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seventh, by divine authority; and, if so, when and for what reason? This is the question now to be tried. That the day has been changed; that the change took place at the resurrection of Christ, to commemorate that event, and the completion of the work of redemption, we argue,

ever.

In the first place: From the analogy which exists between that stupendous work and the original creation. That the redemption of fallen man was a greater work than making the world, must, we think, appear evident to any one who will consider that both were accomplished by Jesus Christ; John i. 3. "The world was made by him, and without him was not any thing made that was made." Col. i. 16. "By him were all things created, that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible." Heb. i. 8, 10. "But unto the Son he saith, thy throne, O God, is for ever and And thou, Lord, in the beginning, hast laid the foundations of the earth; and the heavens are the work of thy hands." How stupendous, how glorious were these works! And yet the work of redemption excels them all in glory. The heavens and the earth were made by the word of his power; the souls of men were redeemed by the shedding of his blood. When worlds were brought into being, "He spake and it was done ;" but when man was to be "saved from going down to the pit," and "created in righteousness and true holiness," His soul was in an agony; the nails were in his hands and his feet; his expiring cry went up from the cross; and universal nature shuddered at the spectacle.

Now, if the seventh day was originally set apart and sanctified, "because that in it God rested from all his work," does not the redemption of a great multitude which no man can number, which was finished on the first day, demand a similar commemoration? If it was suitable that creative power and wisdom should be celebrated with thanksgiving every seventh day, from the creation to the resurrection of Christ, can it be less so that redeeming love and mercy should be celebrated in a similar manner, every first day of the week, from the resurrection till the end of the world? Surely, if in every view, the work of redemption has the pre-eminence, it ought to be kept in grateful and everlasting remembrance, by a holy appropriation of the day on which it was consummated.

Secondly; The ancient Jewish prophets evidently saw the day of Christ's final triumph, and were glad. Is. xi. 10. "And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek; and his rest shall be glorious." May there not be an allusion here to the Gospel Sabbath, as well as to the rest and prosperity of the church in the latter day?" His rest shall be glorious;" that is, the day on which Christ rested from all his work, as God did from his. Isa. lxvi. 22, 23. "For as the new heavens and the new earth which I will make shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the Lord." This

prophecy, beyond all question, refers to the prosperous state of the church, under the millennial reign of Messiah, the most glorious period of that new dispensation, which seems to be shadowed forth, under the emblem of new heavens and a new earth. The church is then to have her ministers, solemnities, sabbaths, and holy ordinances, as she had under the Levitical priesthood; and as every service will then refer directly to Christ, may we not infer that the church will keep her sabbaths on that day which commemorates his resurrection from the dead. But however this may be, one thing is clear;-the Sabbath will then be observed by the people of God; and of course it was not abolished with the ceremonial law, but belongs to the new dispensation, as certainly as it did to the old.*

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*Note by the Committee:-President Humphrey has well intimated, that the new creation or work of redemption was a greater and more glorious work than the first creation. This appears to be fully confirmed by the figurative representation of the new heavens and new earth that was created, as predicted by Isaiah lxv. 17 and 18. "For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former shall not be remembered nor come into mind. But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that I create ; for behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy." It is more than intimated, that the celebration of the first creation, the first heavens and the first earth, shall cease, and be no longer commemorated, because the new creation so far exceeds in glory, that it shall become a theme of celebration and everlasting joy: "This is the day the Lord has made; we will be glad and rejoice in it."

haps, touching the change of the Sabbath, is contained in the cxviii Ps. "The stone which the builders refused, is become the headstone of the corner. This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes. This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." This passage is quoted and applied to Christ, no less than six times, in the New Testament. That it refers to his resurrection and exaltation no one can doubt. On what day then did he rise from the dead? On the first day of the week. Does the psalmist refer to the very day of his triumph, or to some other day? To that glorious day most certainly. And what does he say of it?" This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Here, then, is a prediction that the day on which the Redeemer rose from the dead, should be consecrated-should be a day of joy and gladness in the church; a day of holy commemoration, as it hath been ever since, and we doubt not will be till the second coming of Christ. And this is the Christian Sabbath.

Thirdly; Christ has left us his own example, in favour of the change for which we contend. Not a syllable is said, subsequently to his resurrection, about his keeping the Jewish Sabbath. But he appeared to his disciples repeatedly, on the very day that he rose, and he met them again the next first day of the week, when they were assembled for worship, and said, "Peace be unto you." Now, why was this fact recorded, if it was not that Christ intended to bequeath to the Church

his own example for her imitation? Surely, if as Lord of the Sabbath day, he had meant to perpetuate the seventh, instead of the first, he would not have neglected the former, and put a special honor upon the latter.

Fourthly; The apostles, themselves, kept the first day of the week, and the churches which they planted were accustomed to assemble on that day for public worship. Thus, in one of his apostolic visits, Paul "came to Troas, where he abode seven days. And, upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, he preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow." To the church of Corinth, he gives this charge: "As I have given order to the churches of Galatia, so do ye. Upon the first day of the week, let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gathering when I come." This plainly shows, that the churches met regularly on the first day of the week, and that in this they had the entire sanction of their spiritual guides and teachers. But who were these teachers? Men whom Christ had chosen for the express purpose of establishing the Gospel Church on a right foundation; and who, in this most important matter, acted under the unerring guidance of the Holy Spirit. The promise of the Saviour, before he left them, was, "I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever. And the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and shall

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