CHAPTER VII. DENIAL OF THE DIVINE INSTITUTION AND OBLIGATION OF CHRISTIAN SABBATH.

The incalculable importance of the proper observation of the Christian Sabbath to the progress of the kingdom of Christ in general, and to the growth of piety in the heart of every Christian in particular, is a point on which, we are happy to state, there is no difference between the Plea and the Platform. Yet we cannot resist the conviction, that in our efforts to observe this day, not with the pharisaic formalities of the Jew, but with the conscientious spirituality of the Christian, the question whether in doing so, we are obeying an injunction of God, exhibited in the inspired example of his apostles, or are merely conforming to an uninspired regulation of the church, must be of great importance.

The lax views of the early reformers on this subject are so frequently met with in theological discussions, that we had not expected to find the position of the Platform disputed; but rather that the theory of the Reformers would be defended, as is done by writers of no mean name in Germany at the present day. The author of the Plea, however, takes a different view of the Confession, and affirms that this venerable document does not deny the divine institution and obligation of the Christian Sabbath. "Luther and Melancthon (says he,) had received from the older church, the doctrine and practice of the Christian Sabbath, as a holy day, as a divine institution and obligation, and they had not a word to say against this view of the Sabbath. But they had a great deal to say against the abuses, by which the bishops made the Sabbath a day of sin and dishonor to God and his church, instead of making it a day devoted to his glory," p. 28.

This opinion is different from that commonly entertained among the learned. A few authorities alone may suffice to sustain our statement. Dr Ruecker, in his work on The Lord's Day, in which he thoroughly examines the views of the church on this subject, in all the different ages of her history, fully confirms the position of the Definite Platform. He says, "The Reformers do not recognize in the religious observance of Sunday an institution resting on an immediate divine command; and the idea of a transfer of the Sabbatic law of the Old to the New Testament Sunday, is altogether strange to them, and is positively rejected by them, as in consistent with the gospel" (Die Reformatorem erkennen in der Sonntagsfeier keine unmittelbar goettliche anordnung, &c.) Ruckert, von Tage des Herrn, p. 48.

And again, on p. 67, he affirms this more liberal view of the Lord's Day, to be the more general one in Germany at the present time. "So far," says he, "as we know, the most important, living, theological writers, of the present day, entertain this so-called more liberal or lax view, (namely, that of Luther.)"

Dr. Hengstenberg, the well-known editor of the Evangelical Church Paper at Berlin, Prussia, and author of numerous learned and valuable works, uses the following language: "What Luther's views were, on the law concerning the Sabbath, may easily be inferred from his views of the Old Testament law in general, and of the Decalogue in particular. The distinction which became current after his day, between the moral and ceremonial law, according to which Christ abrogated only the latter, whilst the former is regarded as universal and binding on all ages, was distant from his views. He regards the whole law as an external, coercive letter, designed only for the Jews." "How Luther regarded the Sabbath from this general view, is so clearly exhibited in his Larger Catechism, that the introduction of other passages from his writings, is entirely superfluous." He then quotes the passages which will be given in full in our next section, in which Luther declares the Sabbath to be designed only for the Jews, and that in its outward sense it does not concern Christians. (Darum, says Luther, gehet nun dies gebot nach dem groben Verstande uns Christen nichts an, &c.) Melancthon (continues Hengstenberg,) agreed with Luther, and this view was introduced into the Augsburg Confession." See Hengstenberg, ueber den Tag des Herrn, Berlin, 1852, pp. 108, 109, 110.

But the accuracy of the Platform will no longer be disputed, when even Dr. Walter, [sic; should be Walther] the leader of the old Lutheran Synod of Missouri, and editor of their periodical, a man of acknowledged theological learning and rigid advocate for the entire Augsburg Confession, bears testimony in favor of our position. In the March No. of the Lehre und Wehre, p. 93, he thus expresses his views: "We cannot agree with him (the author, whom he is reviewing) in the views he expresses concerning the Sabbath. He asserts that the Sabbath or Christian Sunday is a divine institution, and that this is the doctrine of the Lutheran Symbols: That the Lutheran Church differs from the Calvinistic only in the mode of observing the Sabbath, the former advocating an evangelical, the latter, a legal method. The contrary of this is clearly evident from Article XXVIII. of the Augsburg Confession, and it would be almost incomprehensible how the author could fail to perceive this, were it not for his manifest desire to make the sanctification of the Sabbath as binding a duty as any other precept in the decalogue, and his apprehension that this could not be accomplished any other way, than by maintaining the divine appointment of the Sunday.

Once more, let us listen to the the [sic] testimony of that learned and impartial historian of our own country, Dr. Murdock, himself, though a native American, a highly respectable German scholar: "The XXVIII. Article of Augsburg Confession," says he, "teaches that as to Sundays and other holy days, and rites and forms of worship, bishops may and should appoint such as are convenient and suitable; and the people should observe them, NOT AS DIVINE ORDINANCES, but as conducive to good order and edification." Murdock's Mosheim, Vol. iii., p. 53, Harper's edition.

I. What is the charge of the Definite Platform against the Augsburg
Confession on this subject? It is, that

The Augsburg Confession "treats the Sabbath as a mere Jewish institution, and supposes it to be totally revoked whilst the propriety of our retaining the Lord's Day or Christian Sabbath as a day of religious worship, is supposed to rest only on the agreement of the churches for the convenience of general convocation.

II. What ground does the Plea take?

It denies the position, and affirms the contrary, as above stated, while it supposes the Confession to object not to the divine institution and obligation of the Lord's Day, but to the corruptions which the Romish church had connected with it, and especially the idea that the observance of the Lord's Day was a meritorious work, which would secure our justification before God.

The observations of the Plea against the self-righteous abuse of the Sabbath are just and Christian, but do not affect the position of the Platform. The author also intersperses other useful practical remarks, which we have not have room to quote. The simple point of difference, of any moment, is that relating to the question whether our obligation to observe the Christian Sabbath rests on its appointment by God or by the church. Indeed, it can scarcely be said that this question remains, for the author of the Plea, at the close of his discussion, virtually acknowledges the point affirmed by the Platform, when he says: "The Augsburg Confession, notwithstanding her definite assertion that the Christian Sabbath rests on no special dictate of the Word of God, maintains that by necessity, and by right, the church instituted our Christian Sabbath, and we ought to keep it." P. 34. To this we shall confine our proof.

III. We shall prove that the Augsburg Confession does deny the divine appointment of the Christian Sabbath or Lord's Day.

In establishing this position, we shall first prove from the other writings of Luther and Melancthon, that they both rejected the divine appointment of the Christian Sabbath or Lord's day; secondly, show from the Augsburg Confession itself, as well as the Apology to it, both written by Melancthon, that its divine appointment is there denied.

Let us listen to the declarations of Luther on this subject. In his Commentary on the Pentateuch, speaking of the decalogue, he says: "Saint Paul and the entire New Testament have abolished the Sabbath of the Jews, in order that men may understand that the Sabbath concerns the Jews alone. It is therefore unnecesssary [sic] that the Gentiles should observe the Sabbath, although it was a great and rigid command among the Jews." [Note 1] "Among Christians, under the New Testament, every day is a holy day, and all days are free. Therefore, says Christ, the Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath day. Matt. xii. 8. Therefore Paul, at different places, admonishes the Christians, not to suffer themselves to be bound to any particular day. Ye observe days and months, and times and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labor in vain. Gal. iv. 10, 11. And still more clearly in Colossians ii. 16, 17. Let no mint therefore judge you in meat or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moon, or of Sabbath days: which are a shadow of things to come." "But although the Sabbath is now revoked, and the consciences of men are free from it, it is nevertheless good and necessary that some particular day of the week be observed, in order that the word of God may be dispensed on it, may be heard and learned; for not every one can attend to it every day. Moreover, nature demands that both man and beast rest one day in the week, and abstain from labor. Hence, if any one desires to make a necessary command out of the Sabbath, as a work required of God, he must observe Saturday and not Sunday, for Saturday was enjoined upon the Jews, and not Sunday. But Christians have hitherto observed Sunday, and not Saturday, because on that day Christ, arose. Now this is a certain evidence to us that the Sabbath, yea the entire Moses (Mosaic dispensation) no longer concerns us, else we would be under obligation to observe Saturday. This is a great and strong proof that the Sabbath is revoked; for throughout the whole New Testament we find no place in which the observance of the Sabbath in enjoined upon Christians."

"But why (continues Luther,) is Sunday observed among Christians? Although, all days are free and one day is like another, it is still necessary and good, yea, very necessary, that some one day be observed, whether it be Sabbath, Sunday or any other day. For God designs to lead the world decently, and govern it peaceably; therefore he gave six days for work, but on the seventh day, servants, hirelings, and laborers of every kind, yea, even horses and oxen and other laboring animals shall have rest, as this precept requires, in order that they may be refreshed by rest. And especially in order that those, who at other times have no leisure, may hear the preached word and thereby learn to know God. And for this reason, namely, of love and necessity, Sunday has been retained, not on account of the Mosaic precept, but for the sake of our necessities in order that we might rest and learn the word of God." [Note 2]

In his larger Catechism, Luther thus expresses himself. [Note 3]

"This commandment, therefore, with respect to its outward and literal sense, does not concern us Christians; for it is wholly an external thing, like other ordinances of the Old Testament, confined to certain conditions, and places, which are all now left free through Christ. But in order that we may draw up for the uninformed, a Christian meaning of what God requires of us in this commandment, is is necessary to observe, that we keep the Sabbath-day, not for the sake of intelligent and learned (gelehrten) Christians; for these have no need of it: but in the first place, on account, of physical reasons and necessities, which nature teaches and requires for the common mass of people, men-servants and maid-servants, who attend during the whole week to their labor and employments, so that they may also have a day set apart for rest and refreshment (erquicken:) in the second, mostly for the purpose of enabling us to take time and opportunity on these Sabbath-days, (since we cannot otherwise attain them,) to attend to divine service, so that we may assemble ourselves to hear and treat of the Word of God, and then to praise him, to sing and pray to him.

"But this, I say, is not so confined to time, as ii was among the Jews, that it must be precisely on this or that day; for one day is not better in itself than another, but it should be daily attended to; but since the mass of the people cannot attend to it, we should reserve one day in the week, at least, for this purpose. Inasmuch, however, as Sunday has been set apart from of old for this purpose, we should therefore let it remain so, that the Sabbath may be observed with uniformity, and that no one create disorder through unnecessary innovation."

The above testimony of Luther is so distinct and decided, that he certainly would not have approved of the Augsburg Confession if Melancthon had introduced a different doctrine into it. But there was no difference of opinion on this point, between these two luminaries of the church.

2. Melancthon, in a letter addressed to Luther from Augsburg, dated July 27, 1530, thus speaks of the Christian Sabbath: "When St. Peter appoints the religious observance of Sunday, I regard this work (the observance of the day) not as divine worship, (Gottesdienst, cultus,) but as being attended by bodily advantage, (leiblichen Nutzen,) if the people assemble together on a fixed day." [Note 4]

Again, in his System of Divinity, or Loci Theologici," [Note 5] we find the following unequivocal declaration: "We have, heard above that the Levitical ceremonies are abolished. But the law concerning the Sabbath is a Levitical ceremony, and St. Paul expressly says, Col. ii., Let no one judge you, if you do not observe the Sabbaths," (Niemend [sic] soll euch richten, so ihr die Sabbathe nicht haltet;) why then (it may be asked) do you insist so rigidly on this precept? Answer. This precept in the words of Moses embraces two things, one common, that is necessary to the church at all times, and a particular day, which concerned only the government of Israel. The common part (of this precept) is the proper public office (or duty) to preach and to observe the divine ceremonies, which God has at any time enjoyed. This common precept binds all men; for this honor all rational creatures owe to God, to aid in sustaining the office of preacher, and Christian assemblies, (public worship,) according to the condition and calling of each one, as shall be farther stated hereafter. But the particular part, concerning the seventh day, DOES NOT BIND US: therefore we hold meetings on the first day and on any other days of the week, as occasion offers."

Such then being the views of the illustrious reformers, one of whom penned the Augsburg Confession, and the other sanctioned it, we might naturally expect to find them expressed in the Confession itself, which a bare recital of a few passages, will prove to be the case.

And, I. From the Augsburg Confession, Art. XXVIII.

"And what are we to believe concerning Sunday (the Lord's day,) and other similar ordinances and ceremonies of the church? To this inquiry we reply, the bishops and clergy may make regulations, that order may be observed in the church, not with the view of thereby obtaining the grace of God, nor in order thus to make satisfaction for sins, nor to bind the consciences, to hold and regard this as a necessary worship of God, or to believe that they would commit sin if they violated these regulations without offence to others. Thus St. Paul to the Corinthians (1 Cor. xi. 5,) has ordained that women shall have their heads covered in the congregation; also, that ministers should not all speak at the same time in the congregation, but in an orderly manner, one after another.

"It is becoming in a Christian congregation to observe such order, for the sake of love and peace, and to obey the bishops and clergy in these cases, and to observe these regulations so far as not to give offence to one another, so that there may be no disorder or unbecoming conduct in the church. Nevertheless, the consciences of men must not be oppressed, by representing these things as necessary to salvation, or teaching that they are guilty of sin, if they break these regulations without offence to others; for no one affirms that a woman commits sin who goes out with her head uncovered, without giving offence to the people. SUCH ALSO IS THE ORDINANCE CONCERNING SUNDAY, Easter, Whitsunday, and similar festivals and customs. For those who suppose that the ordinance concerning Sunday instead of Sabbath, is enacted as necessary, are greatly mistaken. For the Holy Scripture has abolished the Sabbath, and teaches that all the ceremonies of the old law may be omitted, since the publication of the gospel. And yet, as it was necessary to appoint a certain day, in order that the people might know when they should assemble, the Christian church, (not the apostles,) has up appointed Sunday (the Lord's day) for this purpose; and to this change she was the more inclined and willing, that the people might have an example of Christian liberty, and might know that the observance of neither the Sabbath nor any other day is necessary. There have been numerous erroneous disputations published, concerning the change of the law, the ceremonies of the New Testament, and the change of the Sabbath, which have all sprung from the false and erroneous opinion, that Christians must have such a mode of divine worship as is conformed to the Levitical or Jewish service, and that Christ enjoined it on the apostles and bishops, to invent new ceremonies, which should be necessary to salvation." [Note 6]

Here we are distinctly taught, (a) that the Jewish Sabbath is entirely abolished; (b) that no particular day was divinely appointed in its stead; (c) that those who suppose the ordinance concerning Sunday instead of Sabbath is enacted as necessary, "are greatly mistaken." (d) But that, as it was necessary to appoint a certain day for the, convocation of the people, "the Christian church (not the apostles,) appointed Sunday."

II. Of similar import are the teachings of the Apology to the
Confession, which also flowed from the pen of Melancthon.

Apology to the Confession, Art. IV.

"But we maintain, that the harmony of the church is no more broken by variations in such human ordinances, than it is by variations in the natural length of the day in different places. Yet we like to see the general ceremonies uniformly kept, for the sake of harmony and order, as in our churches, for instance, we retain (behalten) the mass, the Lord's Day, and other great festivals.

"And we approve, all human ordinances which are good and useful, especially those which promote good external discipline among youth and the people generally. But the inquiry is not, shall human ordinances be observed on account of external discipline and tranquillity? [sic] The question is altogether different; it is, is the observance of such human ordinances a divine service by which God is reconciled; and that without such ordinances, no one can be righteous before God? This is the chief inquiry, and when this shall have been finally answered, it will be easy to judge whether the unity of the church requires uniformity in such ordinances." [Note 7]

Here again the Lord's day (a) is classed in the category of human ordinances, the observance of which is free, and may differ in different places.

(b) Yet uniformity in general ceremonies is pleasing, such as "the mass, the Lord's day, and other great festivals."

And now having proved that the lax views of the Christian Sabbath, charged by the Platform on the Augsburg Confession, are attributed to it by the learned in Germany generally, that Luther and Melancthon teach them in their other writings: in view of all these evidences, we ask every impartial, conscientious reader, whether it is possible to doubt the accuracy of the positions maintained by the Platform on this subject—namely, that the Augsburg Confession treats the Sabbath, or religious observance of the seventh day of the week, as a mere Jewish institution, an institution appointed of God for the Jews alone; whilst the propriety of retaining the Lord's day or Christian Sabbath, as a day of religious observation and worship, in their judgment, rests on the appointment of the church, and the necessity of having some one day for the convenience of the people in assembling for public worship. The act of keeping any one day entirely for religious observance, they regard as ceremonial and temporary, and the moral or common part of the precept, as stated in our extract from Melancthon, they resolve into the general duty of preaching and hearing the gospel, and of sustaining public assemblies for this purpose; that is, of bearing the expenses incident to the support of the ministry and the ordinances of God's house.

"Our American churches, on the contrary, as well as some few in Germany, believe in the divine institution and obligation of the Christian Sabbath, or Lord's day, convinced that the Old Testament Sabbath was not a mere Jewish institution; but that it was appointed by God at the close of the creative week, when he rested on the seventh day, and blessed it, and sanctified it, (Gen. ii. 2, 3,) that is, set it (namely, one whole day in seven,) apart for holy purposes, for reasons of universal and perpetual nature, Exod. xx. 11. Even in the re-enactment of it in the Mosaic rode, its original appointment is acknowledged, 'Remember the Sabbath day—because in six days God made heaven and earth—and rested on the seventh; wherefore he, (then, in the beginning,) blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.' Now this reason has no more reference to the Jews than to any other nation, and if it was sufficient to make the observance of the Sabbath obligatory on them, it must be equally so for all other nations before and after them.

'Since therefore the observance and sanctification of a portion of his time, is based on universal reasons in the nature of man, especially as a religious being, and the proportion of time was fixed at a seventh, by the example and precepts of the Creator in the beginning; the Sabbath or religious observance of one day in seven, must be universally obligatory, and the abrogation of the Mosaic ritual, can at most only repeal those ceremonial additions which that ritual made, and must leave the original Sabbath as it found it. Now whilst the apostles, and first Christians under the inspired guidance, for a season also attended worship on the Jewish Sabbath, they observed the day of the Lord's resurrection, the first day of the week, as their day of special religious convocations; and this inspired example is obligatory on Christians in all ages. Still the essence of the institution consists, not in the particular day of the week, though that is now fixed, but in the religious observance of one entire day in seven." [Note 8]

We do not, indeed, maintain that the conduct of the apostles was inspired on all occasions; but it seems just and necessary to maintain, that when engaged in the specific and appropriate duties of that office, for which they were inspired, they were as much under the guidance of the Spirit in their actions, as their words.

On the divine institution and obligation of the Christian Sabbath, we refer the reader to an extended argument in its favor, in the author's Lutheran Manual, pp. 310-24.

Note 1. Luther's Works, Leipsic edit., Vol. iii., pp. 642, 643.

Note 2. Luther's Works, Vol. iii., p. 643.

Note 3. Symbolical Books, pp. 449, 450, corrected by the original.

Note 4. Niemeyer's Briefe Melanchthons, [sic] p. 50.

Note 5. Vol. iv., p. 113, of Koethe's edit.

Note 6. See Schmucker's Lutheran Manual, pp. 306, 307.

Note 7. See Symb. B. Newmarket, ed. 2d., corrected by the German, p. 223.

Note 8. See Definite Synodical Platform, p. 27.