The Sabbath (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781973604150)

C. H. Pappas was born in Washington D. C. of parents who migrated from Greece. Up until the fifth grade, he found himself wandering. His father was gone, and his mother who could not speak English raised the family of four girls and one boy without government assistance. When he was in fifth grade, his teacher, Mrs. Nesbit, awakened his soul by introducing to him the Founding Fathers. Being greatly moved by their example, they soon became his heroes. Their virtue and sacrifice so impressed him that he eagerly began reading their biographies. One evening walking home after school, his eyes swelled up with tears of gratitude that God had so ordained that he should be born in America! After finishing the eleventh grade, he joined the U.S. Marine Corp. Unlike his peers, he was a moral and devout Greek Orthodox. After serving in the Marine Corp, he worked as a carpenter. His goal was to be a contractor. It was during this period of his life that the Lord revealed his heart to him. For the first time he saw his utter vileness. The good works, which he hoped would secure eternal life, were those that weighed the heaviest upon him. He found himself hopelessly damned before a holy and just God. Under horrible conviction, he knew not what to do. Being greatly troubled, he went to a neighboring Catholic Church to pray. As he walked up to the Church, he saw two priests were standing on the steps talking. Approaching them he asked, Father, are you going to heaven? They laughed and said, No one knows that until he dies. Then he asked, What does it mean to be born again? They smiled and said, You need not bother yourself with that. Immediately, he knew something was wrong because Jesus said, Ye must be born again. He knew that they could not help him; they did not know where they were going. He then entered the Church and began to pray crying out to God for mercy. With no one did he dare share the agonizing burden of his heart. He cried, Is there any hope for one such as I? Then one day shortly thereafter his son, who was five years old at the time, approached him asking, Daddy, will you help me learn this verse? The verse was John 3:16. He had never heard that passage in his entire life. As he taught his son, he also memorized the passage. The next day as he was working, John 3:16 kept rolling over and over in his mind. He thought, Yes, God must love the world, He gave His only begotten Son. I could never do that. Yes, God no doubt loves the worldbut God cannot love me. I am too vile. Over and over this singular thought seized his mind until the words whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life gripped his soul. He stopped. He was arrested. He thought, Surely whosoever means me! Can it be that God loves me? He then cried, Lord, I do believe on Thee! Immediately, the burden rolled away. Resting now upon the promise of God Who cannot lie, he felt a peace, as never before experienced, flood his soul. The world that was draped in black suddenly broke into splendid light! In awe, not able to fully grasp all that was said in that sublime passage, he wandered for several days asking, Can it be God really loves me? The very thought was staggering! Then one day, his wife asked, Are you saved? To this he replied, I am not saved by what I have done but solely by the grace of God. There was no boasting but humble adoration for God Who so loves the world. The following Lords Day he attended Palm Springs North Baptist Church and made a public confession of faith. The following week, he was baptized, and the week thereafter, he was called to preach. This alarmed him as he saw himself so unfit for such a task. But the call weighed heavily upon him, and he finally surrendered. Upon his pastors recommendation, he immediately enrolled in Miami Dade Junior College and finished his work at Florida Junior College where he received his Associate of Arts degree. He also attended Luther Rice Seminary where he...