The Danger of Sunday Worship: “Come out of Her My People”

By Hilton Napoleon

This book is about restoring God's proper day of worship to Saturday. the Sabbath day, the day he commanded, blessed, sanctified, and made holy. This book explores the challenges Christians face in making the change to Sabbath day worship, and the consequences God places on them for not obeying his holy word. This book exposes the issues that are keeping them trapped in the false day of Sunday worship. This book offers believers clear cut scriptural evidence of God's holy day of worship, and exposes the Christian leaders responsible for misleading their congregations in false Sunday worship.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Jan 18, 2023
• ISBN: 9781665736190

Hilton Napoleon

Hilton Napoleon is a retired Police Chief with over 33 years of experience in law enforcement. He served as a high-ranking Executive Officer in the Detroit Police Department, and served as Police Chief for the City of Inkster, Michigan, and served as Police Chief for the City of Highland Park, Michigan. He earned a Master Degree in Liberal Studies from Eastern Michigan University as well as a Bachelor Degree in Criminal Justice Education. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, and graduate of the Northwestern University School of Police Staff and Command, and is a highly decorated, trained, and accomplished Police Executive. Hilton also attended the Birmingham Bible Institute.

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THE DANGER OF

SUNDAY WORSHIP

COME OUT OF HER MY PEOPLE

HILTON NAPOLEON

Copyright © 2023 Hilton Napoleon.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means,

graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by

any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author

except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Archway Publishing

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in

this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views

expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views

of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984,

2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

New King James Version (NKJV)

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982

by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Authorized (King James) Version (AKJV)

KJV reproduced by permission of Cambridge University Press, the Crown’s patentee in the UK.

Common English Bible (CEB)

Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible

ISBN: 978-1-6657-3620-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6657-3619-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022924037

Archway Publishing rev. date:  01/17/2023

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1     My Change To Sabbath-Day Worship

Chapter 2     Pastors, You Have A Problem

Chapter 3     Sunday Worship And The Resurrection Of Jesus

Chapter 4     The Evidence For Sabbath-Day Worship

Chapter 5     Misinterpreted Scriptures For Sunday Worship

Chapter 6     How To Escape Sunday Worship

Chapter 7     Understanding Obedience To God’s Will

Chapter 8     The Origin Of Sunday Worship

Chapter 9     The Origin Of Worship

Chapter 10   Come Out Of Her, My People

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I give thanks to GOD the Creator and our Lord and Savior Jesus, who sent favor and healing power from Heaven while I was hospitalized seventy-six days with the Covid 19 virus. This saved my life and allowed me to finish this book.

I give thanks for the wisdom and guidance of my late father, Pastor Harry Nelson Napoleon, leader and shepherd of the Tennessee Missionary Baptist Church for forty-five years. I give thanks to my wonderful mother, Betty Lee Napoleon, who established my spiritual foundation.

I give thanks for my late brother, Benny Nelson Napoleon, J.D, former Detroit Police Chief and Wayne County Sheriff, who was the guiding influence throughout my law enforcement career.

I would like to recognize my loving sisters, Dr. Geneva Napoleon- Smitherman, the late Bobby Napoleon White, Anita Napoleon, Kathy Napoleon-Brogdon, and Sharon Napoleon-Seaton.

Recognition and shout-outs to my children, Alana and Hilton II, step-son, Lamont, and grandchildren, Cierra, Hilton III, Frances, Landon, and all my nieces and nephews.

I thank GOD for my help meet, my good thing, my wife, Tempie L. Napoleon, whom I love dearly. She exhibited incredible patience and provided impeccable care during my rehabilitation and recuperation from the Covid 19 virus. Tempie’s selflessness and loving care were vital to the completion of this book.

1

MY CHANGE TO SABBATH-

DAY WORSHIP

Growing up in Detroit, Michigan, my late father, the honorable Pastor Harry N. Napoleon, was pastor of the Tennessee Missionary Baptist Church. I had no choice but to attend church almost every Sunday morning, and many times Sunday evenings too. Not only did I have to attend, but my sisters and brother attended church nearly every Sunday too.

As a child attending church, I did not understand everything about the scriptures or the sermons being preached. However, there were things I heard that resonated within me and that I did understand. These things included how to treat others, obeying your mother and father, the importance of telling the truth, submitting to people in authority, not stealing or killing, and obeying God’s holy words. I was familiar with the Ten Commandments and the Lord’s Prayer.

Regarding the Ten Commandments, I knew they came from God and it was important they be obeyed. I clearly understood the meaning of thou shall not steal, thou shall not kill, and honor thy father and thy mother. However, I didn’t clearly understand the other commandments given by God, or the deeper meaning and significance of the fourth commandment, to remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.

When I got married and had children, I continued to worship on Sunday and took my children to church nearly every Sunday morning. I never gave any thought about whether or not Sunday was the proper day Christians should worship on. Because of my past tradition, I believed it was right to worship on Sunday. Many of my friends and their families attended church and worshiped on Sunday.

The first time I had any discussion about the day of worship was as an adult working at Thirty-Sixth District Court in 1982. I was twenty-eight years old at that time. I came upon a childhood friend who worked for the court. We grew up together and often played basketball in my oldest sister’s backyard. One day, we started talking about church and religion on our lunch break. My friend knew that my father was a Baptist pastor. During our discussion, he revealed to me that he was a Seventh-day Adventist and that he worshiped on the Sabbath day, Saturday. He advised me that Saturday was the proper day of worship. He stated God commanded us to worship on the Sabbath day according to the fourth commandment. My friend appeared to be well versed regarding the Sabbath day. I sat and listened to everything he had to say about the Sabbath day. He advised me the fourth commandment was changed to Sunday by the Roman emperor Constantine. He provided me with the name of a book regarding the Sabbath day that I could purchase at the bookstore. I wrote the name of the book on a piece of paper so I would not forget it.

During the weekend, I went to the bookstore to look for the book my friend suggested I purchase regarding the Sabbath day. While walking through the bookstore, my attention was drawn toward a display promoting a book by the author Hal Lindsay, titled The Late Great Planet Earth. I picked up a copy of the book and started reading the table of contents. I became captivated by the title of the chapters and bought that book instead of the one I was supposed to buy. This was the beginning of my forty years of fascination with Bible prophecy and the end-times. I never purchased the book regarding Sabbath-day worship. The next time I was exposed to the Sabbath day was when a flyer was left on the front door of my home in 2012. This was thirty years after my conversation with my friend at Thirty-Sixth District Court in 1982. The flyer was promoting a weeklong prophecy conference regarding the end-times and the last days. Because of my acute interest in Bible prophecy and the end-times, I decided to attend the conference each day. The flyer indicated the prophecy conference would be held at a Seventh-day Adventist church in Plymouth, Michigan. There was no reluctance on my part to attend the conference at a Seventh-day Adventist church. My father taught me it made no difference what church I attended or the denomination. He told me as long as they taught Jesus was Lord and Savior, taught Jesus died on the cross for the sins of the world, taught confessing our sin’s and being baptized, it was okay to attend.

After a long day at work, I went to the church in Plymouth, Michigan, where the prophecy conference was being held. As I stood in line, I was approached by several members of the church welcoming me to the conference. They could tell I wasn’t a member of their church and wanted me to feel welcomed. I went to the table and registered, then went inside, where I was directed to a table where I was to sit. A person came by with a folder and placed it on the table in front of me. He advised me to review the material, and someone would come by and answer any questions I had. The information inside the folder was regarding the last days and end-time prophecies. The scriptures were from the book of Revelation. Also contained in the folder was an itinerary of topics to be presented each day. About thirty minutes later, a person came by the table and asked if we had any questions regarding the information contained in the folder. There were five other people sitting at my table. Three of the five had questions regarding the material, and a discussion took place. Once the questions were answered and the discussion ended, the pastor of the church began his PowerPoint presentation regarding the end-times.

The PowerPoint presentation was very powerful and informative. I was glad I had taken the time to attend the conference. The pastor ended the presentation with prayer and dismissed us. I was so impressed with the presentation; I decided to attend the conference every night. The format was the same for all five nights. The attendees were directed to a table, materials were passed out, there was time allotted for questions, and there was a discussion regarding the materials distributed. At the end of the last night’s presentation, the pastor advised the attendees they could purchase videos of all the PowerPoint presentations given each night. He advised there were other materials available for purchase. All of the PowerPoint presentations were so compelling I purchased all of them. I also purchased all other materials they had for sale. The pastor approached me and said he noticed I had attended the conference all five nights; he invited me to attend the next Sabbath service. I advised the pastor I would be glad to attend the next Sabbath-day service.

The next Saturday, I woke up and got dressed. I put on my suit and dressed as I normally would for Sunday service. I noticed out the corner of my eye my wife staring at me. She was giving me the look. You know the look. The Where do you think you’re going dressed like that on Saturday morning without me? look. I forgot to tell her I was going to church that morning. I told her the pastor at the prophecy conference had invited me to Sabbath-day worship service. I kissed my wife goodbye and left to attend the service at the Seventh-day Adventist church in Plymouth.

I left home early. I wanted to arrive at the church at least thirty minutes before the start of service. While approaching the church, I noticed the parking lot was nearly full. I was able to find a parking space. I exited my car and started walking toward the front entrance of the church. It was a beautiful, sunny August Saturday morning. I entered the front church lobby. I was politely greeted by a member who was handing out programs. He directed me to the entrance of the sanctuary. An usher handed me a contribution envelope and directed me to my seat. As I sat waiting for service to start, I scanned the audience. The audience was mostly white but racially diverse. There were Blacks, Hispanics, and a few Asian people in the audience. After a few minutes, the service started.

A gentleman went to the microphone and asked the audience to bow their heads in prayer. The gentleman conducted a short prayer. I assumed he was a deacon, but I was not sure. I was not aware of the title structure of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. After praying, the audience was directed to a song in a book, and the congregation began to sing a song from the book. There was no choir in the choir stand, which was quite different for me. Growing up in a Baptist church, I was used to a choir singing songs. The pastor got up to deliver his sermon. The sermon given by the pastor was uplifting but was delivered very differently than a pastor with a Baptist background. The Seventh-day Adventist pastor spoke in a teaching monotone-style voice. Baptist preachers speak in a reflective voice style. They have a variation of the pitch in their voice, like a musical note.

The audience in the Seventh-day Adventist church was different from audiences in Baptist, Pentecostal, and Church of God in Christ denominations. When the pastor speaks in the aforementioned denominations, various people in the audience will speak out loud and say amen or that’s right or a number of other phrases. This occurs when the pastor says something they like or when the pastor speaks the truth about the Word of God. In the Seventh-day Adventist church, the audience sits in silence while the pastor is speaking. The Seventh-day Adventist church service is more subdued than the aforementioned denominations. After the pastor finished his sermon, a collection was taken for tithes and offering. The pastor gave the benediction and ended the church service. As I was about to exit the sanctuary, a member of the congregation recognized me from the prophecy conference and approached me. He greeted me warmly and invited me to come again. After our brief conversation, I exited the church and went to my car and headed home.

Once at home, my wife asked me questions about the service. I told her it was quite different from our worship service. I told her the service was much more subdued and laid back. I told her the people were extremely nice and made me feel welcomed. I went into my bedroom and changed into my casual clothing, something more comfortable. My spirit moved me to do research on the Sabbath day. I went to my computer and did extensive research on the Sabbath day and the Seventh-day Adventist church. I was on the computer for more than five straight hours doing research.

Before I started my research, my police training and experience as a homicide detective surfaced to the forefront of my thought process. I decided that I would research the Sabbath day as if I was doing an investigation. I wanted to know (1) who is the authority who instituted the Sabbath day; (2) when was the Sabbath day instituted; (3) who in the Bible worshiped or recognized the Sabbath day; (4) what Christian denominations worshiped on the Sabbath day; (5) is Sabbath day worship required for the Christian church; (6) did Jesus worship on the Sabbath day; (7) did the disciples worship on the Sabbath day; (8) did the gentiles (non-Jews) worship on the Sabbath day; (9) what are the requirements for the Sabbath day; (10) which day of the week is the Sabbath day; (11) what are the denominational conflicts regarding the Sabbath day; (12) what is the scriptural evidence for the Sabbath day; (13) how and why Sunday worship evolved; (14) what is the scriptural support for Sunday worship; and (15) what is the historical timeline regarding the Sabbath day? These are the questions I used as the foundation for seeking the truth about the true day of worship.

Hebrews 11:6 (KJV) states, He (God) is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. If you want to receive God’s rewards in your life, you must diligently seek Him. How do you seek God? Through worship, through prayer, through fasting, through obedience to His holy Word, and through studying and seeking the truth to His holy Word.

The main source I used for my research was God’s holy Word, the Bible. I searched for every Bible scripture that mentioned the Sabbath day. I diligently searched the Bible for scriptures that commanded Sunday worship. I utilized online resources to assist me in understanding the meaning of the Sabbath day and the origin of Sunday worship. I utilized my training I learned as a detective sergeant at the Homicide Section by creating a Sabbath-day timeline. It greatly assisted me with understanding the Sabbath day. Creating the Sabbath-day timeline allowed me to have a readily available source to maintain a complete overview of the events concerning the Sabbath day.

I continued my journey regarding the Sabbath day. I closely examined and contemplated all the information I collected. I collected numerous articles from religious magazines. I collected Christian articles from various websites regarding the Sabbath day. I collected an extensive number of materials. I was extremely focused and motivated to uncover the true day of worship. I wanted to know the true meaning and clarity of the Sabbath day. Simply put, I wanted to know the truth about the Sabbath day and be obedient