"I have never taken any exercise, except sleeping and resting, and I never intend to take any." - Mark Twain
A Brooklyn father came home to find that a house fire had killed seven
of his eight children, and critically burned his wife and surviving
child. The house, itself, was a total loss. The cause of the fire was a
malfunctioning hot plate that sparked a fire, that rapidly spread,
trapping the children in their bedrooms. The hot plate was left on for
the Sabbath, which lasts from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. Many
religious Jews use a hot plate to keep food warm, obeying the
traditional prohibition the use of fire on the holy day as well as work
in all forms, including turning on appliances.
The law on
lighting a fire on the Sabbath leaves us with a decision - we either
obey the law, or be put to death. Not physical death anymore as was the
case, but eternal death. And being put to death isn't a punishment for
lighting a fire but neglecting the finished work of Christ
