The golden river that flows through time

The Golden River that Flows through Time ii The Golden River That Flows Through Time (Second Edition) Warren Shipton

Copyright © 2022 W. Shipton All rights reserved. ISBN: 9798802270974 DEDICATION To all those who through the ages have suffered on account of their convictions and have believed that there is a blessing promised to those who “keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12, 13). .

CONTENTS Preface & Acknowledgments i Sabbath Memorials and Humanity 1 1. The Missing Link 3 2. The Crucifix 17 Historical Perspectives and Prospects 28 3. Dateline Sinai 30 4. The Last Word! 42 5. From Son of Life to Sun of Salvation 54 Sabbath Guidance and Songs 74 6. The Cosmos and Earth Speak 76 7. Singing for Joy 93 8. A Day of Pleasure 103 The Sabbath and the Abiding Qualities 117 9. Beauty Broken 119 10. Thumb Prints 132 11. Utopia 141 Moral Foundations & Controversy Claims 148 12. Protection 150 13. Vagabonds? 160 14. Liberty of Conscience 166 15. Mercy and Justice Meet 172 16. Harmony 178

i PREFACE & ACKNOWLEDGMENTS uman beings seek security, stability, and freedom. Too often they seek it apart from God, vainly thinking that his ways are restrictive and irrational. Ultimate freedom and security are found in Jesus Christ. Cruel indeed is the outcome of philosophies that reject his life and ministry and prefer to reduce everything to naturalistic explanations. The prince of this world, Satan, is engaged in a great controversy with God and is behind philosophies that serve his attempts to remove God’s memory from the world. Constant reminders of the greatness of God are given in the heavens above and in the teeming wonders of this earth. Commonly, humanity pays little attention to the evidence and too often defaces and even destroys it. As the ultimate insult, living things are considered by many to have arisen through chance. God presses the evidence yet more strongly in the history of the rise and fall of the nations. Their predicted triumphs and failures are chronicled in the Christian scriptures. This evidence is too subtle for many to appreciate in their press of endless activities and enjoyment. God challenges even these individuals by giving a weekly reminder that he is present in the universe. The seven day weekly cycle, ending in the seventhday Sabbath (Saturday), silently witnesses that this division of time has a source separate from natural phenomena. Some recognise the evidence and nevertheless have chosen to change this signpost to another day (Sunday). The seventh day Sabbath reminds of the origin of humans at the hand of their Creator. It challenges all to consider God’s nature, seeks to remind of God’s offer of security, stability, and freedom in Christ, and reminds all of the invitation to accept God’s offer of a glorious inheritance. We might liken it to a golden river that flows through time. This river brings to all people the waters of salvation within the defining banks of the law of liberty, the Decalogue. The Sabbath memorial-day originated with the Creator and will be kept in the new heavens and earth. The Sabbath continually points to Christ and to the soundness of his word preserved in the Bible. It points to a changeless God who has undertaken to save all who choose to exercise faith in him. He is trustworthy, a just judge, and is worthy of praise. Indeed, he is our coming King. The essays found in this book demand thought, consideration, and reflection. They progress from the relatively obvious in Scripture to the less apparent using simple logic. Those who believe that God commenced the process of creation through evolution will be challenged to think again and consider the rich seams of knowledge about God, which has eluded them. H

The Golden River that Flows through Time ii They will be urged to consider the scriptural evidence and rethink the implications of such a position. These essays do not claim to exhaust the subject of the seventh-day Sabbath, but invite the reader to push back the borders and seek new linkages and new insights into God’s character and ways. In your quest, seek always the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The ideas penned here arose from a personal challenge to explain the reasons for belief in the seventh-day Sabbath. Texts that are quoted often come from the New King James Version of the Bible. Where alternative versions and paraphrases of the Bible are used, these sources are acknowledged. Grateful thanks are given to my wife Jan who provided valuable editorial assistance. Without her attention to detail, identifying inconsistencies, making helpful suggestions, and adding corrections, the manuscript would have been much poorer. I am most thankful for her help. The cover was designed using an image purchased from Stockxpert. .

1 Sabbath Memorials and Humanity he distinguishing features of God Almighty, which sets him apart from human gods, are his ability to create out of nothing and his ability to redeem those who choose to accept the philosophy and practices outlined in the biblical record. At the commencement of world history, when weekly time came into existence, God set aside the seventh-day Sabbath as a perpetual memorial of his creative ability. After the entrance of sin, the Lord promised to recreate humans in his image through the act of redemption. Then the Sabbath took on a rich mantle of additional significance. After redemption of the race had been secured by Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, the New Testament authors assure all that the Sabbath still memorialises the creating and recreating abilities of God, because he is faithful. The spirit of service for undeserving humanity was shown by Christ’s life and death. This act represents the greatest expression of his love and concern for humanity. Honouring his memory is expressed through offering loving service by obedience and by participating in the service of love to others by sharing the gospel with them. The Sabbath and the Lord’s Supper are the memorials of his love and service to humanity. In recognition of this, God invites all to bring garlands of joy and worship before him each Sabbath day and each time the Communion is celebrated. When the scriptural record is examined more closely, it is noticed that it weaves a rich fabric of information about the person and ways of T

The Golden River that Flows through Time 2 God. This is often conveyed in the context of speaking of Sabbath issues and activities. Jesus Christ is presented in Scripture as the person of the Godhead who not only created, but redeemed us. He is also the Lawgiver, Judge, Mediator in heaven, divine Teacher, and our coming King. The biblical writers paint a bright picture of God. He is a caring God who listens to us and has pleasure in our affirmation of his goodness and faithfulness. He urges all to worship on his holy day in recognition that it is a reminder of liberty, loyalty, and love, which are dominant elements of his divine character. In this section, we examine two themes under the following headings: 1. The Missing Link (Sabbath as a memorial of creation) 2. The Crucifix (Sabbath as a promise and memorial of redemption)

3 1 - The Missing Link Key thoughts: The Sabbath was the final act in the creation of the world and links believers to God in thankfulness and love. It is his signature in time to remind all of the unity of knowledge and that he is the source of knowledge. The Sabbath is God’s memorial of creation. It is his gift to humanity and also links believers to eternity. It reminds the race of their purpose, keeps hope alive, and reminds all of the source of sound knowledge. oday theologians and scientists are exploring the interface between religion and science as never before. It is no longer realistic for either group to ignore the claims of the other, although some continue to ignore other perspectives. It is held by some that religion must retain its “moral claims” and increasingly science must assert that it has an ethical conscience (Werthheim 1995, pp. 40-42). Certainly, genuine knowledge is not found solely in the domain of natural science. It has been said that “A purely scientific world would be an inhumane world.” A world where matter is used to explain everything is not rich enough to explain that abilities we possess. Hence, a theistic world-view gives a better fit with reality (Stenmark 2017, 47-50). Since the arrival of humans, they have wondered at both the process and the Mind behind creation. The original Adam knew where he had come from, but soon his descendants dreamt up fanciful tales to account for their origins. In modern times, serious attempts have been made to explain the origin of life and the universe in terms of scientific knowledge. While performing many brilliant feats of discovery, modern scientists uniformly have failed to come close to any real breakthrough in understanding the T

The Golden River that Flows through Time 4 processes involved in the origin of life. The immensity and complexity of knowledge means that sensible resolution of the multitude of complex problems found in the natural world has not been possible (Roth 1998, pp. 52-54, 360-363; Flew 2007, pp. 123-132). Yet God created the natural world in six days as an expression of a fraction of his wisdom. Creation - Perfect and Complete As we go through the creation check list in Genesis chapter one, we notice that all aspects of the creation were considered “good” and the entire creation was said to be “very good. The sequence started with chaos and ended with what might be termed a perfect creation. On the seventh day, God made the Sabbath (Mark 2:27-28). It should not surprise readers that it is also declared “perfect,” being part of the law or ten commandments (Psalm 19:7). Creation was not completed until the seventh day was set apart, blessed, and made holy. The purpose of the Sabbath was to celebrate life, foster a close relationship between God and humans, and give opportunity for human beings to gain knowledge and wisdom, so as to ensure both happiness and good stewardship (Moskala 2007, pp. 48-51). From the beginning, the Sabbath represented a covenant of love and friendship between God and humans. It is God’s sanctuary in time, a statement that a perfect and complete material creation originated from a perfect God who wished nothing except good for his creatures. Thus, the number seven came to be associated in Jewish and other cultures with the “ideas of totality and completeness” (Zerubavel 1985, pp. 7-8). Worship The act of worship by human beings is an expression of their acknowledgment of the superiority and completeness of all God’s acts and their thankfulness to him for the gift of life. Imagine Adam awakening to look into the face of his Creator. Imagine his senses being assaulted in quick succession by sounds, sights, and touch. Imagine his enchanted joy as he awoke to see God’s spectacular handiwork in the creation of Eve. He was certainly fully aware of the distinction between creature and Creator. And Eve would have gone through exactly the same sensory experiences as Adam. The “distinction between the Creator and his creatures” is really the “true ground of divine worship” (White 1950, p. 437; cf. Romans 1:21-23). This is the psalmist David’s point when he wrote, “For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the Lord made the heavens .... Oh, worship the

The Golden River that Flows through Time 5 Lord in the beauty of holiness” (1 Chronicles 16:25-26, 29). God set the pattern of acceptable human worship behaviour on the seventh day of creation week. On that day, true worship began. It was then that the newly created pair accepted God’s will and committed themselves to him, as the expression of their love (Stuart 1995, p. 19; 1 Kings 18:21; Matthew 15:9). The will of God is that humans choose to acknowledge him as supreme, follow the pathways of love, and experience joy and happiness. Initially, Adam and Eve accepted these ideals as their goals. They were meant to keep an inseparable connection with God and to fulfil the purpose of peopling the earth and caring for it according to the principles outlined to them. On the first Sabbath, God blessed and sanctified the day. Happiness, usefulness, and satisfaction in life’s journey are connected to one’s regard for God’s provisions (Isaiah 58). As originally planned, humanity met regularly with God, the Truth, and was continually kept in a state of sanctification because their faith relationship was continuous. This means that they were protected from the temptation to disobey. Humans, in the beginning, were blessed as they associated with the source of blessing, God. Today believers can meet together and discuss truth and be sanctified (John 16:7-14; 17:17; cf. Ezekiel 20:12). This is because they have come into contact with the author of truth, Jesus Christ (Matthew 6:33). The manner in which an individual relates to God enables blessings to flow. Jesus’ discourse known as the Beatitudes gives a sense of the fuller meaning to the blessings available (Matthew 5:3-11). Followers are blessed as they acknowledge God as their Creator, as they proclaim dependency on him, as they accept the principles of his government, and as they yearn for his presence. If we read beyond the verses noted above, we find that the discourse on blessings is put in the setting of upholding the principles revealed by God’s word. Jesus said: “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets.” He then added, “I did not come to destroy but to fulfil” (v. 17). In the final note of this long discourse, he made the ever applicable admonition to “build on the Rock” (Matthew 7:24-27). In this context, it can be observed that the Sabbath from the beginning was a reminder that the Rock, the Creator, is the source of blessing and sanctification. The Sabbath commemorates God’s perfect and complete work. In other words, we do not serve a defective God (Matthew 5:48). Failing to honour God’s memorial, serves to diminish from his claims. God designated the Sabbath as a sign (seal), a perpetual reminder of the origin of humans and of the relationship that he intended to exist forever between the members of the human family and the family in heaven (Exodus 31:16- 17). No wonder that we find, at the end of salvation history, the Sabbath will be kept in heaven when the redeemed possess it (Isaiah 66:22-23).

The Golden River that Flows through Time 6 The Sabbath Speaks The Sabbath still speaks to us. Today we hear a “whisper” of God (Job 26:14, cf. v. 7), in contrast to the events at creation. As we reflect on this from the context of human experience, we recognise that there are important highlights about God and his ways enshrined in the Sabbath. Creation Was a Unique and Thoughtful Act God in the beginning created matter out of nothing (Psalm 148:5). The amazing nature of God’s wisdom is revealed by these acts (Job 28:12, 20-28; Jeremiah 10:12). He led the patriarch Job through just a few of the puzzling aspects of creation and left him mentally exhausted. Some of the questions asked by God (Job 38-41) defy conclusive answers even in our scientific age. We notice from Genesis (1 and 2) that the living organisms were made for a defined purpose; they complemented each other and were made in an ordered sequence that makes scientific sense. The simple and logical explanation for these evidences of intelligent design is that God created the world and that he was able to do this because he possessed wisdom from the beginning, in fact from everlasting (Proverbs 8:12, 22-31; Demski 1998, pp. 333-337). The complexity and uniqueness of the biological and physical worlds has challenged the imagination from early times. Many mysteries still abound. The best efforts of science have revealed “everywhere complex, mutually interdependent networks of parts.” The most worrying aspect is that it is not possible to reduce such complexity and still retain function. This constitutes powerful evidence of intelligent design. In fact, advances in science have “made it progressively more difficult to conceive how life might have arisen naturalistically.” The overwhelming evidence from everyday life is that information-rich systems demand intelligent causes (Dembski 1998, pp. 140, 178-182). Launching from this base, there are many who feel that there is strong evidence for a personal, Creator God, as reflected in Scripture (John 1:1-4; Colossians 1:16-17). Something did not arise from nothing. Even a most ardent atheist (e.g., Stephen Hawking) expressed the thought that a “creative factor” was needed to enable calculations, meant to explain the emergence of something from nothing, to become convincing. Richard Swinburne, a distinguished philosopher and theologian, has expressed the conviction that the “existence of a complex physical universe over finite or infinite time is something ‘too big’ for science to explain” (Flew 2007, pp. 133-145). Even closely reasoned scenarios, supposedly accounting for the origin of life and promoted by the scientific community, draw critics from its own ranks. For example, the emergence of today’s complex DNA-based life forms from simpler RNA molecules has been sharply spoken of as follows: “The idea that RNA

The Golden River that Flows through Time 7 somehow invented metabolism by itself is absurd” (Lane, 2015, p. 100). All this means that there are a number of hypotheses that attempt to explain the origin of life. They are all beyond the realm of falsification, for nobody knows the physical and chemical conditions applying in the beginning. Creation Was a Singular Act Part of the uniqueness of the creation events resides in the commencement of the weekly cycle. Time was not the creator as understood in some cultures (Cumont 1956, pp. 107-109, 148). The concept of the passage of time is a human experience distinct from what we believe is possible for other forms of life on earth. The prophet John gives an event in heaven before creation occurred that is associated with timelinked events on earth (Revelation 12), so we can be sure that time as such did not commence with the Big Bang. Believers in a God-inspired creation consider that the creation events mark the beginning of the seven-day weekly cycle, which is something philosophers are not willing to accept (Colson 1926; O’Neill 1975, pp. 30-39). The Sabbath, the memorial of creation, was unique in the creation week. It was a period of rest and togetherness for God and humanity. It was hallowed and blessed in contrast to the other days in the weekly cycle (Genesis 2:2-3). Creation Was an Unselfish and Loving Act The apostle John explains how unselfish the creation act was (John 1:1- 4, 14). God created despite the great controversy (Revelation 12:7-9), despite his knowledge that humans would fall and would, in general, reject Christ when he came to save. Creation was more than an unselfish act; it was an act of love (White 1958a, p. 33). As an expression of this, he created human love with its spiritual, intellectual, and physical dimensions. Indeed, God used the imagery of the marriage relationship to indicate that he is to be regarded not as a Master but as a loving person, a Husband (Hosea 2:16). This relationship, rightly understood, promotes unselfishness (Ephesians 5:28-29). The unselfishness of the creation act is memorialised in the Sabbath. On the Sabbath, time is the currency rather than a place or an object. All can occupy time together without competition (Heschel 1988, pp. 98-99). Hence, it is the ultimate memorial of love and is inclusive of all. Creation Was a Glorious and Joyful Act Throw your imagination back in time and consider the majestic emergence of the dry land from the seas with its green mantle of vegetation; the joyous swaying of the grass and trees in the gentle breeze; the delicate flowers with their brilliant hues arising from the solemn earth and offering their perfumed praise to God. All this speaks to us that creation was a glorious act. But the liturgy of glory continued. The graceful movements of

The Golden River that Flows through Time 8 the sea animals with their sometimes brilliant colours were outdone by the innumerable birds, which displayed their splendour and filled the earth with song. And then the teaming life on the dry ground appeared with all its puzzling characteristics. All these acts of creation were designed to bring glory to God’s name (Isaiah 43:7). Indeed, the “sons of God shouted for joy” when they saw the complexities of the new world and the magnificent outcome (Job 38:4-7). Creation tells us about God’s character as a lover of beauty, tranquillity, and peace (Psalms 27:4; 96:6; Isaiah 65:25). Today we look at the remnants of that past glorious event and recognize “God’s glory is on tour in the skies” (Psalm 19:1, MSG). Such a realization brings praise to our lips. All created beings on earth are urged to bring glory to God and offer praise to him on account of this fact (Psalm 100:1-4; Revelation 14:6-7). Today, everyone is invited to be joyful in recognizing that God is the source of all joy (Ecclesiastes 2:26; Jeremiah 15:16; Luke 15:10; Romans 15:13). Creation’s Crowning Act The creation of humans was “the crowning work of His [God’s] creation” (White 1958b, p. 216). The record says specifically that God, “formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being” (Genesis 2:7). The other forms of life were not created in this manner. God took special care with his final creation because humans were created in his “image” (Genesis 1:26), created to communicate with their Maker face to face. As a continual reminder of his creative ability, God gave the intelligent, created beings on this earth power to procreate, something that the angels do not possess (Mark 12:25). He meant them to use this ability judiciously and deliberately. The instruction was to “fill the earth and subdue [care responsibly for] it” (Genesis 1:28), but not overfill the earth and destroy it (Revelation 11:18). As procreative beings, they were distinguished from the other forms of life in that they possessed higher level reasoning ability and advanced communication skills known as language. As one evolutionist has puzzled, “it is hard to credit that it [evolution] created the human mind” (Passingham 1989, p. 123). It has been acknowledged that the creation of the Sabbath “is the climactic apex of the (Creation) story” (Moskala 2007, p. 47). With the first Sabbath, God created the pattern for all succeeding Sabbaths. The intelligent creatures of his hand came to pay homage to him on that day as their Creator, not as servile, downtrodden individuals but as creatures made in “His own image.” This is not to say they were equal to God. Indeed, the new form of intelligent life was a little lower than the angels (Hebrews 2:9; cf. v.17). Nevertheless, they possessed abilities, which the angels did not have. Creation was a triumphant act and the Sabbath reminds us of this.

The Golden River that Flows through Time 9 There was one, however, who was not satisfied with this arrangement. Counterfeit A counterfeit to God’s plans was devised in heaven. Lucifer “ventured to covet homage due alone to the Creator” (White 1958a, pp. 35-36). And this is where all the trouble began, with Lucifer. Sin arose as he coveted God’s creative ability. “You will be like God,” he said to Eve, which suggests that he could create and could help Eve learn these skills (Genesis 3:5). Lucifer really disputed the justice of the requirement in heaven that said, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” – Isaiah 14:13-14; White 1894, p. 723). He was not part of the creation committee. Since he was a created being, he was not even invited to be the meeting secretary. And now what was he to do? The best idea was to detract from the Creator. At least he would have his revenge, even if he could not immediately gain homage. It was even possible that such creative ideas, as he was about to reveal, would eventually bring homage from the human race. So the process of deception on earth began. Lucifer introduced counterfeits to detract from the Creator. First, in the natural world he introduced imperfection in the form of thorns and thistles on plants (Genesis 3:18) and the reign of claw and tooth among animals. Perversions of God’s creation and misuse of it are Satan’s methods. God allowed him to proceed within set limits. He is in possession of unusual powers, as is recorded in Scripture (Job 1:8-12, 13-19; 2:3-8). His knowledge and abilities, even in Job’s time, were advanced in the areas of microbiology and natural sciences to the extent that he could cause devastating disease to arise at will and could manipulate the physical forces of nature so as to cause tempests and storms to hit selected locations (Job 1:16, 19). These skills are still generally beyond the grasp of human achievements. However, in the area of molecular biology (genetic engineering), which is based on an intricate knowledge of both microbiology and biochemistry, considerable advances have been made allowing modern scientists to change nature to a degree (e.g., Lewis 2015). Satan has possessed these skills for a considerable time and has changed God’s creation. This means that what we see in the biological world today is only a pale reminder of that which existed in the beginning. In the philosophical realm, questions soon arose concerning origins. Satan early placed counterfeit suggestions before the human race. One appealing suggestion was that human imagination should be given full sway. It is not surprising that today we have reached new heights of human arrogance. It is claimed by some that the “solution to the puzzle of DNA [is] the most important discovery in human history—not least because it shatters the notion of ‘vitalism’, i.e. that there is something unique, probably God-given, about life.” And further, “humanity is on the brink of unifying

The Golden River that Flows through Time 10 all human knowledge under the banner of scientific method.” As a consequence, “a new morality, a unifying myth, will emerge from evolutionary biology and genetics. In short, science will become religion” (Bentley 1999, p. 4). The level of imaginative thinking has progressed to the extent that there are visions of making changes to the laws of nature, replicating our universe, and indeed attaining any objective imagined. All that is needed in achieving this is focussed attention being given to cooperation among earth’s inhabitants (Stewart 2010). After the human race entertained the idea of being “gods,” it invented various stories about origins so that the tragedy of human existence was not so apparent. In this endeavour, no defined place is found for God the Creator or for a special day of remembrance. As an example, take the story of Chaos man from Chinese mythology. The world, it is held, originated from a huge egg, which first produced Pangu or Chaos man. Some picture him as a giant busily chiselling away to shape the universe. Others hold that it was his death that gave rise to the universe. His breath became the wind and the clouds, his left eye the Sun, his right the moon, his blood was turned into the rivers, his flesh changed into the soil, and his skin and hair became plant life. The story contains many other additions to account for his other body parts, but finally humans arose from the parasites present on Chaos man when they were filled or permeated by the wind (Soothill 1973, p. 154). In our era, we have our own creation myths. The theory of evolution has substantially replaced the concept of special creation even in Christian circles. There are several competing theories of origin with a common factor often being that the universe and time arose as a consequence of the Big Bang. Life arose through random events. This means that for some there is no purpose to our being (Hawking 1988, pp. 122-141, 175). Science demands that all proposals concerning ‘truth’ must be capable of falsification. Thus science comfortably denies the role of religious faith, although strangely it insists on faith in ideas (Popper 2002, p. 16). Among some scientists, the very “god hypothesis” is “repugnant” and “intellectually immoral” (Huxley 1967, p. 156) or to others just plain “useless and costly” (Sartre 1977, p. 33). One of the consequences of dethroning God in this manner is that there is no substantive basis for worship and humans are left to devise their own moral rules, to act in a god-like manner trying to improve on God’s principles (Buchanan 1975, p.130). Indeed, the compromise required to enable the speculations of science and a belief in the word of God to be held simultaneously can be breath taking (e.g., Ruse 2001, pp. 134-138, 204, 209-210). The apostle Peter commented on trends concerning the question of origins already evident in the ancient world. He went on to predict their prominence near the end of earth’s history (2 Peter 3:3). “For this they

The Golden River that Flows through Time 11 wilfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded by water” (vs. 5-6). All explanations of origins come up against the same ultimate problem. If the approach is from a Christian viewpoint, the question always arises from sceptics, “Where did God come from? Account for his origin!” If the explanation about origins arises in scientific circles, the question always is, “How is it possible to explain events occurring in the universe preceding the chosen starting point, the moment of the Big Bang? And where did the starting material come from?” The answer to these latter questions is usually deathly silence, bold conjecture, or an admission that the first page of history is poorly understood. It is admitted by some that the assumptions on which the Big Bang theory is based are arbitrary (e.g., Kragh, 1993, p. 41; Chown 2000; Anonymous 2008, p. 23). One prominent cosmologist “reluctantly admit[ed] that [the] big bang theory is not complete: it lacks a beginning, and we cannot yet confidently predict its ending” (Silk 1989, p. 411). The reality is that in the first moment of the universe “conventional physics” simply does not explain the situation (Silk 1989, p. 395). Ultimately, then, all must exercise faith in God and his word or in the ability of human reasoning, with or without innovative experimentation, to provide an explanation for human existence by the operation of natural phenomena. In the spiritual world, other variations on the original ideas surrounding creation and the Fall have been introduced. We will touch on several mainstream endeavours. All world religions of note have something to say about the subject of death and the possibility of life after death. All are attempting to achieve “a sense of security in the face of the insecurity conferred upon them by their knowledge of time” and the “inevitability of individual death” (Burckhardt 1949, pp. 174, 176; Fraser 1987, p. 17). All seek to deny that persistence in undertaking unwholesome acts will bring eternal death. In order to fill the desire for a continuation of life, those who prefer scientific solutions search carefully for the key to immortality through scientific discovery (Wilmut et al. 2000, p. 600; Cohen 2001, p. 7; Okwatch 2021). Second, in an attempt to forget our origins, our loss of innocence, and immortality, humans have provided a counterfeit to God’s memorial of creation, the seventh-day Sabbath. An equally effective way is to load it with ritual requirements, which drown it in ceremony. Either way the result is disastrous. Jesus spoke of this later activity during his ministry on earth. “Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition?” was his penetrating question (Matthew 15:3). Improving on God is not a smart option. The act of human powers changing the Sabbath command might be viewed as an attempt to declare their superiority to Christ, the Creator, the

The Golden River that Flows through Time 12 Lord of the Sabbath. The earliest attempt was to substitute the day of worship. It was early predicted changes would be made to the instructions outlined by God (Daniel 7:25). For example, it seems evident that worship occurred on Sunday early in the Christian Era (CE), but counting it as a substitute for the seventh-day Sabbath can be placed in the time of Constantine’s decree (321 CE). The movement to observe Sunday as the Sabbath mentioned in the fourth commandment gained momentum slowly. No apostolic authority exists in support of this move. Eventually, the rest specified by the Sabbath commandment was accepted as applying to Sunday too (Bacchiocchi 1977, pp. 310-315; Allen, 2015). Such an act appears to be little different from that exercised by King Nebuchadnezzar when he decided to alter history by building an image entirely of gold to indicate his disapproval with and defiance of God’s plans for the nations (Daniel 3:1-29). We remember that in God’s plans the empire of Babylon had a limited existence, as indicated by it being represented only by the head of the image seen in the king’s dream (Daniel 2:1-47). Just as God spoke to the rebellious king, he will speak decisively to all who create images to emphasize their own importance. Others have attempted to destroy the idea of worshipping God on his day through eliminating the seven-day weekly cycle. A notable example occurred in Revolutionary France where it was demanded that a calendar be created that possessed no religious overtones. The French Republican calendar was put into effect on November 24, 1793 and became mandatory in 1798. There were thirty-day months and ten-day weeks. The five days unaccounted for in the 365 day year were declared days of rejoicing to commemorate Virtue, Genius, Labour, Opinion, and Reward. Special care was taken to avoid any mention that Sunday (the Sabbath in France at this time) was special. In fact, the people were forbidden from wearing their best clothes on this day. The experiment was abandoned near the end of 1805 (Zerubavel 1985, pp. 28-31). A similar attempt was undertaken in the Soviet Union in 1929. A five-day week was invented. People worked for four days and rested on the fifth on a continuous shift basis. The new week was introduced in support of the attempt to remove religion, “the opiate of the people.” In reaching for this ideal, day names were retained except for Sunday and Saturday, which were removed. Soon, however, the days were called “first day,” “second day,” and so on. The inconvenience of having twenty percent of the workforce absent on every day and other issues, particularly the development of irresponsibility and carelessness in the workplace, led to the abandonment of this idea two years later and related calendar reforms finally ceased in 1940 (Zerubavel 1985, pp. 35-43; Fraser 1987, pp. 86, 90). All such attempts, including the World Calendar and the International Fixed Calendar, have failed on account of opposition to the fact that both the Sabbath and Sunday would no longer permanently occur

The Golden River that Flows through Time 13 on the present days of the week; they would be “nomadic” (Zerubavel 1985, pp. 74-82). These evidences remind us of the great controversy between good and evil in the world. But the Lord still reaches out to all humanity through the beauties of creation whether visible (Colossians 1:16) or invisible (Romans 1:20 – the text speaks of “things that are made,” some forms of life are microscopic). All these point to God and his perfection (Psalm 19:1-3). Any counterfeit only serves to highlight the genuine for those with discernment. Today, God’s memorial of creation remains the same. He invites all to worship him as Creator on the seventh-day Sabbath as their expression of faith in him and belief in the unity of knowledge. Unity of Knowledge At the beginning of this world, the knowledge domains of natural and ethical philosophy were united. The originator of life was known personally by humans and ethical behaviour followed (Genesis 2:19-20; 3:8-11; Psalm 19:1-7). To commemorate this understanding, the Creator met in a religious setting with Adam and Eve the day after their creation. On that first Sabbath the Creator and Moral Guide of the cosmos explained the purpose of life and their own uniqueness, and he gave them an understanding of heaven’s philosophy and their role in the universe. Satan, on the other hand, claimed that the moral principles revealed to Adam and Eve were flawed, a claim he made in heaven itself. He said that there was room for improvement; new and exciting areas of knowledge were available (Genesis 3:4-5). Humans would discover a new purpose and would reach new horizons of achievement. Satan was the original charlatan. His experiment is and continues to be an outstanding failure. Now we find ourselves far removed from creation. Commonly today it is held that knowledge resides in two separate domains—non-scientific and scientific—with very little in terms of linking fabric between them. The Bible idea of creation is sarcastically likened by some to “the 300-year-old dogma that the Sun revolved around the Earth.” In other words, such a concept is considered completely laughable (Editorial 2000, p. 3). Many believe that neo-Darwinism provides all the answers; it is the unifying concept for all objective knowledge. This theory provides little experimental evidence in many areas of critical intellectual endeavour to support the proposition. However, practitioners have erected wonderful thoughttowers, which soar into the sky in the attempt to explain everything (Appleyard 2000, p. 45). These theories represent modern towers of Babel. Few question the “insurmountable, conceptual problems” posed by the theory of evolution (Denton 1985, pp. 268, 306). Even support for a beginning of the universe with the Big Bang is shifting with some scientists believing it is untenable (Maddox 1989, p. 425; Kragh, 1993, p. 41; Schilling

The Golden River that Flows through Time 14 2001, p. 29). Few grapple with the issues of where and how the biological and physical laws governing the universe arose. It is tacitly assumed that these laws always existed or reflect inherent principles regulating the emergence of life from non-life. But for all these the ultimate challenge is to explain why the universe exists instead of nothing (Shiga 2007, p. 33). Some imagine that if we could explain why the universe exists then we would indeed “know the mind of God” (Hawking 1988, p. 175). Now, perhaps such knowledge is sought, not to bring glory to God, but to crown human intellect with glory and honour. Those who believe in creation of the world out of nothing maintain a firm belief in an all-powerful, eternal God who has a plan for the human race. They understand that knowledge is unified and that an absolute moral code forms part of this bank of knowledge (Roth 1998, pp. 52-54, 360-363). Those who choose to believe in a God working through the evolutionary process must explain why they need a God at all, why humans should be regarded as different from animals and why, and by what means, God will give them eternal life (MacKenzie 2000, p. 36). For such the concepts of sin, salvation, and moral guidelines become uncertain and relative. For others, humans become nothing more than “a machine programmed to preserve and propagate the genes that ride in it” (Dawkins 1989, p. 137). Humanity has chosen, in general, to cast itself adrift on the ocean of its own imaginings, and with it the destiny of each human being, heedless of the will of God or the march of history, as it fulfils the divine timetable. Those who wish to give God small consideration now or believe in a blind watchmaker (chance) will have their wish; oblivion awaits them (Proverbs 8:23-29, 35-36; cf. Revelation 20:6; Lemonick 2001, p. 52). To those who see God as the source of all knowledge, the search will be ended, for all their questions will be answered. They will be rewarded for showing faith in God in a faithless world. Whatever way individuals choose, God has not left any to wander blindly, but has left his signature in time to remind all of the unity of knowledge. The Sabbath is part of the moral code and links believers to God the Creator and the source of all knowledge. It also links them to eternity. References Allen, E. 2015. How did the Jewish Sabbath become the Christian Sunday?: A review of the reviews of Bacchiocchi’s From Sabbath to Sunday. Andrews University Seminary Studies, vol. 53, no. 2, pp. 337-353. Anonymous. 2008. Reaching for the stars. Uniview, vol. 27, no. 2, pp. 20-24. Appleyard, B. 2000. You asked for it. New Scientist, vol. 166, no. 2235, pp. 44-45. Bacchiocchi, S. 1977. From Sabbath to Sunday. Rome: The Pontifical Gregorian University Press. Bentley, D. 1999, June 12. Playing God. The Courier-Mail, pp. 1, 4. Buchanan, J. M. 1975. The limits of freedom: Between anarchy and leviathan. Chicago, IL: The

The Golden River that Flows through Time 15 University of Chicago Press. Burckhardt, J. 1949. The age of Constantine the Great (M. Hadas translator). London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. Chown, M. 2000. Before the big bang. New Scientist, vol. 166, no. 2241, pp. 24-27. Cohen, P. 2001. Food of the immortals. New Scientist, vol. 169, no. 2275, p. 7. Colson, F. H. 1926. The week. Cambridge: The University Press. Cumont, F. 1956. The mysteries of Mithra (T. J. McCormack translator). New York: Dover Publications. Dawkins, R. 1989. Darwinism and human purpose, pp. 137-143. In J. R. Durant (Ed.), Human origins. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Dembski, W. A. Ed. 1998. Mere creation: Science, faith & intelligent design. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. Denton, M. 1985. Evolution: A theory in crisis. Bethesda, MD: Adler & Adler. Editorial. 2000. Beyond belief. New Scientist, vol. 166, no. 2235, p. 3. Flew, A. 2007. There is a God. New York: HarperCollins Publishers. Fraser, J. T. 1987. Time, the familiar stranger. Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Press. Hawking, S. 1988. A brief history of time. New York: Bantam Books. Heschel, A. J. 1988. The Sabbath: It’s meaning for modern man. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Huxley, J. 1967. Religion without revelation. London. C. A. Watts. Kragh, H. 1993. Big bang cosmology. In N. S. Hetherington (Ed.), Encyclopedia of cosmology, pp. 31-42. New York: Garland Publishing. Lane, N. 2015. The vital question: Energy, evolution, and the origins of complex life. New York: W. W. Norton. Lemonick, M. D. 2001, June 25. The end. Time (South Pacific), pp. 44-52. Lewis, T. 2015, December 29. 7 incredible achievements made possible by gene editing in 2015. Business Insider Australia. https://www.businessinsider.com.au/geneediting-achievements-2015-12 Lovelock, J. 1995. The ages of Gaia (2nd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Okwatch, L. 2021, February 26. How humanity will achieve immortality. Predict. https://medium.com/predict/how-humanity-intends-to-achieve-immortalityff73212feef3 O’Neill, W. M. 1975. Time and the calendars. Sydney: Sydney University Press. MacKenzie, D. 2000. Unnatural selection. New Scientist, vol. 166, no. 2235, pp. 34-39. Moskala, J. 2007. The Sabbath in the first creation account. Perspective Digest, vol. 12, no. 2, pp. 45-53. Maddox, J. 1989. Down with the big bang. Nature, London, vol. 340, p. 425. Passingham, R. E. 1989. The origins of human intelligence. In J. R. Durant (Ed.), Human origins, pp. 123-126. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Popper, K. 2002. The logic of scientific discovery. London: Routledge Classics. Roth, A. A. 1998. Origins: Linking science and scripture. Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald Publishing. Ruse, M. 2001. Can a Darwinian be a Christian? Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Sartre, J.-P. 1977. Existentialism and humanism (P. Mairet translator). London: Eyre Methuen. Schilling, G. 2001. The secrets of the big bang hide behind an impenetrable wall of fire. New Scientist, vol. 169, no. 2284, pp. 26-29. Shiga, D. 2007. The universe before ours. New Scientist, vol. 194, no. 2601, pp. 28-33. Silk, J. 1989. The big bang (revised and updated ed.). New York: W. H. Freeman.

The Golden River that Flows through Time 16 Soothill, W. E. 1973. The three religions of China. Westport, CT: Hyperion Press. Stenmark, M. 2017. Naturalism versus theism: What is at stake? In S. Khaili, F. Watts and H. Wiseman (Eds.), A 21st century debate on science and religion, pp. 36-51. Newcastle upon Tyne, England: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. Stewart, J. 2010, March 5. Is this the meaning of life? The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2010/mar/05/meaning-lifeevolution-universe Stuart, J. S. 1995. Biblical characteristics of true worship. Elder’s Digest 6, pp. 18-21. Werthheim, M. 1995. God in the lab. New Scientist, vol. 148, no. 2209/2010, pp. 40-42. White, E. G. 1894. Tested by the law. Signs of the Times, vol. 20, no. 46, pp. 723-724. White, E. G. 1950. The great controversy between Christ and Satan. Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing. White, E. G. 1958a. The story of patriarchs and prophets. Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing. White, E. G. 1958b. Selected messages, Book 1. Washington, DC: Review and Herald Publishing. Wilmut, I., Clark, J & Hardy, C. B. 2000. Laying hold of eternal life? Nature Biotechnology, vol. 18, pp. 599-600. Zerubavel, E. 1985. The seven day circle. New York: The Free Press.

17 2 - The Crucifix Key thoughts: The idea of liberation from spiritual bondage permeates Scripture and was brought to a high point in the ministry of Christ while on earth. The seventh-day Sabbath is a perpetual symbol expressing invitation, hope, and encouragement to sinners. It assures all of freedom in and salvation through Christ. It is a symbol of his redeeming love and faithfulness, which it shares with the Lord’s Supper. Attempts to detract from or exchange these symbols for ones of human devising are really signs of bondage to another master. he Christians living, dying, and being martyred in the centuries before Christianity was popular, understood the power of the cross, but what was Christ’s sign then and what did the cross mean to them? In the dimly lit catacombs of Rome, where the prisoners of conscience worshipped, early representations of the name of Christ were simple in character. Early inscriptions do not feature the events connected with the passion of Christ and his crucifixion. In fact, no representation of the crucifixion is known before the time of Constantine the Great (Pocknee 1962, pp. 17, 33; Hislop 1976, p. 203). Christ was their focus rather than symbols. Now the crucifix is synonymous with Christianity. Its adoration is practised by millions. In reality it was the mystic Tau of the Chaldeans and Egyptians. It was a representation of the first letter of the name Tammuz and it was worshipped or had emblematic significance to the pagans long before the death of Christ (Hislop 1976, pp. 197-201). This causes us to ask: Does God have a symbol of salvation, a perpetual reminder of his death in our stead? Are we asked to remember him through the symbolism T

The Golden River that Flows through Time 18 of the accursed tree (Galatians 3:13) or are we simply to call upon his name? Symbol of the Slain Lamb All the animal sacrifices specified before the coming of Christ pointed to his death on Calvary. The sacrifices specified anciently in the Bible were not offered to pacify God. He really was not impressed with scores, hundreds, or even thousands of sacrificial animals (Isaiah 1:11-17). It was how the repentant sinner related to the promised Saviour that counted (Hebrews 4:2). This is illustrated in the stories of Abraham and King Saul. Both these individuals offered animal sacrifices to God, but there were vast differences in their attitude. Abraham obeyed God’s word implicitly and was willing to offer his son as a sacrifice (Genesis 22:2-3). This involved showing steadfast faith in the promise that God would bless all the nations of the earth through his descendants and that a Redeemer would be born of his children (Genesis 22:15-18; Hebrews 11:8-11; cf. Matthew 1:2). King Saul, on the other hand, thought to soften the instruction of the Lord regarding his behaviour in battle with the heathen (1 Samuel 15:1-9). In giving partial obedience to God, and sparing the animals that he was instructed to kill, he did “evil in the sight of the Lord” (v.19), even though the spared animals subsequently were offered to God (vs. 15, 22). He continued to despise God in subtle ways and in the end died tragically and unprepared for eternity (1 Samuel 28:7-19; 31:4-5). He did not exercise faith in God or value his provisions regarding salvation. The New Testament writers referred to Christ as “the Lamb,” which clearly linked his impending sacrifice to those offered previously in the earthly sanctuary. For example, take that famous statement made by John the Baptist, as he preached repentance and baptised in the Jordan River. As Jesus approached him, he said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me’” (John 1: 26-30). This establishes for us that the provisions of salvation have not changed. Similarly, John the Revelator pictures the redeemed and the angels in heaven proclaiming: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing!” (Revelation 5:11-12). This is not an isolated statement (Revelation 7:10; 12:11; 13:8). The last text is an interesting one as it says that the Lamb was “slain from the foundation of the world.” God was not caught unprepared by the entrance of sin into this world. From the beginning of fallen human existence, they knew about the Lamb and about Jesus’ sacrifice! They knew that he would die, but the details were not given precisely (note that Psalm 22:16-18 and Isaiah 49:16 have great meaning as we look backwards from the cross experience). The focus was

The Golden River that Flows through Time 19 on the Lamb. A number of other texts clearly tell us that God had made plans to save humanity if the need arose (e.g., Ephesians 3:11; 1 Peter 1:19- 20). The prophet Isaiah, when speaking about Christ’s death wrote, “He was cut off from the land of the living” (Isaiah 53:8). “He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent” (v. 7). Here we have the lamb again! This is the same lamb that was prefigured in the Passover ceremonies (1 Corinthians 5:7). The evangelist Phillip was chosen by the Holy Spirit to explain Isaiah’s chapter fifty three to an important Ethiopian official who was travelling from Jerusalem back to his homeland. In response to this instruction, the record says, “and beginning at this Scripture, [he] preached Jesus to him” (Acts 8:35). So here in New Testament times, after Christ’s death, resurrection and ascension, the focus was still on the Lamb. The cross, on the other hand, was regarded as “the accursed tree.” The comments of Cicero remind us that even the Romans associated it with horror. “Let the very name of the cross be banished, not from the bodies only, but from the eyes, the ears, the thoughts of Roman citizens!” Representations of the crucifixion were used as a symbol of ridicule rather than adoration as is shown by blasphemous graffiti found in the Palatine palace at Rome, which depicts an ass’ head on a cross and before it the victim stands with his hand upheld to heaven. The sketch is of Alexamenos who died on a cross as a Christian believer. The cross was used initially as a symbol of ridicule, not of adoration (Tyack 1900, pp. 4-5). If we now go back to the catacombs, it is perhaps not surprising that the early believers made reference to Christ in terms of symbols such as the Vine, the Dove, the Lamb, and the Good Shepherd, which were scriptural in their origin (Tyack 1900, p. 19). This simple practice changed particularly during the time of Constantine when he introduced the labarum [the letter Chi (Ҳ) intersected with the letter Rho (Ρ)]. The symbol had a wreath of gold and precious stones on top, which in turn represented the sun (Hassett, 1910). In time the circle of the sun was incorporated into a modified cross on many churches. It has been suggested that this represented the fact that paganism had been displaced by Christianity (Kee 1982, pp. 19-20). In reality it signified that paganism had perverted the values of Christianity. The real significance for us is that these symbols fail to signify who Jesus really is and function to obscure his purpose in coming to earth. The Creator Is Also the Redeemer God is in charge of the affairs of nations (e.g., Cyrus’ siege of Babylon – Isaiah 44:28; 45:1-3; Daniel 5:30-31; Mallowan 1985, p. 411) and will bring his plans to a satisfactory end (Isaiah 45:7). God’s claim to such abilities rests on his creative genius. He is the “Maker” (Isaiah 45:9, 11). “I have

The Golden River that Flows through Time 20 made the earth, and created man on it. I – My hands – stretched out the heavens, and all their host, I have commanded” (v. 12). On account of the fulfilment of God’s purposes on this earth, which historians have recorded, God makes a remarkable linkage. Let us notice it: “Rain down, you heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness; let the earth open, let them bring forth salvation, and let righteousness spring up together. I, the Lord, have created it” (v. 8). God is abundant in the blessings he gives. He rains goodness on the earth and he continually assures us of salvation on account of his re-creative ability. We have just reviewed one group of verses in Isaiah chapter forty five, which link salvation, daily guidance, and creation together. This fusion of ideas, the idea that faith in creation and saving faith are inseparable, is found throughout the Scriptures. Christ is placed at the centre of God’s acts on this earth. He is the Creator and when darkness entered this world through sin, he brought hope. He is the divine agent for communication with humanity. He not only communicated hope, but was the object of hope. The apostle John makes this fundamental connection by drawing our attention to “the Word” and his role as the Creator. He then goes on to link the Creator of light in the beginning, with the giving of “light” and finally the appearance of the “Light.” In other words, the Creator was the One who both announced and secured the hope of eternal salvation. Having made this observation, John triumphantly proclaimed that the Word is none other than Christ, the Saviour, the Lamb! (John 1:1-14, 29). This concept of light returning to a world darkened by sin was introduced as soon as sin entered (Genesis 3:15). God took the initiative. The announcement that there was such a thing as a plan of salvation was made in Eden and the announcement was delivered personally by God the Son, the Lamb. The first indication concerning the cost of salvation was soon to follow, for the Lord was about to provide animal coats (v. 21), through the sacrifice of life, to cover the nakedness of the human pair. At the same time, as they exercised faith and trust in God’s provision, their sin was covered symbolically by the blood of the slain animal, which pointed to the coming of the Redeemer. We are assured abundantly by other experiences recorded in Scripture that Christ is the Redeemer. Through the prophet Isaiah, the Lord encourages all by the words, I am he “who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called your name; you are Mine.’” I am “your Savior”, “besides Me, there is no savior. I have declared and saved”, the Lord is “your Redeemer ... the Creator of Israel, your King” (Isaiah 43:1, 3, 11, 14-15; cf. Psalm 136:4-25). These assurances were made to ancient Israel against the background of their knowledge of the story of the deliverance of their forefathers from

The Golden River that Flows through Time 21 oppression in Egypt. The Lord was saying in effect: My promise to deliver you from the Babylonian captivity can be judged by My faithfulness in delivering the children of Israel from Egypt, taking them through the terrors of the sea and delivering them from the instruments of war prepared for their destruction (cf. Isaiah 43:14-17). In like manner, the assurance comes to us today that God is with his followers on account of the fact that Christ is both Creator and Redeemer (Colossians 1:15-20; Revelation 21:1- 8). He liberates us from the penalty and power of sin for “The forgiveness of sins is a creative work of Divine power” (Nygren 1982, p. 80). Christ Is the Liberator In the Exodus account, liberation from slavery was the objective and it required a firm expression of faith. By this event, the Israelites were separated from a philosophy that rejected God (Exodus 5:2). On the eve of the departure of the slaves from Egypt, God in effect was saying:,The real success of this venture cannot be judged by your escape from slavery into the land of Canaan, but by the closeness of your relationship with Me. It was the blood of the lamb, sprinkled by faith on the doorposts, which assured delivery from the angel of death and that gave protection from the judgments of God about to fall on the unheeding (Exodus 12:13). Today, everyone who will be saved from the second death must avail themselves of the blood of Jesus (the Passover lamb) and cut all attachment to and fascination with sin (1 John 1:7, 9; Revelation 20:14-15). The Israelites, as they came out of bondage in Egypt, were reminded of the redemptive theme embodied in that experience, for God had implanted a perpetual reminder in the Sabbath (Deuteronomy 5:15; Evans 2006, p. 27). The seventh-day Sabbath continually reminds believers that God is ever available to liberate or give rest from the guilt and power of sin to all who believe (Hebrews 4:2-7). The Israelites were brought out of slavery to be God’s representatives, to be a showpiece to the world with the express purpose of promoting the principles of God’s kingdom and of sharing with others the joys of salvation. A similar task is given to God’s followers today. This was emphasized by Jesus when he focussed in his first sermon on the theme of liberation (Luke 4:16-21). On the Sabbath day, he spoke of preaching the gospel, of giving healing to the broken hearted, and of informing the captives to sin that release was available. He spoke in terms of setting at liberty those who were oppressed and promised to heal the diseased and satisfy the disadvantaged. “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing,” Jesus affirmed (Luke 4:21). Symbols of Freedom and Faithfulness Two prominent symbols of freedom and faithfulness are given in the

The Golden River that Flows through Time 22 Bible associated with the person who has had an outstanding impact on the world, Jesus Christ. His life, teachings, compassion, and his emphasis on showing love to God and others are remembered. He gave those he contacted joy, hope, and purpose. The Sabbath, a Symbol of Freedom and Faithfulness The Sabbath, from the Fall, has been a symbol of invitation to enter God’s rest. It is a symbol of hope and moreover a signal to rejoice. The apostle Paul, assures all that the invitation to accept salvation remains (Hebrews 4:3-4, 9). The Sabbath had been a weekly reminder of this invitation throughout time. We notice that the sons of Adam and Eve viewed the Sabbath in this way, for they met and sacrificed to God at the “end of days” or the Sabbath (Genesis 4:3, margin). Salvation Brings Freedom. We notice the spiritual dimension involving salvation being emphasised in the giving of the second account of the Decalogue (Deuteronomy 5:6-21). Moses was reviewing God’s instruction, which previously had been given. He emphasised an aspect that was particularly vital to the people both then and in the future. The strong linkage between the seventh-day Sabbath and salvation also was kept foremost in the minds of the Israelites by the instruction to offer a second burnt offering continually on this day of rest (Numbers 28: 9-10). Jesus’ first sermon, delivered on the Sabbath, is a powerful testimony to the linkage, which we have noted already (Luke 4:16, 18, 21). His sermon on that memorable Sabbath was followed by various acts of healing. One of the remarkable miracles of healing was of a woman diseased for eighteen years. His creative power shone forth majestically (Luke 13:10-17). In other accounts, the connection between his creative and redemptive power is more explicitly evident. Take the man healed at the pool of Bethesda. He had been in a terrible condition of paralysis for thirty eight years. Pointedly this healing was carried out on the Sabbath. And Jesus’ healing was associated with direct instruction that he should reform his life (John 5:1- 15). Jesus’ healing of the man blind from birth, again on the Sabbath, brings emphasis to both God’s creative and redemptive power in another way (John 9:1-38). Jesus delivered the man from the physical effects brought about by the deterioration of his genetic code; he was born blind and no blame could be attributed to either him or his parents. By these examples, Jesus sought to direct the attention of the people to himself as the Messiah, the Lord of creation (cf. John 5:24-47). Jesus also spoke passionately about a second linkage between creation and salvation. He spoke about being “the light of the world” (John 8:12); this takes readers minds immediately to the appearance of light at the Creation at his command (e.g., Genesis 1:3; Ephesians 5:8). Further, salvation is spoken of in terms of bringing or calling people out of darkness

The Golden River that Flows through Time 23 into the light (John 8:12; 1 Peter 2:9-10). Furthermore, the two key principles of the plan of salvation are presented in creation terminology! Notice how the psalmist expressed the first principle (justification), which involves being declared right in the sight of God. “Create in me a clean heart, O God” was his plea (Psalm 51:10). God declares that believers are free from the penalty of sin as they claim his offer of salvation by faith (1 John 1:9). He then proceeds to change lives (sanctification) through a creative act (Romans 12:2; Philippians 2:12, 13). The process of developing a day to day trusting relationship with God (sanctification), flows from the experience of being declared right with God (Romans 12:2). Significantly, God, through the prophet Ezekiel, chose the Sabbath as a sign of sanctification. Notice: “Moreover I also gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between them and Me, that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them” (Ezekiel 20:12). The guarantee that God can and will renew the mind to think along holy lines and to strengthen the will is the message of the gospel. It follows that the recurring weekly cycle is our guarantee in this present world that God’s promises are sure. The Sabbath, then, is a symbol of freedom – freedom from guilt, freedom from feelings of helplessness, freedom from uncertainty. It is a day to rest completely in God’s care, in fellowship with him, and like believers. These assurances of acceptance and hope are what the world is crying for desperately (Tutu 2000, p. 13). In our reaching out we need to acknowledge and find God. There is little point just bemoaning the awkwardness of the feeling we call guilt (Huxley 1967, pp. 170-171); we need to acknowledge it and let God heal. God Is Faithful. The Sabbath is a reminder of God’s faithfulness, as portrayed powerfully in the giving of the manna during the Exodus. Manna fell on six days of the week and was miraculously preserved on the sixth day to serve the people on the Sabbath. This miracle continued for forty years, demonstrating God’s faithful attention to both the physical and spiritual needs of the people (Exodus 16:2-12; Deuteronomy 8:3). The link between the Sabbath and God’s faithfulness in salvation was taught in the earthly sanctuary spoken about extensively in the Old Testament. Twelve loaves of bread were placed on a special table (showbread). These represented Christ, the bread of life (John 6:35, 48). The loaves were changed on the Sabbath (Leviticus 24:5-8). This clearly established an important link between the Sabbath and salvation and further indicated the continual interest shown by Jesus Christ for the human race. Also in the ancient sanctuary services the idea of the permanence of God's presence and his commitment to mend broken relationships (faithful in other words) is conveyed by the use of the Hebrew word “tamid.” This word means “continual.” Indeed, we notice that the events featured in the outer court and first apartment of the earthly sanctuary were of a continual

The Golden River that Flows through Time 24 nature (e.g., Exodus 27:21; 29:38; 30:8). All the symbols used and ceremonies performed pointed to Christ and to his love and continual commitment to the human race. Lord’s Supper, a Symbol of Freedom and Faithfulness God has provided yet another symbol of freedom in the Communion Service or Lord’s Supper. It is a memorial of Christ’s love, his life of service, and his commitment to the human race first made in Eden (Genesis 3:15). In its initial form, which was introduced on the night of deliverance from Egypt, the Passover ceremony was a reminder that salvation from both physical and spiritual bondage was guaranteed by the death of the lamb (symbol pointing to Christ—Exodus 12:1-28; 1 Corinthians 5:7). The Passover service continued until Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed. Today, this ceremony finds its equivalent in the Lord’s Supper. We are specifically instructed to continue it until the Lord comes (1 Corinthians 11:23-26). This moving ceremony reminds participants that Christ’s death and resurrection are the momentous events on which their salvation rests. All are invited to enter into God’s rest and to accept the generous provisions made. The early generations of Christians understood the significance of both the Sabbath and the Lord’s Supper as pointing to God’s faithfulness and they initially celebrated the Lord’s Supper on the seventh-day Sabbath. The Greek historian, Socrates, informs us that the practice of celebrating the Lord’s Supper on the Sabbath was almost universal in the church at the end of the fourth century (Edwardson 1943, p. 83), although notable departures had occurred in Rome at an earlier date (Odom 1977, pp. 105-123). Both symbols of freedom, the seventh-day Sabbath and the simple Communion service, will be honoured in heaven (Isaiah 66:23; Matthew 26:29). Yet surprisingly humans have introduced competing symbols pointing to Jesus’ death and resurrection. Signs of Bondage Just as God has placed his symbols of salvation in the world, Satan has attempted to counterfeit them. He has attempted to obscure the necessity, adequacy, and constant availability of Christ’s offer of salvation. And the symbols of freedom in Christ, which he left for his followers, have been distorted. From ancient times, humans have been tried to generate mythologies about origins and life after death. Some, who initially accepted the biblical account, became anxious to change the account so that tradition and revelation were mixed to give a more pleasant story. The idea that salvation involves human efforts has and continues to be a popular variation on the biblical account. This practice started early with Cain offering fruit and

The Golden River that Flows through Time 25 vegetables, the labours of his own hands, as an offering to God rather than the prescribed lamb. In this rebellious act, he was trying to better God’s provisions (Genesis 4:3-6). This is not the only account of such behaviour given in Scripture. We have the story of Nadab and Abihu who offered unauthorized fire in the sanctuary. God struck them dead for their rebellion (Leviticus 10:1-2). Then, in Moses time, some of the priests grew a little casual in their temple service and failed to carry out God’s instruction regarding protocols to be followed in the service there (Leviticus 10:16-17). God was not pleased with them changing the details of sanctuary ritual, which pointed to the role of Christ in salvation. As we go through the Scriptures, the sorry tale continues. In Isaiah chapter fifty eight, the prophet makes a telling point. God’s people were outwardly devout; they pled for his blessings, they kept the various ceremonies and fasts, but they did all these things from the wrong motives. They also introduced their own variations to worship so that they even altered the meaning and purpose of the Sabbath (Isaiah 58:2-5, 13). What was happening in the minds of these believers was that the link between God’s creative and re-creative (or redemptive) activities had been distorted. This was Satan's doing, for he attempts continually to obscure the foundational principle of salvation through faith in Christ. Having severed this vital link in the thinking of the people, they began to entertain a worksorientated religion (Isaiah 58:2-3; cf. v. 6). The apostle John tells us that this tendency will be seen in epidemic proportions near the end of this world’s history. However, God will again take the initiative. His plan will be accomplished by linking the gospel proclamation with the concept of honouring the Creator (and by implication the symbol of creation, the Sabbath – Revelation 14:6-7; cf. 10:6). This assures followers that the story of redemption cannot be separated from the story of creation. Those who are seeking to honour God recognise that Satan has attempted to obscure their vision through practices introduced by various religious institutions. In the centuries after Christ, there was a gradual departure from Sabbath keeping (Allen 2015, pp. 337-338). This change eventually was made the official position of the prominent church of the Middle Ages (Broderick, 1995). This change was made ostensibly to honour Christ’s resurrection. The prophet Daniel faithfully recorded that an attempt would be made to change God’s provisions (Daniel 7:8, 23-27; 8:23-25; cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:3). The symbol of his creative and redemptive power has been exchanged for a symbol that focuses on human traditions. The second symbol of freedom, the Lord’s Supper, has been changed too. Christ left this service to the Christian church so believers would remember his life, death, and resurrection. This ceremony was initially a “community celebration of thanksgiving” of the salvation already secured

The Golden River that Flows through Time 26 by the Lord. Gradually the emphasis was shifted to one where it became a sacrament (a necessary prerequisite to salvation) and became a time for adoration rather than for celebration, as it was argued that the body and blood of Christ are present in the ritual bread and wine (Macy 1984, pp. 18- 21). With the further passage of time after Jesus’ death, writes Father Balasuriya, the “Eucharist tended to be a mechanical ceremony under the control of the priests without much impact on the relationships of persons.” It can become “a ritual without life” when not connected with the idea of the community of humanity (Balasuriya 1979, pp. 36-41). Interestingly, today in the United States, 45 percent of Catholics believe that the bread and wine are just symbols of Christ’s body and blood (Pew Research Center 2019). This is in line with the biblical record. The original words of Jesus about eating his flesh and drinking his blood being the key to eternal life was even puzzling to his disciples (John 6:53- 60). He clarified the meaning a short time later and indicated that the words he spoke (his teachings) “are spirit, and they are life” but only to those showing genuine belief (vs. 63-64). The physician Luke explained clearly that the cup (“fruit of the vine”—unfermented grape juice) represented or symbolized his coming sacrifice involving the shedding of blood (Luke 22:17-20). References Allen, E. 2015. How did the Jewish Sabbath become the Christian Sunday?: A review of the reviews of Bacchiocchi’s From Sabbath to Sunday. Andrews University Seminary Studies, vol. 53, no. 2, pp. 337-353. Balasuriya, T. 1979. The eucharist and human liberation. London: SCM Press. Broderick, L. 1995, May 21. Pastor’s page. Sentinel, 50, p. 1. Algonac, MI: Saint Catherine Catholic Church. Edwardson, C. 1943. Facts of faith. Nashville, TN: Southern Publishing. Evans, L. H. 2006. Sabbath: a memorial of freedom. Ministry, vol. 78, no. 9, pp. 24-27. Hassett, M. 1910. Labarum (Chi-Rho). The Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton Company. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08717c.htm Hislop, A. 1976. The two Babylons. London: S. W. Partridge. Huxley, J. 1967. Religion without revelation. London: C. A. Watts. Kee, A. 1982. Constantine versus Christ. London: SCM Press. Macy, G. 1984. The theologies of the eucharist in the early scholastic period. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Mallowan, M. 1985. Cyrus the Great (558-529 B.C.). In I. Gershevitch (Ed.), The Cambridge history of Iran, vol. 2, pp. 392-419. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Nygren, A. 1982. Agape and eros (P. S. Watson translator). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. Odom, R. L. 1977. Sabbath and Sunday in early Christianity. Washington, DC: Review and Herald Publishing. Pew Research Center. 2019, July 23. What Americans know about religion. Pew Forum Organization. https://www.pewforum.org/2019/07/23/what-americans-know-

The Golden River that Flows through Time 27 about-religion/ Pocknee, C. E. 1962. Cross and crucifix in Christian worship and devotion. London: A. R. Mowbray. Tutu, D. 2000. Tutu taking the costly path to peace. The University of Sydney Gazette, vol. 28, no. 1, pp. 12-13. Tyack, G. S. 1900. The cross in ritual, architecture, and art. London: William Andrews.

28 Historical Perspectives and Prospects he creation of human time, and its memorial, the Sabbath, predated the emergence of the Jewish race or the formal giving of the Decalogue at Sinai. It is thought that the Decalogue was delivered to Moses on the Sabbath. It is undisputed that Christ and his disciples kept the Sabbath, but why did Christ rise on Sunday? We present evidence to support the idea that the series of events commencing on Friday through to Monday, on the crucifixion weekend, were of special and different significance to various people groups—believers in alien gods, Jews, and Gentile Christians. By rising on Sunday before the sun arose, Christ shattered the power of the sun-god (and the significance of Sun-day) and showed that it was not a lucky day for the unbelieving Romans (believers in other gods). As we move away from the times of the apostles to the early Christian church, we find that contrary ideas, particularly ideas connected with sunworship, began to infiltrate the church. This was slow at first but flooded into the church in a rush in the time of Constantine. This gave impetus to the move formalizing worship arrangements on a different day, the day of Christ’s resurrection. The change of the day of worship and the elevation of tradition became an integral part of the doctrinal arsenal of the dominant church. Some of these events are followed through their broad stages of development. Despite the changes brought by humans to God’s principles, we learn T

The Golden River that Flows through Time 29 that they are kept in heaven by the redeemed. And, not surprisingly, we find the last great struggle on this earth, before the close of probation, involves issues over the gospel and elements of the law. We suggest that the announcement of the close of probation will, in all likelihood, be made on a Friday, as have two other earth shattering announcements made by God (creation’s completion and the completed crucifixion sacrifice). We suggest that a memorable Sabbath will follow the close of probation. In this section, we examine these themes under the following headings: 3. Dateline Sinai (The Sinai experience and unveiling the Decalogue on the Sabbath) 4. The Last Word! (Why Jesus rose on Sunday) 5. From Son of Life to Sun of Salvation (Sunday worship replaces Sabbath worship)

30 3 - Dateline Sinai Key thoughts: The Sabbath rest was the first statement of love delivered to the human race. This was codified in the Decalogue at Sinai and in all probability was spoken on the Sabbath. The Principles commemorate the grace and love of God in creation and assures all that God’s intentions toward the race have not changed. The seventh-day Sabbath reminds all today of the promise of liberation from the power of sin and points to the eternal rest of the faithful. he events preceding the giving of the Ten Principles at Sinai might reasonably begin with the Exodus. The record says: “And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him… so they took their journey from Succoth.” (Exodus 13:19-20). In these brief words, the Scriptures picture the Israelites departing from Avaris in Egypt bearing with them the bones of the patriarch Joseph. The tomb of a prominent citizen, believed to be that of Joseph, was found at Avaris, which is close to modern Tell ed-Dada. When opened by the Austrian archaeologist Bietak in 1987, the modest tomb was completely empty, an unheard of event where grave robbery was the sole motive. In the burial chamber, remains of a cult statue were discovered, which had been desecrated. Reconstruction of the statue reveals a cleanshaven man with red hair cut in a distinctive mushroom shaped style, and he was represented as wearing a coat of many colours (red, blue, black, and white). The substantial pyramid tomb and chapel and the symbols associated with the statue itself identify its occupant as a foreigner who had risen to extraordinary heights in Egyptian society and are suggestive of Joseph (Rohl 1996, pp. 360-366; cf. Genesis 41:39-40). The historical evidence of Joseph has significance to the Exodus T

The Golden River that Flows through Time 31 account. Waterway of Joseph the Governor In Egypt, the children of Israel were located principally in the land of Goshen (Exodus 8:22), where Joseph’s private estate was also found. Jacob and his sons and their families are thought to have arrived in Egypt in 1662 BCE together with their herds and flocks of long haired sheep (Genesis 46:6; 47:1-4). Joseph dwelt among his brethren in the land of Goshen (Genesis 47:5-6; 50:22). His palace at Avaris possessed impressive entrance pillars, a large reception hall, and other facilities. A pleasant garden was located immediately to the rear of the palace. The whole structure belonged to one of the more wealthy citizens. In the gardens to the rear of the palace was his pyramid tomb (Rohl 1996, pp. 268-273, 353-360). Other evidence of Joseph is found in the granaries located at Hawara in the Lake Birket Karun (Lake Moeris) area, about 80 kilometres south of Cairo. Here the Greeks described a great stone labyrinth composed of thousands of chambers, which is a suitable candidate for Joseph’s granaries (Genesis 41:46-48, 56). There are sparse remains of this structure today, which was built in the time of Amenemhat III. These facilities were built, no doubt, in response to Joseph’s dream showing seven years of plenty (inundations good) followed by seven poor years (inundations poor). This pharaoh also constructed a canal to ensure agricultural production, flood control, and a continuous reservoir of water in Lake Birket Karun. The natural waterway bringing the Nile waters to the vicinity of the lake still bears the name “Bahr Yussef” or “waterway of Joseph.” It appears plausible that the administrative centre of southern Egypt was located near Lake Birket Karun (not far distant from modern Ihnasya el-Medina) and that in the delta area the administrative centre was located at Avaris, Joseph’s place of residence (Rohl 1996, pp. 343-349). The Israelites remained in Egypt for about 215 years according to the historian Josephus (Whiston 1936, p. 83). The time between Abraham coming to Canaan and the Exodus is considered to be the 430 years period mentioned in Scripture (Exodus 12:40), which is how the text reads in the Septuagint version (written in the third century BCE). This places the Exodus in 1447 BCE and the arrival of the Israelites in Egypt in 1662 BCE. It is supposed that the pharaoh reigning in Egypt at Joseph’s arrival was Amenemhat III who enjoyed an extraordinarily long reign of around fifty years (Rohl 1996, pp. 329-335). The time of the Exodus under Moses has been variously debated. The scenario painted above is one possibility (Roth 1971, cols. 1043-1044). Moses, we remember, was born in slavery and was the son of Amram and Jochebed. The remarkable story of his parents’ determination to save him from the general slaughter of male children at birth is well known

The Golden River that Flows through Time 32 (Exodus 1:15-16). The Hebrew midwives feared God and would not comply with the command of the pharaoh (vs. 17-21). Not to be cheated of his objective, the pharaoh, probably Khaneferre Sobekhotep IV (Rohl 1996, pp. 253, 255, 283), commanded that newly born sons be cast into the river Nile (v. 22). It is unlikely that all mothers were able to protect their new born male children. Evidence of a mass unnatural death of infants has been uncovered in Kahun, a city in the Faiyum region. Underneath the floors of the houses, wooden boxes with skeletons of very young infants of Asiatic origin (two or three per box) suggest such a scene (Down 1999, pp. 18-19). Moses survived this slaughter and was prominent in the Exodus account. The land of Goshen occupied considerable territory between Raamses and Succoth and incorporated what is the present day town of Fakus. A second location of Israelite slaves was the city of Pithom (the estate of the sun god Atum) located to the west of Succoth (Exodus 1:11). The archaeological evidence uncovered at ancient Avaris indicates that at some point in its history a terrible calamity struck and that the remaining population abandoned the location hastily, which is consistent with the Exodus record. Is this positive evidence of the destructive nature of the tenth plague? It certainly is a plausible explanation (Rohl 1996, pp. 278-284; Down 2000, pp. 4–5). David Rohl also assembled extensive evidence to suggest that the Exodus happened during the reign of Dudimose. Needless to say, debate has accompanied identification of the pharaoh of the Exodus. A recent researcher, using a different revised timeline, has suggested it was Amenemhat IV (Amenemes IV). It has been noted that this pharaoh effectively disappeared from history, his mummy has not been found, he left no male heir (although he had a son—he could have perished in the tenth plague or been drowned together with his father in the Red Sea), and Amenemhat’s sister reigned briefly after him. The following period was marked by disorder and short reigns by the pharaohs (Habermehl 2013). In both timelines suggested above, the Exodus is considered to have occurred around 1450 BCE. The evidence thus suggests that the historical records and biblical account are parallel in their important details regarding both Joseph and Moses, and that a calamity befell the Egyptians on account of their defiance of God in not permitting his people depart to worship him. We will now turn our attention to the Exodus and look at some evidences regarding its authenticity. Exodus Fever Moses’ early training prepared him to lead the Exodus. The Egyptian princess who rescued Moses from the bulrushes was called Thermuthis by the historian Josephus, after the hippopotamus goddess of wet nursing (Rohl 1996, p. 253). Moses was initially cared for by his mother for twelve

The Golden River that Flows through Time 33 years under contract from the princess, but later he was trained in the Egyptian court (Exodus 2:5-10). His training took place in the royal court at Itj-tawy, the capital of Egypt at that time and about forty kilometres north of the commencement of the Faiyum basin. Moses grew to be liked and to occupy a high position, even to commanding Pharaoh’s armies against the Ethiopians (Rohl 1996, pp. 259-260). His high position is recognised in Scripture, but his indiscretion in trying to relieve the Israelites of their sufferings through murdering a persecuting Egyptian put his life in danger, so he fled to Midian (Exodus 2:11-15). When he returned after forty years, he was ready to be God’s servant in saving his people from slavery. The story of Moses’ preparation just before entering his mission and his diplomatic efforts in Egypt constitute a thrilling narrative (Exodus 3-12). When his diplomacy failed, God poured out the plagues. Thus the scene was set for the great deliverance or the Exodus. Israelite slaves located in Goshen and perhaps Pithom would have departed early on the morning of Nisan fifteen in the year 1447 BCE and no doubt the groups joined around Succoth (present day Tjeku, which is about thirty five kilometres from the farthest point of Goshen—Rohl 1996, pp. 287, 332). They left in orderly array from Succoth and rather quickly (Exodus 12:11). Josephus tells us that Moses had days previously instructed the Israelites to prepare for this event by gathering them into one place under their tribal allegiances (Whiston 1936, p. 83). The Scripture records that they “went up harnessed” or thoroughly equipped for the long journey (Exodus 13:18). They proceeded from Succoth to Etham (Exodus 13:20), but the location of this site is not known precisely today. Then God led them back to Pi Hahiroth between Migdol (perhaps Muktala) and the sea for the specific purpose of giving a marvellous display of deliverance from a seemingly impossible location (Exodus 14:2, 3; Numbers 33:7-8). The place at which the Red Sea was crossed has intrigued scholars and opinions vary. Places somewhere in the vicinity of Suez either on the coast or just inland commonly are considered likely for the crossing (Jamieson et al. 1968, p. 67; Robinson 1932, p. 87). Some authorities believe that the Israelites fled from Egypt and came to Baalzephon on the Sea of Reeds (estimated to be about seventy kilometres from Goshen) on the third day of their journey (Rohl 1996, p. 287). Now a day’s journey was considered to be about twenty four to twenty seven kilometres (Luke 2:44; Nichol et al. 1956, p. 708; Peters 1994, p. 72). Hence, it appears that the journey could have been accomplished in three days by able bodied people, something that is confirmed by the mass movement of peoples through the same desert areas in the Hajj (Peters 1994, p. 72). The fact that the full moon began with Passover would have helped with an early start to the journey (Raphael 1990, pp. 56, 68). Initially pharaoh and his people were preoccupied with grief after the

The Golden River that Flows through Time 34 death of their first born, probably expressed in loud and vigorous public displays (Clarke 1854a, p. 367). During this time the hosts of Israel were able to reach the sea in three days unhindered (Whiston 1936, p. 83; Goudoever 1961, p. 129). The three days probably applied to the arrival of the vanguard, which most likely came from the south-eastern borders of Goshen or the town of Pithom. Pharaoh soon learnt that the Israelites had gone further than anticipated and apparently for a purpose additional to sacrifice (Exodus 14:5; cf. Exodus 5:3). He assembled a reported 600 chariots (Exodus 14:7), 50,000 horsemen and 200,000 armed foot soldiers (Whiston 1936, p. 84; Rohl 1996, pp. 284-286). This vast army trapped the Israelites between the cliffs and the sea, so that there was no way of escape. This is thought to have taken place approximately six days after the Israelites departure from Egypt (Goudoever 1961, pp. 124-125). Their fate seemingly was made certain as the multitude of the Israelites was unarmed. In their terrified state the Israelites are said to have thrown stones at Moses while he encouraged them and promised them deliverance by the hand of God. The Israelites were fully resolved to surrender to the pursuing force. Moses refused to be discouraged or bow to the pressures of the multitude. Rather, he encouraged them to put their faith in God in stirring words promoting faith and dependence on him (Whiston 1936, pp. 84-85). The Egyptians had pursued so furiously that when they came in sight of the Israelites they rested until the next day (Exodus 14:9-10, 19-20). Then it was that Moses pleaded with God to deliver in a mighty way (Whiston 1936, pp. 85-86). God chose to deliver the Israelites by way of a passage through the sea. When the Egyptians followed, they drowned in the providence of God (Exodus 14:21-27). Tradition records that the crossing of the sea took place six days and a few hours after the tenth plague (Velikovsky 1952, p. 35). In order to pick up some important details and to construct a time for the giving of the Decalogue, let us go back to the night of the Exodus when the first Passover was kept. The Passover lamb was slain, it is commonly believed, between about three and five in the afternoon on the fourteenth of Nisan (Exodus 12:6; Leviticus 23:5; Numbers 9:2, 3; Nichol et al. 1954a, p. 550). This made the first day of the Passover, which followed the tenth plague (Exodus 12:13), the fifteenth day of Nisan, which marked the beginning of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:14-20). It was on this day that the hosts of Israel departed from Egypt forever (Exodus 12:3- 17). Now, the Passover ceremonies ended on the twenty first day of Nisan (Exodus 12:18). And this, tradition holds, coincided with the passage of the sea (Velikovsky 1952, p. 35). The reconstructed events surrounding the Exodus agree with the fragmentary historical records and are plausible from other evidences

The Golden River that Flows through Time 35 available. This brings us to consider the journey of the Israelites through the wilderness after the crossing of the Red Sea to the giving of the Decalogue at Mount Sinai. The Principles Given at Sinai Our account thus far has taken us to the Red Sea crossing. We will now explore the question of when, in terms of the day of the week, the Israelites departed from Egypt and when the Decalogue was given. The timing of the proclamation of the principles contained in the Decalogue is, without question, significant to the overall Bible account of their prominence. In attempting to fix the day of departure from Egypt we will work backwards from the suggested giving of the Ten Principles at Sinai and see if it makes sense. In order to commence the account, we remember that the rabbis have concluded that the Decalogue was spoken from Sinai on the day of Pentecost (Goudoever 1961, p. 130; Raphael 1990, p. 73). The celebration of Pentecost took place initially, in all probability, on the sixth day of the month Sivan when the glory of God appeared (Exodus 19:16- 20). The term “the same day” used to describe the arrival of the Israelites at Sinai is difficult to interpret (Exodus 19:1). An attempt will be made to work through these difficulties using the diagram below to illustrate the arguments. If we take the term “the same day” to mean the first day of the month, then Moses probably went up into the mountain on the second or third day of the month Sivan. The people were subsequently given two days to purify themselves, wash their clothes and build some type of barrier around the mountain (Exodus19:10-11). This would take us to the fifth day of the month. On the next or sixth day of the month (incidentally also the fiftieth day from the day following the commencement of the Feast of Unleavened Bread by inclusive reckoning), God appeared in glory and grandeur (Goudoever 1961, p. 130; Nichol et al. 1954b, p. 106). Arrival at Sinai Moses in Mount Exod. 19:3 Moses in mount Exod. 19:3 Preparation day Exod. 19:10-11 Preparatio n day Exod. 19:10-11 Pentecost. Principles spoken Exod. 19:16- 20 Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Sabbath Day 1 Sivan Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Let us consider this proposed scene at Sinai a little further. If we take the fourth and fifth days of Sivan as preparatory days, in which clothes were washed and barriers built, then it is evident that neither of these days could have been the seventh day Sabbath (the day was sacred to the travellers –

The Golden River that Flows through Time 36 Exod.17:5, 22-23). If we figure that the Israelites arrived at Sinai on a day other than the first day of the month Sivan, we have little room to manoeuvre to construct a coherent scheme of events. In order to take the argument still further we need to consider other major events in the journey of the Israelites. Let us first go back to the previous month, the month Iyyar, and consider the arrival of the people at the Wilderness of Sin (Exodus 16:1) on the fifteenth day of the month (the month Iyyar is taken as having twenty nine days, as accepted by some Jewish authorities – Goudoever 1961, p. 24; cf. Nichol et al. 1954b, pp. 102- 103). We would again argue that the day of arrival was not the Sabbath. The other points to consider are that the Israelites needed to journey from the Wilderness of Sin to Rephidim (about eighty kilometres) before the end of the month. The latter part of the month also was busy in that they fought the Amalekites for two days (Exodus 17:8-9), and Jethro held a consultation with Moses and he introduced various administrative changes as a consequence. The diagram following takes into account the arrival at the Wilderness of Sin and the journey to Sinai as mentioned above. As can be seen from this diagram, if the Decalogue was spoken on a Friday, this would have placed the Israelites travelling and arriving at the Wilderness of Sin on a Saturday (this can be discounted). It could be argued that the Decalogue was spoken on a Sunday or Monday, but this would have meant that the children of Israel were still washing their clothes and building fences on the Sabbath, an unthinkable possibility. Thus, if the traditional understanding is correct that the Decalogue was given on the day of Pentecost (Goudoever 1961, pp. 130-131; Nichol et al. 1957, p. 134), they were in all probability spoken on the Sabbath. This scenario would place the departure of the Israelites from Egypt early on a Friday morning. Indeed, this view is adopted in the Jewish chronicle Seder Olam (150 CE – Goudoever 1961, pp. 12, 130; cf. Deuteronomy 5:12, 15). Month Iyyar 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Sat. S M T W T F Sat. S M ▲ Wilderness of Sin (Exod. 16:1) Month Iyyar Month Sivan 24 25 26 27 28 29 1 2 3 4 5 6 T W T F Sat. S M T W T F Sat. ▲ Rephidim/Amalekites/Jethro Sinai Exod. 17 & 18 Exod. 19:1 Most schemes adopted reveal problems because the evidence both

The Golden River that Flows through Time 37 from Scripture and history is incomplete (Goudoever 1961, pp. 124-129, 139-144). One problem seems to reside with the interpretation of Exodus nineteen, verse one, and what is meant by the Israelites arriving at Sinai on “the same day” of the month Sivan (Exodus 19:1). This could mean that they arrived on the first day, the third day, or the fifteenth day of the month (Clarke 1854b, p. 409). If all these possibilities are taken into consideration, only the first and last possibilities make sense, so the proposal outlined above remains intact. An argument that helps readers to believe that the Decalogue was probably spoken on the Sabbath is that it is not necessary to seek a coincidence between the day on which the first Passover was performed and the day of Jesus’ death (the antitypical Passover) in New Testament times. Rather, the coincidence made is with the events at creation. The crucifixion occurred on the same day of the week on which humans were created (Friday). The first full day of human existence was the seventh-day Sabbath. Similarly, Christ died for the sins of humanity on a Friday, thus providing the opportunity for all to experience re-creation and live in the world made new. On the following day, the Sabbath, Christ the Creator rested for the whole day. Thus, he pointed all people to the inseparable link between his role as the Creator and that as Redeemer and the perpetual significance of the seventh-day Sabbath. The lessons taught during the Exodus have meaning until the end of time, as we will now discover. Amidst Lightning and Smoke The Exodus commenced under the sign of the slain Lamb (Exodus 12:23, 27; Hebrews 11:28). It has been suggested already that this was on a Friday. The people rested content in God’s deliverance and rejoiced on the following day (Sabbath). They then travelled under Christ’s covering of mercy, represented by the cloud by day and fire by night (Exodus 13:21-22). Lessons in faith were given during the Exodus. The place of human choice combined with divine initiative was highlighted then too (Exodus 14:15). They understood that to be saved involved choice. They began to understand that God’s word dealt with issues of life and death. These lessons were repeated during their journey and sometimes under testing circumstances. After crossing the Sea, the Israelites quickly moved on and came to Marah where the waters were bitter. This site has been identified provisionally as Ain Hawarah, an oasis about seventy six kilometres from Suez on the road to Sinai, which still has bitter water (Nichol et al. 1954a, pp. 573-574; Jamieson et al. 1968, p. 67). A little distance away are the twelve springs of Elim (today Ain Mousa or “Spring of Moses” – Rohl 1996, p. 287). Leaving Elim they launched into the journey to Sinai (Exodus 16:1).

The Golden River that Flows through Time 38 Before the people reached Sinai, they were taught the value of spiritual and physical rest by the giving of the manna (Exodus 16). God covered the ground with this food when the dew arose (vs. 14-15). The miracle itself identified the giver of food as the God who led them from Egypt and who was interested in their daily, temporal affairs. The certainty of God’s word was emphasised in the instruction that they could expect manna on days one to six with an additional portion falling on the sixth day (vs. 19-22, 27- 29). This reminded them that the next day was the Sabbath established at creation, which was to be reverenced (vs. 5, 23). In the vicinity of Sinai, the reality of desert life reasserted itself. The continual scarcity or even severe lack of water made them regret their departure from Egypt (Exodus 17:1-3). In the vicinity of Rephidim, Moses began to fear for his life at their hands (v. 4). He called the location of this dispute Massah (temptation) and Meribah (contention or strife) – v. 7. Moses well knew this savage desert, which swallowed men and beasts without trace in the absence of water. God miraculously intervened with the provision of adequate water following the striking of a rock by Moses (v. 6). This had a deeper meaning than just to provide for the physical needs of the people. The apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 10:4) assures readers that the rock signified Christ. It was he who also provided the spiritual food necessary for eternal salvation of the people. At Sinai the glory of God’s presence was seen in a spectacular form (Exodus 19:16-18; cf. 24:16-17). Amidst thunder and lightning the unnerved onlookers watched in disbelief as the convulsions of nature engulfed the craggy mountain (Exodus 20:18). Expecting imminent destruction they saw instead, and to their great surprise, the joyful figure of Moses emerged from the tempestuous heights. Then history records that they heard ten great principles spoken by the clear voice God. The principles underpinning his kingdom were for their happiness and good health. In honour of this event, and to realize the promises given, there followed instructions to build a tabernacle where the presence of God could dwell and in which the words spoken by God, preserved on tables of stone, might be kept (Exodus 25:8, 21-22). Codified Love The giving of the Decalogue climaxed the delivery of the children of Israel from Egypt. The principles highlighted in the Decalogue delivered at Sinai were an integral part of the Sinai Covenant (Exodus 19:5-11; 20:1-17; 34:28). This covenant served essentially the same purpose as the previous ones made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Exodus 2:24). All covenants were initiated by God and dealt with his efforts to save the race (Genesis 3:15 – first expression of God’s plan). The old covenant, administered in the Old Testament times, pointed to Christ’s coming. The new covenant,

The Golden River that Flows through Time 39 initiated at Christ’s death, represents the unfolding of the old. They both represented the eternal covenant of grace, but differed in their perspective. One looked forward to the cross, the other looked back to a completed work of sacrifice (Ephesians 2:19-20). God’s covenant is an everlasting covenant and is thus always referred to in the singular (Hebrews 13:20; Allis 1977, pp. 58-59, 165-166). The covenant is based on love (agapē type) as is the Decalogue, which can be referred to as “the covenant” (Exodus 34:28; Jemison 1959, p. 194). Jesus was given to the human race as the surety of the covenant and to assure all of the unchangeable moral principles on which it is based (Isaiah 42:1, 6-9). God’s will was and is that humans will be moved to show total obedience to the principles underlying his government in response to his love, his gift of grace. Eternal consequences flow from the response that each chooses (Genesis 3:11, 19; Deuteronomy 28:1, 15). Practically the last word in the Old Testament as in the New admonishes readers to show their commitment to God by respecting his code of love (Malachi 4:4; Revelation 22:14). God’s instruction was “You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy” (Leviticus 11:45). The equivalent in the New Testament is “as He who called you is holy, you also [must] be holy in all your conduct” (1 Peter 1:15). The necessity for continued respect for and obedience to God’s revealed code of morality is shown by Jesus’ statement that he came not to “destroy the Law or the Prophets,” but to “fulfil” them (Matthew 5:17). This does not mean that the Law is no longer applicable today; he came to show that Satan’s claim that God’s government was based on flawed principles was a lie (Genesis 3:5, 15). Jesus not only kept the principles but identified their central theme. He thus reaffirmed the covenant (Matthew 22:36-40), and sealed its details forever by his death (Hebrews 9:15-28). The apostle Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles who was called after the resurrection of Christ and who was taught by him, recognised the Decalogue as God’s will. He clearly informs readers that all people are still under obligation to be obedient to its principles (Romans 7:12, 16, 22). But he also realized the complete impossibility for anyone to keep these in their own strength. He said “For I know that in me … nothing good dwells; for to will is present in me, but how to perform what is good I do not find” (Romans 7:18). He thus identified a dilemma common to the human family. The Decalogue does not represent a “covenant of works” where humans earn merit with God through obedience. The words given make God’s will plain and help individuals recognize the existence of unhealthy behaviours. The principles identified thus function to drive believers to the foot of the cross (Galatians 3:22-24). The apostle Paul explains that the only escape is “through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 7:18-25). Obedience then is the fruitage of a relationship with God (Romans 8:1-4). This is really

The Golden River that Flows through Time 40 the same message as the one taught in the Old Testament, for at the same time as the Decalogue was delivered the sanctuary service was instituted (Exodus 24:7, 12; 25:8-9). This illustrated that the Lord is indeed “gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abundant in kindness” (Exodus 34:6; Nehemiah 9:17; Allis 1977, pp. 39- 40). We are not asked to do the impossible. God’s desire is to save us. The principles God spoke at Sinai were practical expression of codified love (Deuteronomy 10:1-4, 12-13). They can and should be translated in the form of descriptors: “You will not ....,” which expresses how those individuals who have been redeemed from the slavery of sin will wish to act (Olafsson 2005, p. 160). They were words of liberty spoken to a liberated people (cf. James 2:5-13). Choosing to obey these principles by faith in God’s enabling power was and still is the privilege of every hearer (Hebrews 4:2). The principles given at Sinai were repeated in the lessons of the sanctuary (Exodus 25:8; cf. Romans 3:25 margin). There God’s glory was associated with the structure itself and his spoken words were kept under the covering known as the mercy seat (Exodus 25:21; 40:34). The just demands of the Decalogue could be met only by the blood of the animal victims, which represented the blood of Christ who was to come. So we find that during the wilderness wanderings of the Israelites they were given practical lessons in salvation as described by Christ in his first sermon (Luke 4:18-19; cf. Isaiah 61:1-3). The lessons of the Exodus establish in our minds that the word of God, delivered by the hands of his prophets, represents his will today. In a practical sense, this means that the Sabbath is a promise that God’s intentions towards the human race remain constant and his expectations of us have not changed. We can be certain of this for Moses the prophet received his instruction (including the Decalogue) from Christ. And Christ, the great prophet (Acts 3:19-26), underscored these same principles (Matthew 17:2-3; 22:36-40; Luke 24:27). The outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost confirmed the principles delivered by the Lord at Sinai (principles of mercy and justice) well after Christ’s resurrection (Acts 2:1-4). We remember that the Holy Spirit is to lead into all truth (John 16:13). No changes to principles or rituals were made at his coming. The truths given to God’s chosen people on their journey to the earthly Canaan are no different from those for his followers journeying towards the heavenly Canaan. The deliverance from Egypt was a type of the deliverance from the penalty and power of sin, which Christ purchased on Calvary (Matthew 27:45-50; 1 Corinthians 5:7). This means that the success of the first Exodus gives confidence in the success of the second Exodus, which is yet to come. The Sabbath reminds us continually of this glorious coming deliverance and eternal rest. The rest spoken of can be entered into now

The Golden River that Flows through Time 41 and the apostle Paul connected experiencing it with the Sabbath rest (Hebrews 4:1-7). Those who focus on Jesus’ example and in love choose to follow him unreservedly (involving will, affections, and understanding— Matthew 22:37) will be transformed in character (2 Corinthians 3:18) and experience a quiet confidence and faith in God’s promises and leading. As a consequence of the saving relationship they are experiencing, they will joyfully follow the example left by Jesus. References Allis, O. T. 1977. Prophecy and the church. Wayne, PA: The Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing. Clarke, A. 1854a. The Holy Bible containing the Old and New Testaments: With a commentary and critical notes, vol. 1. London: W. Tegg. Clarke, A. 1854b. The Holy Bible containing the Old and New Testaments: with a commentary and critical notes, vol. 3. London: W. Tegg. Down, D. 1999, April/May. What is it? Archaeological Diggings, pp. 18-19. Down, D. K. 2000, Dec. 1999/Jan. Canadian professor discovers Kakun. Archaeological Diggings, pp. 3-6. Goudoever, van J. 1961. Biblical calendars (2nd revised ed.). Leiden: E. J. Brill. Habermehl, A. 2013. Revising the Egyptian chronology: Joseph as Imhotep, and Amenemhat IV as Pharaoh of the exodus. Proceedings of the International Conference on Creationism, vol. 7, article 38. https://digitalcommons.cedarville.edu/icc_proceedings/vol7/iss1/38/ Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R. & Brown, D. 1968. Commentary practical and explanatory on the whole Bible. London: Oliphants. Jemison, T. H. 1959. Christian beliefs. Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing. Nichol, F. D., Cottrell, R. F., Neufeld, D. F. & Neuffer, J. (Eds.) 1954a. The Seventh-day Adventist Bible commentary, vol. 1. Washington, DC: Review and Herald Publishing. Nichol, F. D., Cottrell, R. F., Neufeld, D. F. & Neuffer, J. (Eds.). 1954b. The Seventh-day Adventist Bible commentary, vol. 2. Washington, DC: Review and Herald Publishing. Nichol, F. D., Cottrell, R. F., Neufeld, D. F. & Neuffer, J. (Eds.) 1956. The Seventh-day Adventist Bible commentary, vol. 5. Washington, DC: Review and Herald Publishing. Nichol, F. D., Cottrell, R. F., Neufeld, D. F. & Neuffer, J. (Eds.). 1957. The Seventh-day Adventist Bible commentary, vol. 6. Washington, DC: Review and Herald Publishing. Olafsson, G. 2005. God’s eternal covenant and the Sabbath. Journal of the Adventist Theological Society, vol. 16, no. 1-2, pp. 155-163. Peters, F. W. 1994. The Hajj. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Raphael, C. 1990. The festivals: A history of Jewish celebration. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson. Robinson, T. H. 1932. A history of Israel, vol. 1. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Rohl, D. 1996. A test of time: The Bible - From myth to reality, vol.1. London: Arrow Books. Roth, C. (Ed.). 1971. Exodus. Encyclopaedia Judaica, vol. 6, cols. 1042-1050. Jerusalem: Keter Publishing House. Velikovsky, I. 1952. Ages in chaos. Cutchogue, NY: Buccaneer Books. Whiston, W. 1936. The life and Works of Flavius Josephus (translation). Antiquities of the Jews, book 2 chap. 15 and 16. Chicago, IL: John C. Winston.

42 4 - The Last Word! Key thoughts: The seventh-day Sabbath was invested afresh with hope and assurance after the resurrection of Christ. The events of the crucifixion-resurrection weekend rattled the foundations of Satan’s kingdom. They have enduring significance to peoples from various belief systems. The Sabbath is the one symbol that stretches from Eden to Eternity showing God’s love and power. The hope and assurance radiating from the Sabbath is the vibrant thought believers are called upon to share with the world. esus chose Passover time in the fourth year of his ministry to reveal the ultimate sign of his divinity. It was then that he uttered the simple words: “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:19). The Jews were incredulous that Jesus would claim such a ridiculous thing, since it had taken a full forty six years to build the temple in the first place. But he spoke of his body temple, of rising from the dead after his crucifixion (vs. 20-21). And when Jesus hung on the cross suffering in agony, they remembered his words and cried, “Aha! You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!” (Mark 15:30). Jesus turned the apparent defeat of his sacrifice and death into victory by a decided refusal to give up his faith. Jesus had the last word literally when he strode out of the tomb on Sunday, for this event guaranteed the ultimate triumph of his cause. We can be sure that it was not simply by chance that Christ rose on this day. The events on the crucifixionresurrection weekend exposed the prevailing folk religions and the superstitious practices associated with them. The fulfilment of prophecy in the death, rest, and resurrection of Christ stirred and shocked many Jews J