Today there is a Sunday-movement in progress all over the world. Pope John Paul II wants to strengthen sunday as the day of rest through his apostolic letter Dies Domini (may 1998). Bishops and priests long for a renewal of Sunday celebration. Some people want a public movement in order to protect the peace of Sunday, while others want to fine those disturbing this peace. ²²

It is most likely that a number of people lobbying for Sunday sacredness have the best of motives in mind by this activity. After all, we are living in a fast-paced society where everybody needs a day for rest and recreation, but the idea of fining people who are not willing to observe Sunday as a holy day is not in accordance with the Spirit of Christ. To keep holy the day of rest must be a personal decision, and should be done out of joy and love for Christ - not by force. Besides, did you know that the day the church leaders all over the world are seeking to enforce is a false day of rest? Did you know that the Ten Commandments have been changed, and that it is the Papacy that has made this forgery? It is this power that lies behind the commandments found in the Catechism. Those commandments are quite different from Gods' Ten Commandments as you find them in the Bible. Please investigate it for yourself. Compare the commandments found in the Catechism with God's Ten Commandments as you find them in the Bible, in Exodus chapter 20, verses 3-17 (Take a look at the table.)

When we in this pamphlet reveal what has taken place, that the Catholic system is behind this change, it is not to condemn the Catholic believers as individuals, but to enlighten and help them, and all of us, to arrive at the right conclusion on this subject.

One of the commandments which the Catholic Church has changed is the commandment concerning the day of rest. The complete commandment in the Bible (the 4th) concerning the day of rest reads: "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."

In this commandment we read that the seventh day, the Sabbath, is the day of rest. Reading carefully we discover in the wording in this commandment the seal of God. A seal has the name and the title of its owner. It also reflects the owner's position of authority or domain. God has put His seal in His law, and it is found in the fourth commandment. The lawmaker's name is the LORD, the title is the Creator (He who made) and the domain is heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is. It was a tactical move of the Catholic Church to remove this seal in their incomplete and incorrect version of the commandment in the Catechism. Here the people's attention is no longer drawn to who is the lawgiver, and to whom they shall show their loyalty. Through their assumed ecclesiastical power and authority they have changed the commandments as they pleased. You will see the difference in the table below.

In the Catholic Catechism, the commandment regarding the day of rest simply reads: "Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath day." In the Lutheran Catechism we read: "You shall keep the day of rest holy." Here we are not told which particular day the day of rest is, neither who the lawgiver is. Let us now take a look at the Biblical version of the commandments, comparing them with the commandments found in the catechism:

The Catholic Church admits openly and bluntly that she is responsible for changing the day of rest from Sabbath to Sunday.

From a Roman Catholic book of creed we read the following: "Question: Which is the Sabbath day? Answer: Saturday is the Sabbath day. Question: Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday? Answer: We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church, in the Council of Laodicea (A.D.336), transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday. Question: Have you any other way of proving that the Church (Roman Catholic) has power to institute festivals of precept? Answer: Had she no such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religions agree with her - she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday, the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority."³

It is sad, but a matter of fact, that a Church authority has decided something that is different from what the Bible teaches. They instituted a false day of rest early in history, more than 1000 years before the time of Luther. That is why most people today are ignorant of this fact. Have the priests, the Sunday school teachers or the teachers of religion, in your district, informed you about this change?

Martin Luther - who was raised a Catholic, but later discovered what this false system is all about, said: "It is plain that the marks of the Antichrist coincide with those of the pope's kingdom and his followers." ³⁴ This statement you will find in the book of Concord; The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Luther was right in this, because all the identifying marks of the Bible regarding the great Antichristian power- "the beast"- fit the Papacy.

One of the identifying marks of this "beast" is that it has "a mark." In the Bible we read: "If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb;" And: "He causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name." ¹⁷ Since all the Biblical identifying marks of the "beast" fit the Papacy, this sign (about the mark) must also fit the Papacy. The Catholic Church confirms through many statements that she has a mark. We read: "Sunday is our mark of authority. The church is above the Bible, and this transference of Sabbath observance (to Sunday) is proof of that fact."² Let us look at another: "Of course the Catholic Church claims that the change was her act... And the act is a MARK of her ecclesiastical authority in religious things." ⁵

It is astonishing, and at the same time very sad, that the Lutheran Church with all her branches have joined with the Catholics in accepting the false day of rest and the false commandments promoted in the Catechism. They have accepted a falsification of a God-given commandment. Those who are acquainted with the facts and accept the falsehoods, and do not turn away from them, also break Gods law.

Let us look at what a few Protestants have to say about this change in the day of rest:

1. "And where are we told in the Scriptures that we are to keep the first day at all? We are commanded to keep the seventh day, but we are nowhere commanded to keep the first day." ⁶

2. "On the other hand there is no command in the New Testament that establishes or provides for the celebration of Sunday. And of course there does not exist any command that says that Sunday is going to assume the role of the Sabbath (Saturday) for the Christian." ⁷

THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS

Now, I am very much aware of the fact that many Christians hold to the observance of the first day of the week as the day of rest in memory of the resurrection of Jesus. But even if someone began celebrating the day of resurrection, it is wrong to jump to the conclusion that we thereby have a new day of rest. The Scriptures state that Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath.⁸ He created this world and He also instituted the day of rest. It is even written that "All things were made by him, and without him was not anything made that was made." ⁹ Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath, so, if the day of rest was to be changed, Jesus would be the one to make that change, but this He has not done. It is the Papacy (the beast) that is responsible for this change.

The Bible says that God blessed and hallowed the seventh day. Are you able to find - in the Bible - that Jesus has asked us to stop keeping the seventh day holy, and instead commanded us to keep the first day? Are you able to find that He has changed the Ten Commandments, including the command to keep the seventh-day Sabbath holy, the commandment which God wrote with His own finger? Are you able to find that God or Jesus has made holy and blessed the first day of the week? Be honest with yourself and answer these questions. It is quite clear that the Bible tells us that God set aside the seventh day for a holy purpose and blessed it. It is the day that in a special way has been set aside for spiritual and physical renewal. It is the true day of rest. Gods' day, for us.

God gave us the day of rest because He loves us and wants to bless us in a special way by His presence. If we love God, we want to show our faith and obedience to God by keeping holy the day of rest He has instituted for our good. Only then will we receive the full blessing of the day of rest.^8&10

"But which day is the Biblical seventh day?" you might ask. In connection with the death of Jesus, His burial and resurrection, the Bible calls the day Jesus died "the preparation day," or "the day before the Sabbath." We also call it Good Friday. The day Jesus arose from the grave is called the first day of the week, our Sunday. The day between these two days is called "the Sabbath," "the seventh day," Saturday. Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath, rested in the tomb on Saturday, and arose to a new workday on Sunday. Therefore Sunday is - according to the Bible - the first of the six workdays of the week, and the followers of Christ will accept this.^1&33

The disciples continued to keep the Sabbath as the day of rest also after the resurrection of Jesus, which is in the new covenant. Because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forever, all who profess to be Christians should also now keep God's and Christ's holy rest day, the seventh-day Sabbath.⁴⁰

The Bible describes the Sabbath as the Lord's holy day (See Isaiah 58: 13). "The Lord's day" is therefore NOT Sunday, but the Sabbath (Saturday). Sunday means "the day of the Sun," and not the Son's day.⁴¹

Some countries have adjusted the days of the calendar. In Norway this was done as of January 1, 1973. Before that date Saturday was the seventh day of the calendar. Ever since that date Saturday has been the sixth day of the week. Sunday, which previously was listed as the first day, now stands as the seventh day of the week. This is misleading. Impression can be given to the people that Sunday is the seventh day of the Bible. Some people also have started to mention Sunday as Sabbath. But those who are willing to do a little investigation, will soon discover that Sunday is a false Sabbath. Sunday was orginally the first day of the week, and according to Biblical reckoning it is still the first workday of the week.³³

Therefore, because of the change that has taken place in regard to the day of rest, we have to make a decision. Do we want to obey God and keep holy God's precious Sabbath day, or obey man and keep Sunday?

FALSE SHEPHERDS

Perhaps you wonder why the clergy have been silent about the change concerning the Ten Commandments? It is possible that some have not discovered this change, but the simple answer is that too many have been false representatives of God and kept the truth about the "mark of the beast" hidden from the people. They calm the people down with a pleasant message of peace and safety. They say that "the Sabbath was made for the Jews," and "We live under the new covenant," so, "Sunday is the day of rest." But think for yourself! The Sabbath was instituted long before the first Jew - Abraham - even existed. The Sabbath was instituted in the beginning, at Creation, and Jesus says that it "was made for man."⁸ It was made for you and me. In addition, Jesus says that as long as we see the heaven above us and the earth below us, God's Commandments are valid.¹¹ God's Ten Commandments are just as valid today in the new covenant. But the change from the old covenant to the new covenant is that now we may come directly to Jesus and receive forgiveness from our sins, without the sacrifice of a lamb. The system of sacrificial offerings is done away with, it has reached its fulfilment in Christ. Jesus has come as the true sacrificial Lamb, and He has been sacrificed once and for all.¹²

Even though we present in this pamphlet quite extensively the subject of the Sabbath commandment, we are aware of the fact that all the commandments are important. The Bible says that "whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." ^2o This is an important truth to consider both for Sabbathkeepers and anti-abortion supporters and all others that eagerly promote one special commandment.

THE SUNDAY MOVEMENT

A Sunday movement is presently in progress all over the world. Strong religious groups exist in the USA, such as "The Lord's Day Alliance," "The Christian Coalition," and others, working hard in order to establish Sunday as a universal day of rest. Because of moral decay, threatening economic collapse and reduced interest in Christianity, they firmly believe the people and the nation must get back to the Ten Commandments in order to receive the blessing of God. It is in this connection they want to restore the false day of rest.

Today we see how bishops and priests are uniting with Christian alliances, the business world, trade unions and other organizations to give life to Sunday as the day of rest. They are trying to give life to the mark of the beast.

In the European Union (EU), they lobby to make Sunday the common day of rest. Jaques Delors, a Catholic, and former president of the EU, calls for "one spirit, one opinion and one spirituality in the European institutions." In the EU they continue to build on this model, and Sunday as the day of rest will, they think, bind them together in one spirituality. They try to find common points to agree upon in the Union, and Sunday as a common day of rest, is something both Catholics and most Protestants can agree upon.This is a smart move by the Catholics, because the exaltation of Sunday is in reality an effort by the Catholic establishment to strengthen the mark of their authority (Sunday) in all the nations.

OBLIGATORY SUNDAY OBSERVANCE

Today both Catholic and Protestant nations have dormant Sunday laws incorporated in their legal system. When these laws are enforced, it will be obligatory to keep Sunday as a day of rest. At that time the prophecy of "the mark of the beast" will be fulfilled.

The Bible says that in the end the whole world will be drawn into this last great conflict. We will either choose to worship God and honor Him as the Creator of heaven and earth - by keeping holy God's and Jesus' day of rest, which is the Sabbath - or we will be loyal to "the beast" (the Papacy) and take its mark, which is Sunday. All who love the Saviour and are filled with the Holy Spirit, will prove their loyalty to God by observing His law. They will refuse to accept a spurious sabbath, and will rank under the banner of the Lord. They are the ones who will receive the seal of the living God.³⁹

Those who yield the truth of heavenly origin and accept the Sunday sabbath, will receive the mark of the beast.

Those who choose to receive the mark of the beast, will receive the mark in their foreheads (representing decisions made in their mind) or receive it in their right hand (representing their actions or power).³⁵ But not one person (as earlier mentioned) is made to feel the wrath of God upon the transgressor of His law, until the truth has been brought in contact with his mind and conscience, and has been rejected.

Even though the conflict of the Sunday - Sabbath issue is just ahead of us, decisions to be faithful must be made today. Since we know the facts concerning the violation of the law of God and the forgery of the testament that has taken place concerning the day of rest, it is important that we at the present time take a stand against the false Sabbath. We should choose to follow in the footsteps of Jesus now, and He kept the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week _ from sunset Friday till sunset Saturday. ^{1 & 33}

We believe there are honest and sincere people in the different denominations, including the Catholic Church. When these individuals discover the falsifications that have taken place in regard to God's ten commandments, including the Sabbath commandment, a number of them will deal with these falsehoods. They will cut the bands that bind them, and become powerful tools for God in the closing work at the end time.

EUROPEAN AND GLOBAL UNITY

The Bible reveals that the rulers of this world will unite just before the return of Jesus Christ, our Saviour. ¹⁵ We see the prelude of this unity today. The rulers of this world - in secret societies - prepare the directions that will pave the way and unite Europe and the rest of the world under the power elite and their system of international laws .

We see this unity through the EEC, EU, GATT, NATO, the West European Union, UN and now also through the New World Order, that was repeatedly mentioned by George Bush during the Gulf crisis, and which the rulers of the world now endorse.

Europe and the rest of the world are indeed about to unite both on the economic, political and religious front,. and the Bible reveals that it is "the harlot" (the Roman Catholic Church) that is in charge. It is written in God's word, that the kings of the earth commit adultery with the harlot. The merchants and all the great men of the earth are doing business with the harlot and obtain wealth by her commercial connections. They have become intoxicated with her wine, and fooled by the sorcery of the Papacy. ¹⁶

Presently we see how spiritualism (through New Age), Catholicism and Protestantism unite. As far as the relationship between Catholicism and Protestantism is concerned, it is the Protestant establishment that is compromising their beliefs in a drift toward Catholicism. This we see in the Porvoo Declaration, the Joint Declaration, the big church alliances, in the rituals and traditions of the church, in the plans to educate our children and youth and elsewhere. The government contributes in pushing through these liberal attitudes that break with the principles of Protestantism.

THEY HAVE ONE THOUGHT

We are on the brink of a great and decisive struggle on this our planet. The Bible says: "The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed." ¹⁶

The Bible further states that the rulers of the world "have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast," ¹⁸ a description of how strong and united this movement is. "There will be a universal bond of union, one great harmony, a confederacy of Satan's forces." "In the warfare to be waged in the last days all the corrupt powers that do not show obedience to the law of God will unite in opposition to Christ and those who are standing on His side" ¹⁹ - "they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." ²⁰ The church will receive help from the governments. They will counsel together and unite to enforce and exalt the Papacy's false day of rest - Sunday - contrary to the Biblical day of rest. The fourth commandment of the Bible - the Sabbath commandment will thus be the great point of issue, because in it the great Lawmaker identifies Himself as the Creator of heaven and earth."¹⁹

Are you in doubt as to what the end result will be? Jesus says: "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth." ²¹ It is God and Christ who are in control. Satan, who rebelled against God in heaven and was thrown down to this earth, has been given opportunity to prove what his system of government is all about. God is love. He does not force anyone, neither Satan nor us, but He lets us choose between good or evil, life or death. Soon the struggle will be over, and the Bible tells us the outcome of this struggle: "These (all the corrupt powers of the world) shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them." ¹⁸ It is Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world, the Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who choose to stand on His side that will be victorious in this struggle between good and evil, between Christ and Satan. On which side will you stand?

PREPARATION

In all this struggle we must remember that the gift of salvation and eternal life is available to everyone. Jesus says: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." ²³ So it is all up to you and me if we will accept the gift of salvation. There is no other way to be saved, because Jesus declares: "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me."²³

Let us do as the prodigal son did, who had wandered a long way from home. First he thought that he would go home to his father. But that was not enough. It was only when he acted upon his thoughts, when he stood up and went, that he came home.

Just as the father noticed him far away and ran towards him with his arms opened wide, so Jesus longs to accept everyone who comes to Him in faith.²⁴ Jesus says: "and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." ²⁵

Now a rather personal question that presents itself is this: Would you like to accept the gift of salvation and say yes to Jesus?

The signs of the times show that the return of Jesus Christ is near at hand. Therefore it is of great importance that we now decide to stand on His side. When Jesus returns, He does not come to save us in our sins or to cleanse our minds from all impurities. No, this cleansing has to take place before Jesus comes again. Only then will we be accepted by Him when He comes to gather His people.²⁶

Perhaps you are asking: "What does it really mean to say 'yes' to Jesus, and to place myself on His side?" The answer can be summarized in this way: