Physical Vs. Spiritual When it Comes to Laws and Rules

The Undercover Adventist has been involved in various judgements brought on by fellow Adventists. Somehow, everything you do that could even have a hint of some past (ancient) pagan practice is bad. In fact, so bad, that one is doomed if one does not stop. Or, if you break a Sabbath rule, or other law in certain Old Testament books, you are a bad person. And bad people just are not following Jesus.  The problem with such judging, is that one is focusing only on the physical, not spiritual. Let's take a look at some glaring examples.

I dare say that many Adventists we've met here, would have been ones to judge Jesus gathering grain on The Sabbath. Think about that one. What have you seen a fellow member do, and think to yourself how they should not be doing such a thing. For every law and statute, there MUST be a spiritual aspect to it. If not, it is just physical. Physical only being mindless following with no purpose but to follow the rule. For this gathering grain example, the accusers were only looking at the physical aspect. They could probably give no real spiritual reason for not gathering grain. But what could be Jesus' spiritual reasons  FOR gathering grain? Well, they were hungry. Fasting is one thing, but Jesus apparently did not want His disciples fasting at this time. He wanted them alert and ready. Listening and learning from Him at this time. That's the spiritual aspect. Jesus was being Godly, even though on the surface it seemed as if He was breaking The Law. But He was not.

Another example was washing of the hands. The disciples did not wash their hands before certain accusers. They quickly chided Jesus for this. Again, they only focused on the physical act, not the spiritual. What did Jesus say? It is not what goes into a man that makes him unclean, but what comes out. Think about that the next time you tell someone not to eat pork. The pharisees were mindless followers of the law, thinking they were pure.

Of course we all remember Jesus healing on The Sabbath. Again, this was breaking The Law. But only the physical act, not the spiritual. Jesus pointed out that if one of their animals were in trouble, they would save it. How much more a man?

This brings up an interesting dilemma which the Undercover Adventist has brought up many times. What jobs are pure on The Sabbath? We look like fools when we excuse one but not another. Moreon that later. Watch for it!

If you see someone doing yoga, and you readily accuse them of practicing some pagan religion, how do you know? You are judging a physical act. If the person looks at you funny, rolls their eyes, you deserve it. The Undercover Adventist would submit that the majority of Christians doing yoga, are doing it for health reasons and would think you were a nut for accusing them of practicing some pagan religion.

You think not? You had better watch yourself by making accusations. Jewish leaders and people accused Jesus of doing just that! He was accused of being demonic when casting out demons! He was also accused and berated for being a drunkard, a glutton, a carouser with sinners, and a waster of money! I would imagine Jesus has good company among fellow believers. They are readily accused of doing physical acts that are wrong, without knowing what spiritual motive they might have!

You do not know what a person's heart is. You do not know what spiritual motive a person might have. If you mindlessly follow rules, and tell other people to follow rules, you are as mindless as the accusers of Jesus. Is that what you want to be?

Perhaps this is why Jesus told people not to judge.

Some say you should not eat out on Sabbath. We know of a person who always takes a certain relative out on that day. And they have explained why, undoubtedly many times. Let's just say there is a spiritual reason for it. If you were to see them doing this, you probably would accuse them of breaking The Sabbath. But spiritually, they have reasons to do what they do. You do not know a person's motive, nor do you walk in their shoes.

Keep that in mind when accusing someone of breaking Sabbath rules. In fact, if you sin on The Sabbath, you are breaking it. If you claim you go all day on Sabbath without sinning, you are a liar. And one should not lie on The Sabbath. So before claiming someone else is breaking some rule, look at the logs in your own eyes. We have plenty of logs in ours. How dare we confront someone on this matter and accuse them!

Don't get us wrong. There are polite, logical, and peaceful ways of having conversations to convict people on certain things. Blind accusations are not one of them.

The Undercover Adventist DOES quote Ellen G. White. And we will quote her now.

"Although priding themselves on their enlightenment, they are ignorant both of the Scriptures and of the power of God. They must have some means of quieting their consciences, and they seek that which is least spiritual and humiliating. What they desire is a method of forgetting God which shall pass as a method of remembering Him." (Taken from Great Controversy, p. 572)

Are you focusing on the physical and not the spiritual?

Was Jonah Swallowed by a Whale?