Work and The Sabbath

As Adventists, you have heard that having a medical job is sacred. That somehow you can work on The Sabbath because you are a healer. Ditto with other "emergency" jobs that someone else has deemed sacred. So, why is this?

If you happen to work at a department store, and called to work on Saturday, we become militant. We tell them in no uncertain terms that they MUST get off. That they must trust God to somehow come to their rescue.

However, if you have the privilege of being a doctor, we give you a pass. Or a nurse. We tell them they are doing some sort of God's work, so that is okay.

Of course this makes us look foolish.

Oh sure, some people say to give the money you earn on Sabbath back to the church, and you are pure. But you still worked your regular job!

Working on Sabbath seems to be okay so long as you :
A) Have a medical or emergency job.
And, perhaps....
B) Give the money back to the church.

Of course this violates Sabbath keeping, does it not?

Is one job sacred over another?

This is related to tithing and faith.

If someone says they have no money left over to pay tithe after bills, then you should pay God first, and God will miraculously make up the difference.

Doctors, nurses, and others, seem to live in a parallel Sabbath universe.

They are told no such thing. They are not told to make other arrangements. They are not told to trust God with their patients. (Or their employer.) They are not told to give their employer a threat of a lawsuit if they are forced to work on Sabbath.


Of course giving back the money you earn on Sabbath opens up a whole slew of problems. If your normal week is 5 days, then is it fair to only take the money you earn on 4 days, when someone else who is "lucky," takes home 5 days pay?

Do we really, really want to talk about faith?

Why do we try and force the little guy to have so much faith, and doctors a pass?

I imagine that most (yes this is a logical statement) doctors, at least in the United States, have quite a lot of wealth. As opposed to a department store employee.

Do we not tell people that God will supply all their needs? Oh...unless you are a doctor or nurse. Then somehow your faith is irrelevant. You must be available on The Sabbath.

Jesus never charged a mite on Sabbath for healing. He never took money on this day, then gave it to the church.

Jesus said to do good on The Sabbath. He certainly did not say do any work on The Sabbath, nor did He say get paid for your good works on The Sabbath.

So the conundrum is there. And we seem to have taken sides.

To some, we tell them to be harsh on their employers and demand to not work on The Sabbath.

To others we say, work in peace. You are doing "good" work, so you are okay.

There must be some other slant. We know this.

It is NOT about flat out working or not working on The Sabbath. There is a principle there. There is a pureness of heart. Jesus told them that they took their ox out of a ditch because it was the right thing to do. Jesus did not tell them to trust God that the ox will keep until sundown.

We do not know the motives or struggles of people who are trying to keep The Sabbath.

However, it seems to us here at The Undercover Adventist, that we tell some people to struggle, and others not to.

Shouldn't we tell everyone to not struggle and live by faith? Without judgement?

Very difficult to do if we take sides and deem some jobs sacred, others not.

In the very near future, we will address more of this. Stay tuned!