The Sabbath at HomeAndrews, Silas M. (Silas Milton)
Religion
The Sabbath at Home
Andrews, Silas M. (Silas Milton)
Sabbath; Sunday
family would, on the preceding day, prepare, as far as practicable, for
their table on the Sabbath, would not much time be redeemed for the
appropriate duties of the Lord's day?
To mention every thing that might, with advantage, be attended to on
Saturday, bearing upon the Sabbath, would be to recount the events of
each family--they all influence our profiting, though, when viewed
separately, they seem hardly worthy of notice.
I have known the men of more than one family to spend the best part of
Sabbath morning, in making such alterations in their carriage and
harness as were necessary, in order to attend meeting; which changes
might much better have been made the evening before.
In other households you will find the apparel appropriate to the
Sabbath, must be subjected to certain emendations and improvements,
before the family can be prepared for public worship. By this time the
morning is gone, but the Sabbath of holy rest has not yet begun. How
much more profitable, that all which pertains to our persons, "from a
thread to a shoe-latchet," should be set in order before the Sabbath
arrives, that as we have but one holy day in seven, we may enjoy it
all.
A full answer with many, is, "If I do nothing worse than these, I
shall have little cause for alarm;"--to which I will only reply,--This
is not the language of one seeking to be instructed, and desiring to
honour God. It is not the spirit of the fourth commandment, which is,
"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour
and do ALL thy work: but the seventh is the Sabbath of the Lord thy
God: in it thou shalt not do ANY work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy
daughter, nor thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle,
nor thy stranger that is within thy gates." It is not according to the
example and instruction of our pious fathers, who taught us that "the
Sabbath is to be sanctified, by a holy resting all that day, even from
such worldly employments and recreations as are lawful on other days;
and spending the whole time in the public and private exercises of
God's worship, except so much as is to be taken up in the works of
necessity and mercy."
II. That you may profitably spend the Sabbath, let all the members of
your family, as far as practicable, be at home on Saturday evening, and
there pass the following day.
This will promote peace of mind, of parents especially. If members of
your household are from home, you know not to what dangers they are
exposed, or into what temptations they may be led. But if they be with
you, under the same roof, this anxiety is in a great degree prevented.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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