nd the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament" (Revelation 11:19).

The ark in the tabernacle on earth contained the two tables of stone, upon which were inscribed the law of God. When the temple of God was opened in heaven, the ark of His testament was seen. The law of God in the sanctuary in heaven is the great original, of which the precepts inscribed upon the tables of stone and recorded by Moses were an unerring transcript.

A man who does not love the law does not love the gospel; for the law, as well as the gospel, is a mirror reflecting the true character of God.

Many religious teachers assert that Christ by His death abolished the law, and men are henceforth free from its requirements.

The claim that Christ by His death abolished His Father's law is without foundation. Had it been possible for the law to be changed or set aside, then Christ need not have died to save man from the penalty of sin. The death of Christ, so far from abolishing the law, proves that it is immutable, from its very nature unchangeable. It is a revelation of the will and the character of its Author. God is love, and His law is love. Its two great principles are love to God and love to man. "Love is the fulfilling of the law" (Romans 13:10).

Without the law, men have no just conception of the purity and holiness of God or of their own guilt and uncleanness. They have no true conviction of sin and feel no need of repentance. Not seeing their lost condition as violators of God's law, they do not realize their need of the atoning blood of Christ.

Wherever the divine precepts are rejected, sin ceases to appear sinful or righteousness desirable.

"He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth His word, in him verily is the love of God perfected" (1 John 2:4, 5).

"This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments: and His commandments are not grievous" (1 John 5:3).

The law reveals to man his sins, but it provides no remedy. While it promises life to the obedient, it declares that death is the portion of the transgressor. The gospel of Christ alone can free him from the condemnation or the defilement of sin.

"By the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified ... for by the law is the knowledge of sin" (Romans 3:20).

From the very beginning of the great controversy in heaven it has been Satan's purpose to overthrow the law of God. To deceive men, and lead them to transgress God's law, is the object which he has steadfastly pursued. Whether this be accomplished by casting aside the law altogether, or by rejecting one of its precepts, the result will be ultimately the same.

In rejecting the truth, men reject its Author. In trampling upon the law of God, they deny the authority of the Lawgiver.

No error accepted by the Christian world strikes more boldly against the authority of heaven, none is more directly opposed to the dictates of reason, none is more pernicious in its results, than the modern doctrine, so rapidly gaining ground, that God's law is no longer binding.

Those who teach the people to regard lightly the commandments of God sow disobedience to reap disobedience.

Already the doctrine that men are released from obedience to God's requirements has weakened the force of moral obligation and opened the floodgates of iniquity upon the world.

Those who accept the light concerning the mediation of Christ and the perpetuity of the law of God are thus led to see the sacred, unchanging character of the divine law. They see, as never before, the force of the Savior's words: "Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law" (Matthew 5:18). The law of God, being a revelation of His will, a transcript of His character, must forever endure. Not one command has been annulled; not a jot or tittle has been changed.

In the very bosom of the Decalogue [Ten Commandments] is the fourth commandment, as it was first proclaimed; "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God:... 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" (Exodus 20:10,11).

The Spirit of God impresses the hearts of students of His word. Many ignorantly transgress this precept by disregarding the Creator's rest day. Examine the reasons for observing the first day of the week instead of the day which God sanctified; There is no evidence in the Scriptures that the fourth commandment has been abolished, or that the Sabbath has been changed. The blessing which first hallowed the seventh day has never been removed.