also keeps the Sabbath on Saturday.

Apart from this occurrence, each of the leaders from the three (3) centers (Pu’apu’a, Samatau and Lighthouse) reported that notwithstanding the tough challenges their respective centers continue to encounter from time to time, their members have remained faithful to Sabbath keeping and have stayed loyal to the cause.

No one is known to have abandoned keeping the Sabbath on Saturday and returned to worship on Sunday. To the contrary, new persons join the SSSK almost every Sabbath, particularly at the Lighthouse. There were also additions to the Samatau group in September.Mission Church a couple of months ago and joined the SSSK’s in Savai’i for a few weeks. The group then moved on to join the Samoan Independent Seventh-day Adventist Church (SISDAC) which also keeps the Sabbath on Saturday. Apart from this occurrence, each of the leaders from the three centers (Pu’apu’a, Samatau and Lighthouse) reported that, notwithstanding the tough challenges their respective centers continue to encounter from time to time, their members have remained faithful to Sabbath keeping and have stayed loyal to the cause.

All official releases and communications from the Steering Committee (representing all SSSK in the SDA Church) will be from Emoni T Tesese and Fuaoa Tia Collins (Communication Officers) in consultation with the Chairperson (Fuimaono E Rimoni).

This report has been adapted from an official release by Emoni T Tesese.

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Over time, Sabbath keepers have been accused of keeping the Sabbath in order to be saved by their works. But the Sabbath is a rest day not a works day, so the exact opposite is true. We rest on the Sabbath, to demonstrate that we have faith in Jesus and not in our works. We rest our faith in the merits, righteousness and works of Jesus and not in our own works.

By contrast, Sunday observance is a man-made day of worship in a worship system worked out by man and not God. It is similar to the worship of Cain who, by bringing the fruits of his field from where he had been working, was presenting his own works as an act of worship. God refused the works of Cain as well as all the works of men. Abel brought the lamb as a sign that he was trusting the Lamb of God Who was to come. By bringing the lamb Abel was showing that he did not trust his works to save him, but would be saved by the Lamb.

When we keep (cherish, preserve or treasure) the seventh-day Sabbath we are acknowledging the fact that only Jesus can save us. Our salvation is found in Jesus alone, so we follow His example by worshiping on the day that kept holy. “He [Jesus] went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read.” Luke 4:16 NIV. Notice that the Bible does not say that it was the Jewish custom; it was His custom.

“Say to the Israelites, ‘You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the LORD, who makes you holy.” Exodus 31:13 NIV.

God makes it clear. The Sabbath is not a sign that we are made holy by our works. It is a sign that He makes us holy by His grace and not our works.

Think about it. Satan knows we are not saved by our works. Satan knows we are saved by grace. Satan wants us to forget the Sabbath and thus forget the God who saves us by His grace. It is not so much the Sabbath or the law that Satan is at war with. He is at war with God’s grace, and he works to destroy any sign of God’s grace. Thus Satan has worked for years to make people forget the Sabbath, which is a sign that God makes us holy by His own grace and not by our works or any man-made system of worship, which is legalism.

When God sanctifies us He separates us from the world. When He sanctified the Sabbath He separated it from all other days. Just knowing which day is holy does not save us. That would be salvation by the works of the mind, which is the same as the works of the flesh. We are saved by faith, and we show faith in God’s sanctifying power, by keeping the day holy. Years ago, Sabbath keepers would notice that while Sunday keepers went to church on Sunday, calling it holy, that they still did not observe it as the Sabbath once they got out of church, but went about their daily secular activities. Well the time has come now, when many Sunday keepers can say the same about Sabbath keepers. Keeping the Sabbath holy is more than going to church on Sabbath. It is a 24 hour period from even to even. See Leviticus 23:32 By faith, God has separated the whole day from the rest of the world.

“On Friday let the preparation for the Sabbath be completed. See that all the clothing is in readiness and that all the cooking is done. Let the boots be blacked and the baths be taken. It is possible to do this. If you make it a rule you can do it. The Sabbath is not to be given to the repairing of garments, to the cooking of food, to pleasure seeking, or to any other worldly employment. Before the setting of the sun let all secular work be laid aside and all secular papers be put out of sight. Parents, explain your work and its purpose to your children, and let them share in your preparation to keep the Sabbath according to the commandment.

We should jealously guard the edges of the Sabbath. Remember that every moment is consecrated, holy time. Whenever it is possible, employers should give their workers the hours from Friday noon until the beginning of the Sabbath. Give them time for preparation, that they may welcome the Lord’s day with quietness of mind. By such a course you will suffer no loss even in temporal things.

There is another work that should receive attention on the preparation day. On this day all differences between brethren, whether in the family or in the church, should be put away. Let all bitterness and wrath and malice be expelled from the soul. In a humble spirit, “confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.” James 5:16. 472

Nothing which will in the sight of Heaven be regarded as a violation of the holy Sabbath should be left unsaid or undone, to be said or done upon the Sabbath. God requires not only that we refrain from physical labor upon the Sabbath, but that the mind be disciplined to dwell upon sacred themes. The fourth commandment is virtually transgressed by conversing upon worldly things or by engaging in light and trifling conversation. Talking upon anything or everything which may come into the mind is speaking our own words. Every deviation from right brings us into bondage and condemnation.” –Ellen White, Counsels to the Church, Page 263

Instead of working this Sabbath (Saturday) to provide for you and your family, would you like to show your faith in God’s amazing grace, by resting on this day instead, and letting the whole world know, as Abel did, that you believe God’s grace will provide for your every need and not your works?

“To all who receive the Sabbath as a sign of Christ’s creative and redeeming power, it will be a delight. Seeing Christ in it, they delight themselves in Him. The Sabbath points them to the works of creation as an evidence of His mighty power in redemption. While it calls to mind the lost peace of Eden, it tells of peace restored through the Saviour. And every object in nature repeats His invitation, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” –The Faith I Live By, p. 33.

1 Mark Buchanan, The Rest of God

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“The sacrifice of Christ as an atonement for sin is the great truth around which all other truths cluster. In order to be rightly understood and appreciated, every truth in the Word of God, from Genesis to Revelation, must be studied in the light that streams from the cross of Calvary. I present before you the great, grand monument of mercy and regeneration, salvation and redemption–the Son of God uplifted on the cross. This is to be the foundation of every discourse given by our ministers.”–Gospel Workers, p. 315.

With this thought in mind, I would like to share a study from the “In Light Of The Cross Bible Study Guides,” which I prepared so that people can see our sacred truths in the light of God’s love as opposed to the legalistic view we are often accused of.

The Sabbath

Brief overview: The seventh day of the week, Saturday, is God’s holy Sabbath on which we are to rest from all secular work and activity. God sanctified the Sabbath day and made it holy. See Genesis 2:1-3, Exodus, 20:8-11, Exodus 31:13, John 14:15, Revelation 14:12

Why it is important to understand the truth about the Sabbath:

The Sabbath is the only commandment that begins with “remember” while it is also the one commandment man has forgotten. While many agnostics believe that God created us and then left us on our own, the Sabbath tells us that our Creator wants to have a relationship with us. The Sabbath also tells us who our God is. You can keep the other nine commandments and worship any god you choose. You can have no other gods before you besides television and not bow to any other god than television and so forth. The Sabbath commandment is the only commandment that tells us who the Lord is. He is the Creator. This is why Satan wants us to forget this commandment. He wants us to forget God. He wants to be our god instead!

The Sabbath is a sign that we belong to the true God, the one who created us and died for us.

Why it is important to understand the Sabbath in light of the cross:

Satan does not want us to forget the Sabbath in order for us to forget the law. Satan knows we are not saved by the works of the law but by grace. The Sabbath is a sign of God’s grace. We do no work on that day, demonstrating that it is not our works that sustain or save us but rather God’s work, both at creation and the cross, that sustain and save us. We rest on the Sabbath, showing that we are resting our faith in the only One who can save us, Jesus Christ. I can imagine God walking with Adam and Eve through the garden, as He showed them all He had made for them, and the wonders of not their works but His works. Adam and Eve realized that day with God, “it is] He [that] hath made us, and not we ourselves.” (Psalms 100:3) Before and after the cross, the Sabbath is a sign that it is God’s work that creates and sustains us.

The Sabbath commandment reminds us that God is our Creator and we refrain from work and worldly activities on the Sabbath day as we rest our faith in God’s power to save and provide for us, instead of our own works and ability to do business and make money.

The same principle is seen in the story of Cain and Abel. In Genesis 4 we read about Abel worshiping the way God had commanded in bringing a lamb as a sacrifice. God accepted Abel’s sacrifice because the lamb God instructed him to bring pointed to Jesus – the Lamb of God who would be sacrificed for our sins. Abel, beyond just worshiping as God had instructed, was saying he trusted in Jesus to save him, rather than his own works. He was looking to the cross. Cain’s sacrifice was refused because he did not worship the way God had instructed, and he brought his own fruit, the work of his own hands. God cannot accept our works and could not accept Cain’s works either. Only the Christ can save us.

Today, many people like Cain, try to be saved by worshiping their own way. Jesus says about them, “But in vain they do worship me, teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:9). Our own works and man-made ways of worship will never save us.

There’s a story of a little boy years ago who had built his own wooden sailboat. After tying it to a string he set the boat out to sail in a nearby creek, and then would use the string to reel it back in. One day the string broke and the little boat fell victim to the rapids and sailed away. Several days later the boy was window shopping downtown when he saw his boat in a toy store window. He went inside told the owner, “That’s my boat in the window.” The owner of the store, not sure if he should believe the young lad, told the boy he would have to purchase the boat if he wants it back.

The boy did chores around the home and neighborhood to earn the few dollars the boat cost. He returned to the store and purchased his own boat. Walking home, holding his boat close to his chest he was overheard saying, “Little boat, you are twice mine. First I made you, and then I bought you.” That is what Jesus is telling us through the Sabbath today. As we rest from our works on the Sabbath and put our faith in Him, He tells us, “You are twice mine. First, at creation I made you, and then at the cross I bought you.”

Further study on the Sabbath:

Which day is the Sabbath?

But the seventh day [is] the sabbath of the LORD thy God: [in it] thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that [is] within thy gates:

For [in] six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them [is], and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.  Exodus 20:10, 11

How can we know which day is the seventh day?

Some reject the seventh-day Sabbath over the belief that we cannot know which day it falls on today, so picking any day should be okay. But this is fallacy.

According to Scripture, Christ died on Friday and rose on Sunday, the first day of the week. Practically all churches acknowledge this by observing Easter Sunday and Good Friday.

“This man went unto Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. And he took it down, and wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a sepulchre that was hewn in stone, wherein never man before was laid. And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on. The women also, which came with him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulchre, and how his body was laid. And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment” (Luke 23:52–56).

This is clear evidence that Jesus died the day before the Sabbath. The day of His death was a “preparation day” because it was the time to get ready for the Sabbath. Notice, then, that the women rested over the Sabbath “according to the commandment.” The commandment says, “The seventh day is the Sabbath,” so we know they were resting on Saturday. The very next verse says, “Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared. … And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre” (Luke 24:1, 2).

Hasn’t the calendar been changed since the time of Christ?

The calendar has not been changed so as to confuse the days of the week. Just as we know that Jesus and His followers observed the same day as Moses, we can be positive that our seventh day is the same day Jesus observed.

Pope Gregory XIII did make a calendar change in 1582, but it did not interfere with the weekly cycle. What did Gregory do to the calendar? He changed Friday, October 5, 1582, to be Friday, October 15, 1582. He did not affect the weekly cycle of days.

The Jews have observed the seventh day from the time of Abraham, and they still keep it today. An entire nation of people, all around the world, continue to observe a Sabbath they have known for more than 4,000 years.

Over 100 languages on earth use the word “Sabbath” for Saturday. For example, the Spanish word for Saturday is “Sabado,” meaning Sabbath. What does this prove? It proves that when those languages originated long ago, Saturday was recognized as the Sabbath day and was incorporated into the very name of the day.” -Joe Crews, Seven Facts About the 7th Day.

Who was the Sabbath made for?

And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:  Mark 2:27

Whose day is the Sabbath?

Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.  Mark 2:28

What does God call the Sabbath?

If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, [from] doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking [thine own] words:  Isaiah 58:13

When is the Sabbath to be observed?

From even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath.   Leviticus 23:32

What marks the beginning of a day?

And the evening and the morning were the first day.  Genesis 1:5

What did Jesus do on the Sabbath?

And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.  Luke 4:16

What else should be done on the Sabbath?

And, behold, there was a man which had [his] hand withered. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him.

And he said unto them, What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift [it] out?

How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days. Matthew 12:10-12

What are we to “remember” to do?

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.  Exodus 20:8

What are we to refrain from on the Sabbath?

Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:

But the seventh day [is] the sabbath of the LORD thy God: [in it] thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that [is] within thy gates:

For [in] six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them [is], and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.  Exodus 20:9-11

 Why were the Jews carried into captivity?

In those days saw I in Judah [some] treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all [manner of] burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day: and I testified [against them] in the day wherein they sold victuals.

There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem.

Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, What evil thing [is] this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day?

Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath.  Nehemiah 13:15-18

What are we to learn from this?

There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.

For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God [did] from his.

Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.  Hebrews 4:9-11

 What does God want us to be?

And [they that shall be] of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.  Isaiah 58:12

 How only is this possible?

If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, [from] doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking [thine own] words:  Isaiah 58:13

 What is God’s promise?

Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken [it].  Isaiah 58:14

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In an interview with David Frost, Richard Nixon, a former United States President, forced to resign due to a scandal, defended himself by saying, “If the President does it, then it is not illegal.” This bold statement shocked David Frost, and every other competent thinker! I suspect that in the United States, people really started to question their leaders after Nixon’s downfall.

I believe we keep a healthy balance of respect for leadership, without blind submission, when we ask for accountability and checks and balances. In the United States we have a constitution the President must hold to. The Constitution also declares who ultimately has the authority. It reads, “We the people.” Not “me the President” or “me Thomas Jefferson, or James Madison, or Ronald Reagan or Barack Obama.” The power and authority of the Constitution comes from “The People!” Therefore our president is not above the law.

In the church we have the Scriptures as our sole authority, and our leaders must be held accountable. And the church as a body has authority, ”God has ordained that the representatives of His church from all parts of the earth, when assembled in a General Conference, shall have authority.” –Last Day Events, p. 56. Just as in the United States, the President is not above the people, the church leaders are not above the church.

“The church is built upon Christ as its foundation; it is to obey Christ as its head. It is not to depend upon man, or be controlled by man. Many claim that a position of trust in the church gives them authority to dictate what other men shall believe and what they shall do. This claim God does not sanction. …. Upon no finite being can we depend for guidance. The Rock of faith is the living presence of Christ in the church. Upon this the weakest may depend, and those who think themselves the strongest will prove to be the weakest, unless they make Christ their efficiency. “Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm.” The Lord “is the Rock, His work is perfect.” “Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him.” Jeremiah 17:5; Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 2:12.- Desire of Ages, Page 414.

Many years ago, I heard the testimony of a church leader, defending himself for some shady deals, saying his boss told him to do it, therefore he had no choice but to obey his boss who had “authority.” I am sure Joab was thinking the same thing when King David told him to put Uriah on the front lines of the war. Please read what God’s messenger has to say about Joab’s rationale.

“And Joab, whose allegiance had been given to the king rather than to God, transgressed God’s law because the king commanded it. David’s power had been given him by God, but to be exercised only in harmony with the divine law. When he commanded that which was contrary to God’s law, it became sin to obey. “The powers that be are ordained of God” (Romans 13:1), but we are not to obey them contrary to God’s law. The apostle Paul, writing to the Corinthians, sets forth the principle by which we should be governed. He says, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 11:1. –Patriarchs and Prophets, Page 719.

Martin Luther before Emperor Image © Providence Collection from GoodSalt.com

I would also like to share a parting thought. In my years of gospel work around the country, I have met people who are afraid to speak up in board meetings or church business meetings, because they feel they are too young or poor, and their influence would not be felt. I have also observed people abusing their age or money to hurt others. I would like to encourage all—no matter how young, old, rich or poor you are—you need to speak your mind in these meetings. And, no matter how young, old rich or poor you are, you need to be nice when you do. Everyone has a right and a responsibility to speak, and everyone has a responsibility to be nice when they do so.

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