Slaves

 

     The time will come when men will not only forbid Sunday work, but they will try to force men to labor on the Sabbath. And men will be asked to renounce the Sabbath and to subscribe to Sunday observance or forfeit their freedom and their lives. But the time for this has not yet come, for the truth must be presented more fully before the people as a witness. What I have said about this should not be understood as referring to the action of old Sabbath-keepers who understand the truth. They must move as the Lord shall direct them, but let them consider that they can do the best missionary work on Sunday.     

     "Slavery will again be revived in the Southern States; for the spirit of slavery still lives. Therefore it will not do for those who labor among the colored people to preach the truth as boldly and openly as they would be free to do in other places. Even Christ clothed His lessons in figures and parables to avoid the opposition of the Pharisees. When the colored people feel that they have the Word of God in regard to the Sabbath question, and the sanction of those who have brought them the truth, some who are impulsive will take the opportunity to defy the Sunday laws, and by a presumptuous defiance of their oppressors they will bring to themselves much sorrow. Very faithfully the colored people must be instructed to be like Christ, to patiently suffer wrongs, that they may help their fellow men to see the light of truth.    

     "A terrible condition of things is certainly opening before us. According to the light which is given me in regard to the Southern Field, the work there must be done as wisely and carefully as possible, and it must be done in the manner in which Christ would work. The people will soon find out what you believe about Sunday and the Sabbath, for they will ask questions. Then you can tell them, but not in such a manner as to attract attention to your work. You need not cut short your work by yourself laboring on Sunday. It would be better to take that day to instruct others in regard to the love of Jesus and true conversion." SpM 21

      I do not want anything of this character to appear, for I know the result. Tell them they need not provoke their neighbors by doing work on Sunday; that this will not prevent them from observing the Sabbath. The Sabbath should not be introduced until they know the first principles of the religion of Jesus Christ. The truth as it is in Jesus it to be made known little by little, line upon line, and precept upon precept.    

     Punishment for any offence would be visited unsparingly and unmercifully upon the colored people. Here it is a neglected field where medical missionary work can be one of the greatest blessings. In this line the truth may be introduced, but the very first principles of Christianity are to be taught in the A B C. The schools are to be established, having not only children, but fathers and mothers learning to read. Teaching the truth is involving great liabilities. It is essential, then, that there be families to settle in the South, and as missionary workers they can, by precept and example, be a living power. There can not be much preaching. The least notice possible should be given to the point of what is doing, and what is to be done: for it will create suspicion and jealousy in the minds of men, who, with their fathers and grandfathers, have been slaveholders. There has been so little done for the South that they are in moral degradation, and are looked upon as slaves to the white population still, although they have been emancipated at terrible cost.    

     We are to study the situation with great care: for the Lord is our enlightener. The Lord has given men capabilities to exercise, but there is too little deep thinking, and too little earnest praying that the Lord would give wisdom at all times, and show how to work difficult fields. We are under obligation to God, and if we love God, we are in duty bound, not only on the general ground of obligation and obedience to obey the orders of our Spiritual Leader, and to save as many souls as we can to present them as slaves to Jesus Christ, who gave Himself a living sacrifice to ransom them, and make them free servants of Jesus Christ. There is not to be one word uttered which would stir up the slumbering enmity and hatred of the slaves against discipline and order, or to present before them the injustice which has been done them. Nothing can be done

at first in making the Sabbath question prominent, and if the colored people are in any way educated to work on Sunday, there will be unsparing, merciless oppression brought upon them. Already there has been too much printed in regard to the persecution of the Sabbath-keepers in the Southern States, and those who are bitter against the law of God, trampling it under their feet, are all the more earnest to make human laws a power. Their religious prejudice and bigotry would lead them to do any acts of violence, verily thinking they were doing God's service: for they are in great error. A blind zeal under false religious theories, is the most violent and merciless. There are many who are stirred up by the representations in our papers, to do just as their neighboring states are doing. All these things give them the appearance of defying the law. In Christ's day, when persecuted in one city, they fled to another. It may be the duty of those persecuted to avail themselves of finding refuge in another city or another country. Matthew 10:22, 23. "And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake; but he that endureth to the end, shall be saved. But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of Man be come." "The disciples is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord."  SpM 27 

     At present, persecution is not general, but let the Southern element have word come to them of a nature to raise their excitable disposition, and the whole cause of truth would suffer, and the great missionary field be closed. Let all be warned. Let the instruction be given to this much oppressed class that the keeping of the Sabbath does not necessitate their working on Sunday: for, if they should do this, they would have instigated against them all the powers of the white population, who are transgressors of the law of God. Church members and priests and rulers will combine to organize secret societies to work in their hand to whip, imprison, and destroy the lives of the colored race. History will be repeated. Let efforts be made in as silent manner as possible, but this people need not be told that the observance of Sunday is the mark of the beast until this time shall come. If the Southern people get some of the ideas in their minds of the mark of the beast, they would misconstrue, and give honestly the most false impressions on these subjects, and do strange things. As many of the people can not read for themselves, there are plenty of professed leaders who will read the Bible falsely and make it testify to a lie. Many are working in this line among those who are poor scholars, and have not a knowledge of the Scripture. Our publications also will be misread. Things will be read out of the books that were never there, advocating the most objectionable things. An excitement could be easily worked up against the Seventh-day Adventists. The most successful methods are to encourage families who have a missionary spirit to settle in the Southern states and work with the people without making any noise.

SPM 28