Awakening for Adventists in Samoa?
Pa’u Fereti Puni
In response to the Discipleship and the Persecution articles mentioned in our newsletter and the “The Next Step—Discipleship” post, one writer referred to a story in Scott Adams’ book, God’s Debris, about some bees that landed on the stained glass window of a cathedral. A bee that had landed on a piece of red glass described the inside of the cathedral to another bee that was sitting on a piece of green glass. None of the description made sense to the bee on the green glass. When the “green glass” bee described what he saw, the “red glass” bee thought he was an idiot and told him so. So they argued, two bees, who by chance had landed on two different bits of glass, about their different views of what was inside the cathedral—until their friendship ceased and the argument became more important than what they were seeing. And it never occurred to the bees that if they had walked a mere six bee steps towards one another, they would have seen the cause of their argument.
Someone else replied with the lyrics of the favourite gospel hymn, ‘What a day that will be.’
There is coming a day,
When no heartaches shall come,
No more clouds in the sky,
No more tears to dim the eye,
All is peace forever more,
On that happy golden shore,
What a day, glorious day that will be!What a day that will be,
When my Jesus I shall see,
And I look upon His face,
The One who saved me by His grace;
When He takes me by the hand,
And leads me through the Promised Land,
What a day, glorious day that will be!There’ll be no sorrow there,
No more burdens to bear,
No more sickness, no pain,
No more parting over there;
And forever I will be,
With the One who died for me,
What a day, glorious day that will be!What a day that will be,
When my Jesus I shall see,
And I look upon His face,
The One who saved me by His grace;
When He takes me by the hand,
And leads me through the Promised Land,
What a day, glorious day that will be!
In the Samoa Sabbath dilemma, both sides are in agreement that the 7th day is the Lord’s Sabbath. The opposing views arise in the counting of days. I have taken the view that the Samoa Sabbath dilemma has come together in such a way that this is a “greater awakening and shaking time” for Seventh-day Adventists in Samoa, the Pacific region and the worldwide church. 
Two photos: Laulii children attending Sabbath at the Lighthouse last week. The joy and purity in their hearts as they attend church each week is reflected in their smile. Somewhere in their hearts they know of that glorious day; and what a day that will be!
Someone else pointed to four basic truths about the Samoa Sabbath situation, and three of them confirm that Saturday is still the seventh-day Sabbath:
- The 7thday Sabbath is instituted in Genesis 1 to Gen. 2:1-3.
- Sequence of Preparation Day, Sabbath Day and the 1stday of the week is recorded in Mark 15:42 & Luke 24:1-7
- Polynesians migrated from Asia keeping Asia time-cycle and populated the Pacific Islands and Oceania. Christianity for the Islands of the Pacific came from the West to East (i.e. Australia and New Zealand to Tonga and Samoa).
- There were two time changes in Samoa: the first on July 4th 1892 from Asian to USA time-cycle and December 29th 2011 reverting back to Asian time-cycle.
I was also reminded of the following words from the pen of Ellen White:
Message in music by Matamua, Savali and Mose
“At times, when a small group of men entrusted with the general management of the work have, in the name of the General Conference, sought to carry out unwise plans and to restrict God’s work, I have said that I could no longer regard the voice of the General Conference, represented by these few men, as the voice of God. But this is not saying that the decisions of a General Conference composed of an assembly of duly appointed, representative men from all parts of the field should not be respected. God has ordained that the representatives of His church from all parts of the earth, when assembled in a General Conference, shall have authority. The error that some are in danger of committing is in giving to the mind and judgment of one man, or of a small group of men, the full measure of authority and influence that God has vested in His church in the judgment and voice of the General Conference assembled to plan for the prosperity and advancement of His work. {9T 260.2}
Worshiping under tents provided by the Sabbath Keepers Network (SKN)
“When this power, which God has placed in the church, is accredited wholly to one man, and he is invested with the authority to be judgment for other minds, then the true Bible order is changed. Satan’s efforts upon such a man’s mind would be most subtle and sometimes well-nigh overpowering, for the enemy would hope that through his mind he could affect many others. Let us give to the highest organized authority in the church that which we are prone to give to one man or to a small group of men.” (Testimonies to the Church, Vol. 9, p. 261.1)
(Adapted from the Sabbath Keepers Network Newsletter #12)
