XPost: soc.culture.canada, soc.culture.caribbean, soc.culture.catalan   
   XPost: soc.culture.chile   
   From: louisejumarani@hotmail.com   
      
   Creation Sabbath and the Sabbath Commandment   
   A.    Gen 2:1-3 and the Sabbath   
          According to the biblical creation narrative the Sabbath originated   
   at the end of creation week as an expression of the divine will (Gen 2:1-3).   
   It is common among Protestants to argue that Gen 2:1-3 does not contain a   
   commandment addressed to humans but that it simply describes what God did on   
   the seventh day. The argument is that the Sabbath as a commandment was given   
   to the Israelites through the covenant; it is a Jewish law. Here we agree   
   with Dies Domini: "If the first page of the Book of Genesis presents God's   
   'work' as an example for man, the same is true of God's 'rest.'"[3] That   
   conclusion can be supported on several different grounds.   
          1.      Humans as the Image of God and the Sabbath   
          The creation narrative describes humans as unique intelligent   
   creatures within a world brought into existence by God. That singularity is   
   located in the fact that they were created in the image of God (1:27). They   
   were to reflect the actions of God, the character of God and to represent   
   Him within the rest of creation. The idea that God rested from His works   
   ascribes to God a human need in order to demonstrate to humans how He   
   planned to supply it for them.[4] The anthropomorphic language clearly   
   points to God's concern for humans who do not only need to work but also to   
   separate a particular time to enjoy deep personal communion with the   
   Creator. The divine action-God's rest-reveals His willingness to join humans   
   in fellowship during the seventh day. It is the Creator, not the creature,   
   who determines the time of rest.   
          Adventist theologian Hans K. LaRondelle stated, "Without the divine   
   communion and fellowship on the seventh day, without man's entering into   
   God's rest on that day, the whole creation would be cut off from its Maker   
   and necessarily have to find its purpose and sense in itself. Then God's   
   rest indeed would rather be the cryptic indication of God's return to the   
   aseity (the absolute self-existence) of the inner glory of His being and   
   existence, leaving man and the world to themselves." He adds, "God's rest   
   then means His ceasing the work of creation in order to be free for the   
   fellowship with man, the object of his love, for the rejoicing and   
   celebration of His completed work together with his son on earth, the imago   
   Dei, his festive partner."[5]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)