Apocalypse Now!

Chapter 2 — John and the Lord’s Day

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God; who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began” 2 Timothy 1:7-9.

Persecution by the civil powers began early in the young Christian church, bringing social, political, and economic hardship upon the followers of Christ. Over a period of two and a half centuries Christians suffered from sporadic and localized persecutions. Refusing to participate in the imperial cult was considered an act of treason that was punishable by execution. James, the brother of the author of Revelation was beheaded by Herod Agrippa I in A.D. 44. The apostle Paul was imprisoned twice in Rome, the first time he was held under house arrest for two years before coming to trial. After he was acquitted and released, Paul continued his preaching tours for several more years. In A.D. 66 he was again arrested, supposedly for committing crimes against the state. After two years in chains, Emperor Nero Caesar had Paul decapitated in a public execution.

“I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Revelation 1:9.

John begins his narrative in Revelation by stating that he was a political prisoner on the Isle of Patmos. From this verse we are able to determine three important facts about the writing of the Book of Revelation: who wrote it, where it was written, and the time it written. The author is identified as the apostle John. The “where” was the rocky island of Patmos located about 40 miles off the west coast of Asia Minor, southwest of the city of Miletus in modern day Turkey. The “when” is known to be during the reign of Emperor Domitian, when the Romans began to use Patmos as a place of exile for condemned criminals. This verse also gives us great encouragement because John identifies with his readers in three ways: he says he is our brother in Christ, that he is a companion in our oppression, and a fellow citizen of the heavenly kingdom of God. His personal witness assures us that through faith in God’s promises, he was able to maintain patience even under terrible trials and persecution. Like Paul, John could say “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:7-8). John’s faith in his Saviour and Lord, Jesus Christ, gave him the courage to face affliction, persecution, and even death, knowing that he was bound as a citizen of the heavenly kingdom. His full allegiance was to Christ; no other could take His place in John’s heart. Lord’s Day and Emperor Worship Emperor Domitian Titus Flavius Caesar (A.D. 51–96) was the younger son of Emperor Vespasian, and brother to Titus. Titus was the general responsible for the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Domitian was a ruthless but efficient dictator, and an ardent worshiper of Minerva, the Roman goddess of wisdom and patron of the arts, commercial trade, and military defenses. Domitian revived the practice of the imperial cult that enrolled the emperors among the gods. In his public documents, Domitian informed all the governors of his empire, and leaders of other governments, that he should be addressed as “Our Lord and God Domitian.” In his Lives of the Caesars, Seutonius (A.D. 75-ca. 140), wrote: “With no less arrogance he began as follows in issuing a circular letter in the name of his procurators, ‘Our Master and our God bids that this be done’” (Dominus et deus noster hoe fieri abet). Domitian instituted a day on which he was especially to be worshiped, calling it the “emperor’s day” which, by implication, was “the lord’s day” to those who held him in high esteem. In A.D. 85, he nominated himself as perpetual censor, making himself the moral policeman of the empire. Domitian’s religious policy allowed no tolerance toward those he considered morally corrupt. Toward the end of his reign, Jews and Christians were heavily persecuted for their resistance to emperor worship. Domitian was assassinated in A.D. 96 on September 18, as part of a palace conspiracy organized by court officials. Marcus Cocceius Nerva, who had served as a member of the imperial entourage since the days of Nero, was immediately declared emperor by the Senate. According to the policy of the time, succeeding monarchs set free persons held as political prisoners condemned by their predecessor. John was released from Patmos late in the year A.D. 96, giving us a date for the composition of the book of Revelation between A.D. 95 and 96.

“I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet” Revelation 1:10.

Christians Were Persecuted Persecution by the civil powers began early in the young Christian church, bringing social, political, and economic hardship upon the followers of Christ. Over a period of two and a half centuries, emperor worship (idolizing the civil authority) was embedded into the mythic thinking of the Roman society. Refusing to participate in the imperial cult was considered an act of treason that was punishable by execution. James, the brother of the author of Revelation was beheaded by Herod Agrippa I in A.D. 44. James the less, the brother of Christ, was stoned to death. The apostle Paul was imprisoned twice in Rome, the first time he was held under house arrest for two years before coming to trial. After he was acquitted and released, Paul continued his preaching tours until he was again arrested in A.D. 66, supposedly for committing crimes against the state. After two years in chains, Emperor Nero Caesar had Paul decapitated in a public execution. The apostle Peter was arrested and crucified in Rome. In the early years of the Christian church, many believers had to leave Palestine and seek shelter in other countries. During the Jewish Revolt (A.D. 66-70) which ended with the destruction of the second temple in Jerusalem, animosity increased greatly toward Jews and Christians (who were viewed by Roman authorities as merely a sub-sect of Judaism). During this early time, Christians suffered from sporadic and localized victimization. While Christians may have been able to escape direct participation in the false religious practices of the imperial cult, the pervasiveness of emperor worship in the first-century Roman empire would have confronted them at every turn, effecting even the simplest activities of daily life. For instance, without first making a votive offering to honor the emperor they were unable to buy or sell in the market places. By the fourth century A.D. under Emperor Diocletian (A.D. 303–313), political tyranny increased sharply. Christians were denied their civil rights, had their citizenship revoked, and some were forced into slavery, executed or imprisoned, all because of their faith in Christ as their Redeemer from sin. Perpetual Sabbath Observation John used the phrase “Lord’s day” in his introductory comments in Revelation, both as an identifier of the day upon which he received the visions, and as a declaration that he was not worshiping the “lord” Domitian. For his readers, the distinction would have had significant meaning. When John wrote the words “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day” (Revelation 1:10), he was not referring to “emperor’s day,” nor to Sunday, as many Christians today believe. He was in prison “for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ” (vs. 9). The Word of God contains no mention of first-day worship practices. John was a political prisoner because he refused to worship the emperor, who claimed to be lord and who had set up a false day of worship. When John penned this verse, he was not worshiping or alluding to the worship of the pagan lord of the realm. He knew perfectly well that the seventh-day Sabbath was the true Lord’s Day. Jesus had said so. John kept the seventh-day Sabbath as the day of worship all of his life, as did all the disciples of Jesus, and Jesus Himself. The Scriptures inform us, “And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up: and as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read” (Luke 4:16). The Greek word translated “custom” in this verse means “habit.” Going to the synagogue to read and study God’s word, and to praise and worship the Lord of Creation was the customary thing for Jesus to do on the Sabbath. Jesus told the grumbling Pharisees, “the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath, therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27, 28). The natural questions that arise are: “When was the Sabbath made for man?” And “Why was the Sabbath given to man?” The Bible has the answers to both questions. “Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.” (Genesis 2:1-3). This eternal truth was restated just before the children of Israel entered into the promised land. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.” (Exodus 20:8–11). The seventh-day Sabbath has existed from the creation of the world. As God called His people out of bondage to a pagan nation, He commanded them to “remember” His holy day. It was a sign that separated them from the pagan world. The seventh-day Sabbath as the authorized day of worship has never been abrogated by God. The apostle Paul was also a Sabbath-keeper, being “of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee” (Philippians 3:5). Three and a half years after the crucifixion, Paul (then known by his Hebrew name of Saul) was confronted by the risen Messiah on his way to Damascus to arrest Christian believers. Christ said to him, “I am Jesus whom thou persecutest” (Acts 9:5). Immediately after Paul’s conversion, he went “straightaway” and “preached Christ in the synagogues, that He was the Son of God” (Acts 9:20). Learning that the Man whom Paul had been persecuting through His believers, was truly the Messiah (Acts 9:1–6), did not cause him to change the day upon which he worshiped. On the contrary, Paul continued to worship on the seventh day of the week, but now he preached the truth of Christ and His righteousness, reasoning with the congregation “of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come.” “And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and Greeks” regarding the truth of Christ and His righteousness, the only remedy for sin (Acts 18:4). Paul was not seeking to convert these Jews and Greeks away from commandment- keeping nor was he attempting to change the fourth commandment. Paul’s message was intended to bring them away from their legalism—their ideas that they could through their own effort, effect righteousness in their lives. He wanted everyone to understand the pure Gospel truth of Christ as our Saviour from sin. “And he went into the synagogue, and spake boldly, for the space of three months, disputing and persuading the things concerning the kingdom of God” (Acts. 19:8). Sabbath: Sign of Allegiance Revelation 13 and 14 inform us that at the end of time, just prior to the second coming of Christ, a remnant people will be given the opportunity of demonstrating their unwavering faith in the Creator through honoring His Sabbath. Their allegiance to God in the face of the worst persecution ever to come upon any people, will vindicate God’s character and His holy law. We will study this in depth when we get to those chapters. The specific purpose for the seventh-day Sabbath is that those who honor it will also honor the Lord who gave it. And it “shall be a sign between Me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD your God.” (Ezekiel 20:20). The seventh-day Sabbath is a memorial of creation, and the distinguishing sign of allegiance between God and His people. It signifies a deep spiritual bond between mankind and the Creator. John was imprisoned on Patmos “for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.” He refused to accept the emperor’s false day of worship and rejected the pagan gods being forced upon all Roman citizens through Domitian’s political platform. By attempting to enforce morality through civil legislation, the emperor’s reform movement for realigning the morals of the nation violated the first four commandments of God, and put Christians and Jews in direct conflict with the civil government. John honored his Creator by not having any other gods before Him, neither would he bow down to the emperor, nor burn incense to him or any pagan god. Nor would he take his Creator’s name in vain by applying the title Lord to an earthly potentate (Exodus 20:1–5). And it is evident from what John wrote in Revelation 1:10, that he was declaring his allegiance and honoring the true God of heaven and earth by keeping the seventh-day Sabbath holy (Exodus 20:8–11). From Truth to Tradition When John received his visions in A.D. 95, first day worship was not accepted among Christians. Two hundred and seventy years would pass before the first day of the week was officially referred to as “the Lord’s day” at the Council of Laodicea (A.D. 363-364). Until that time, neither the original apostles, nor the Christian church made any formal transfer of solemnity from the seventh-day to the first. “‘But, say some, it was changed from the seventh to the first day.’ Where? when? and by whom? No man can tell. No, it never was changed, nor could it be, unless creation was to be gone through again: for the reason assigned [for seventh-day Sabbath observance] must be changed before the observance, or respect to the reason, can be changed!! It is all old wives’ fables to talk of the change of the Sabbath from the seventh to the first day. If it be changed, it was that august personage changed it who changed times and laws ex officio[see Daniel 7:25]—I think his name is DOCTOR ANTICHRIST.” (Alexander Campbell, The Christian Baptist, (Cincinnati, D.S. Burnet, 1835), 44, emphases in original. Campbell is referring to the papacy as “Doctor Antichrist.”) The Sunday tradition gained ground with the conversion of Constantine in A.D. 312. The earliest law enjoining the observance of the first day of the week is the A.D. 321 edict of Emperor Constantine. Prior to that time, there was no prohibition against working on the first day of the week. Constantine’s Sunday law changed that. “On the venerable day of the sun let the magistrates and people residing in the cities rest, and let all workshops be closed.” Only those working in agriculture were exempt “because it often happens that another day is not so suitable for grain sowing or for vine planting; lest by neglecting the proper moment for such operations, the bounty of heaven should be lost.” (Codex Justinianus, lib. 3, tit, 12, 3; translated in Philip Schaff, History of the Christan Church, vol. 3 (New York, Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1893), 380.) Did calendar reform change the seventh day? In 1582, when Pope Gregory proposed that the calendar be adjusted to reconcile it to the movement of the sun (called the astronomical year), ten days were skipped between October 4 and October 15, producing what became known as the Gregorian calendar. Due to the Protestant Reformation underway in Europe, it was not at first universally accepted by all nations. Britain did not adopt the calendar reform until 1752. From this long transition between the old Julian calendar and the Gregorian system, many have assumed that knowledge has been lost regarding which day of the week is the seventh-day Sabbath. Do we really know when the true seventh-day Sabbath should be kept? It should be noted that the transition from Julian to the Gregorian system did not interfere with the order of the days of the week. On the new calendar for the year 1582, Thursday, October 5 was immediately followed by Friday, October 15. Thursday was followed by Friday. No day of week was lost. Sabbath was still in its place as the seventh day of the week. How may we know for sure which day is truly the seventh-day Sabbath? Christians around the world observe the spring celebration called Easter in commemoration of the resurrection of Christ. From this tradition, we can determine the day for the true Biblical Sabbath. Scripture tells us which day Christ arose from the grave. When the body of Christ was removed from the cross, some of His closest companions followed the funeral procession from Golgotha Hill to the cave where He was laid to rest. “And that day was the preparation, and the Sabbath drew on. And the women also, which came with Him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulcher, and how His body was laid. And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment. Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulcher, bringing the spices which they had prepared.” (Luke 23:54–56; 24:1). After the disciples had determined where He was buried, they returned home to rest on the Sabbath, according to the fourth commandment (Exodus 20:8- 11). On the first day of the week, they returned to the grave, but the tomb was empty, for Christ had risen from the dead, as He told them He would. Three different days are mentioned in the Biblical narration—preparation day, the Sabbath, and the first day of the week. Nearly two millennia after the crucifixion of Christ, by keeping the Easter festival on the first day of the week, we pinpoint which is the true seventh-day Sabbath. Traditional Easter observance is always on the first day of the week, specifically, the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox. According to the Bible, at the crucifixion of Christ His disciples knew when the seventh-day Sabbath was and knew to keep it holy. Evidently, the day of worship had not been changed by any command from Jesus before He died. “There was and is a commandment to keep holy the Sabbath day, but that Sabbath day is not Sunday. It will be said, however, and with some show of triumph, that the Sabbath was transferred from the seventh to the first day of the week, with all its duties, privileges, and sanctions. Earnestly desiring information on this subject, which I have studied for many years, I ask, Where can the record of such a transaction be found? Not in the New Testament, absolutely not. There is no Scriptural evidence of the change of the Sabbath institution from the seventh to the first day of the week. … Of course, I quite well know that Sunday did come into use in early Christian history as a religious day, as we learn from the Christian Fathers and other sources. But what a pity that it comes branded with the mark of paganism, and christened with the name of the sun god, when adopted and sanctioned by the papal apostasy, and bequeathed as a sacred legacy to Protestantism!” [Edward T. Hiscox, author of The Baptist Manual, from a paper presented before a New York Ministers’ Conference held Nov. 13, 1893.] The seventh-day Sabbath has not been lost. On the contrary, there has always been a remnant of Christians who have kept the seventh-day Sabbath, as evidenced though the history of the Paulicans, Albigenses, Waldenses, and many others who suffered persecution for their conviction that observance of the seventh-day Sabbath was enjoined by God’s fourth commandment. And there are millions around the world today who are still keeping the seventh-day holy. When John took pen in hand to compose his vision into a book, there was not a shadow of doubt in his mind about which day he meant when he wrote that he “was in Spirit on the Lord’s day.” Even living in exile at the prison colony on Patmos, John followed his life-long custom of retiring to a quiet place for meditation and prayer on the Sabbath. It was during one such retreat that the first vision was given to him by Jesus Christ. The Lord of the Sabbath revealed Himself to His beloved disciple on His holy day. The Bible removes all uncertainty about the supposed change of the Sabbath to the first day of the week. Christ never commanded it, and Sunday was never a day of worship during the lifetimes of the apostles who wrote the New Testament Scriptures.