The Sabbath day was not made primarily for physical rest. We should not push ourselves to extremes of work during the six days allotted for gainful employment, with the hope of playing catch up during the Sabbath hours. God did not rest from His labor because he was tired, and neither should we, when it comes to the sacred hours. Before we begin the study we are going to let the Bible speak for itself on this matter which needs to be addressed individually and collectively. Let’s read:
Isaiah 40:28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, [that] the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? [there is] no searching of his understanding.
Psalms 121:4 Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
In the earth made new, when Eden will be restored, the Bible tells us that we are going to do real work in heaven, building and planting and much mental and physical labor. Yet when the Sabbath comes around each week, we will not rest because we are fatigued, but will rather enjoy the closest fellowship with the God-head, and with each other. Let’s read:
Isaiah 65:17 For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
65:21 And they shall build houses, and inhabit [them]; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.
65:22 They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree [are] the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
65:23 They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they [are] the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them.
Isaiah 66:22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.
66:23 And it shall come to pass, [that] from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.
The tendency to work ourselves to a frazzle during the week with the eager expectation of catching up on our zzz’s during the Sabbath hours, falls far short of God’s ideal. Furthermore, a close examination of Christ’s activities reveal in no uncertain terms, that the Sabbath day was one of His busiest, as can be deduced from a study of His actions over the Sabbath hours, which were filled with evangelizing, charitable works of healing, fellowship with like-minded believers, nature walks, and praise and worship.
Jesus came not only to save us from our sins, but also to show what the will of God is in many of the issues that had been clouded in doubt, uncertainty and tradition for too many years, and therefore whatsoever we see The Son doing, as it pertains to righteousness, we also may safely do likewise. Let’s read:
Mark1:35 And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.
Luke 4:16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
4:17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
4:18 The Spirit of the Lord [is] upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
4:19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
According to the above passages, a typical Sabbath day for Jesus would begin with prayer and communion with God in the wee hours of the morning, and later He would head out to church, where he would preach with Divine energy, not your average smooth sermon that flatters the conscience of the average hearer into a false sense of spiritual security, but rather one of those soul-stirring sermons, pregnant with those sacred truths, which can only be received by the honest in heart; a sermon that wouldn’t go down smoothly with those who suffer from the itching ear syndrome. Let’s read:
Luke 4:24 And he said, Verily, I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country.
4:25 But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land;
4:26 But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, [a city] of Sidon, unto a woman [that was] a widow.
4:27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.
4:28 And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,
4:29 And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong.
4:30 But he passing through the midst of them went his way.
And then having cheated death He returns from the edge of the cliff, to continue with His busy Sabbath day schedule, in another part of town, where it would be safer to preach, and where He would be received with joy. Absolutely no mention of Christ sleeping on the Sabbath is mentioned in any of the gospels, for as stated before this was one of his most active days. It’s not that the scripture is teaching us that it is wrong to have physical rest over the Sabbath hours, what it is saying is that catching up on lost sleep was and is not a part of God’s original intention, and therefore urgent reforms are needed in this area where applicable. Let’s read:
Luke 4:31 And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days.
4:32 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.
4:33 And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice,
4:34 Saying, Let [us] alone; what have we to do with thee, [thou] Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God.
4:35 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not.
4:36 And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word [is] this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.
4:37 And the fame of him went out into every place of the country round about.
4:38 And he arose out of the synagogue, and entered into Simon's house. And Simon's wife's mother was taken with a great fever; and they besought him for her.
4:39 And he stood over her, and rebuked the fever; and it left her: and immediately she arose and ministered unto them.
4:40 Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.
4:41 And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God. And he rebuking [them] suffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was Christ.
4:43 And he said unto them, I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I sent.
Now brethren, when we contrast Christ’s Sabbath day with our average Sabbath day, there is seen a world of difference, where we often make the day of rest subservient to our personal needs, instead of being brim full with ministry for all who are in need of salvation and physical and spiritual healing. At times our typical Sabbath may begin way past sunset on Friday evening, with some members of the family still watching Oprah or Doctor Phil, whilst the wife and “Some” of the children try to throw something together in a pot.
Then long after the sun has set we try to focus on God, who has been waiting for us to get our act together. Then before we know it, everyone starts snoring, because we have stressed out ourselves so much during the week that we cannot even stay awake to commune as a family. And because we are so exhausted, we sleep and we sleep and sleep until it is eleven o’clock on Sabbath morning, then begins the mad rush, sometimes with yelling and hasty words, for one wants to use the shower, whilst the other cannot seem to decide what to wear.
This is not how God intended that the Sabbath should be kept, and the “Repairers of the breach” spoken of in Isaiah 58 should not be found making new breaches, nor slumbering whilst repairs are being made. There is absolutely a need of change and reform in this area, for God desires that we worship Him in spirit and in truth.
The Sabbath rest represents a rest of faith where for one day out of the week, we leave off all our temporal concerns to focus entirely on God and spiritual interests, and therefore any activity that hinders or does not contribute in any meaningful way to that purpose, constitutes a violation of the fourth commandment. Furthermore we should be looking forward to the sacred day all during the week, and when it comes around, we should not be waiting anxiously for it to pass.
In some instances, there are those of us who look forward more to the end of the Sabbath, so that Saturday night activities could commence, and thus there is manifest in some instances, an irreverent impatience for the sun to go down, so that we can do what we really enjoy doing. But God is a spirit, and our attitude towards Him and His commands matters a great deal more than the methodical performance of duty with no energy or gusto, and it’s because of this why urgent reforms are needed. The spirit of the Sabbath is captured in the words of the Psalmist, who emphasizes the importance of zealous interest in worship. Let’s read:
Psalms 100:1 A Psalm of praise. Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.
100:2 Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
100:3 Know ye that the LORD he [is] God: [it is] he [that] hath made us, and not we ourselves; [we are] his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
100:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, [and] into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, [and] bless his name.
100:5 For the LORD [is] good; his mercy [is] everlasting; and his truth [endureth] to all generations.
So now let’s try to understand two aspects of the Sabbath rest as described in the book of Hebrews. Let’s read:
Hebrews 4:1 Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left [us] of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.
4:2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard [it].
4:6 Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief:
4:9 There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
4:10 For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God [did] from his.
4:11 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.
As stated before, there are two features of this rest spoken of by Paul which we will focus on, beginning with the most important: (1) We rest in the full assurance of God’s saving grace, in that our salvation is guaranteed by a sacred promise, once the conditions consequent to its fulfillment are met. The work of sanctification is a work that only God can do when we choose to give Him the permission to do so, and therefore it is necessary that we exercise a living faith in His ability and purpose to do so.
Many of the Hebrews had erroneously thought that it was some meritorious work on their part that guaranteed their salvation, and thus many of them set about performing a rigorous round of ceremonies and good works with the hope that God would grant them credit, and thereby secure their place in His kingdom. This concept was due for a correction so that we may understand that salvation is a gift from God, that stands upon its own two feet, without any contributions and credits on our part. This very solemn and sacred truth is written in several passages of scripture, so that we may walk by faith and not by sight. Let’s read:
Exodus 31:13 Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it [is] a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that [ye] may know that I [am] the LORD that doth sanctify you.
Ephesians 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God:
2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Philippians 1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform [it] until the day of Jesus Christ.
Jude 1:24 Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present [you] faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,
1:25 To the only wise God our Saviour, [be] glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and for ever.
We should not lose sleep over our salvation, once we are abiding in Christ, for what matters most is what God thinks of Jesus, not so much what He thinks of us. The apostle John put it as simply as it can be stated. Let’s read:
1st John 5:11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
5:12 He that hath the Son hath life; [and] he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
This simple and brief statement of fact represents the essence of the entire gospel, because it sums up all of the other intricacies of salvation, like the prophecies, the ceremonies, the good works, the miracles, the speaking in tongues, the tithes and offerings, the church offices, the baptisms, the evangelism, the correct interpretation, and so forth, and quantifies the entire plan of salvation into one short personal question: Do you have the Son? This is the bottom line and it was the essential element that was missing in the lives of many Jews, which then caused many of them not to enter in.
And this basic question is just as applicable to us today as it was back then. Do we have the Son individually? It is very important for us to state here that this basic question does not require a collective answer, for it is as personal as it gets. We are not save by groups nor by families, nor by churches nor by communities, we are saved because of a personal connection with The Son, and therefore the bottom line question comes back vividly to our consciences, Do you, do I have The Son? Let’s read a few passages of scripture before we move on, which should shed great light on the personal nature of this all-important question. Let’s read:
Ezekiel 14:12 The word of the LORD came again to me, saying,
14:13 Son of man, when the land sinneth against me by trespassing grievously, then will I stretch out mine hand upon it, and will break the staff of the bread thereof, and will send famine upon it, and will cut off man and beast from it:
14:14 Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver [but] their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord GOD.
14:15 If I cause noisome beasts to pass through the land, and they spoil it, so that it be desolate, that no man may pass through because of the beasts:
14:16 [Though] these three men [were] in it, [as] I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters; they only shall be delivered, but the land shall be desolate.
14:17 Or [if] I bring a sword upon that land, and say, Sword, go through the land; so that I cut off man and beast from it:
14:18 Though these three men [were] in it, [as] I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters, but they only shall be delivered themselves.
Romans 14:11 For it is written, [As] I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
14:12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.
Romans 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
8:10 And if Christ [be] in you, the body [is] dead because of sin; but the Spirit [is] life because of righteousness.
And so that fundamental question comes back to haunt us, Do we have Son personally?
The next aspect of the Sabbatical rest of faith has to do with, casting all of our burdens upon Christ and trusting Him for answers, resolutions, and deliverances according as He sees best. This aspect of the Sabbatical rest of faith will effectively keep us from chasing that last dollar, late on Friday evening, or working over the Sabbath hours to put food on the table. According to the Bible, God is the one who puts food on the table, so that if Friday evening comes around, and we did not get paid, we do not worry ourselves out of the hands of Christ, thinking about bills, and car notes and mortgages and food, for God has promised to provide all our needs according to His good and perfect will. Let’s read:
Psalms 23:1 A Psalm of David. The LORD [is] my shepherd; I shall not want.
23:2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
23:3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou [art] with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
23:5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
Philippians 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
The question is whether we believe, or whether we will doubt His promises which cannot be broken? In the experiences of the ancient Hebrews we have a few examples of the kind of unbelief that kept many of the Jews from entering both the earthly and the heavenly Canaan, and these things were recorded for future generations, so that we may not fall short of the Sabbatical rest of faith. Let’s read:
Exodus 16:19 And Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning.
16:20 Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth with them.
16:21 And they gathered it every morning, every man according to his eating: and when the sun waxed hot, it melted.
16:22 And it came to pass, [that] on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one [man]: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses.
16:23 And he said unto them, This [is that] which the LORD hath said, To morrow [is] the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake [that] which ye will bake [to day], and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning.
16:24 And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein.
16:25 And Moses said, Eat that to day; for to day [is] a sabbath unto the LORD: to day ye shall not find it in the field.
16:26 Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, [which is] the sabbath, in it there shall be none.
16:27 And it came to pass, [that] there went out [some] of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.
16:28 And the LORD said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws?
16:29 See, for that the LORD hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.
16:30 So the people rested on the seventh day.
In our day and in our own experiences we need to be careful lest the same attitude of doubt and unbelief take hold of our minds, and thereby prevent us from entering into God’s Sabbatical rest. Urgent reform in spirit and practice needs to take place in many hearts and homes, and it is for this reason that we are going to read the following solemn statements given by The Holy Ghost to our generation. Let’s read:
Hebrews 3:7 Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice,
3:8 Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
3:9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years.
3:10 Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in [their] heart; and they have not known my ways.
3:11 So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.)
3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
3:14 For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;
3:15 While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.
3:16 For some, when they had heard, did provoke:
3:19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.
We therefore end with a promise to all sincere Sabbath-keepers, and to all who are trying by the grace of God to make the needed changes and reforms, for God is still in the business of saving as many as would be saved. Let’s read:
Isaiah 58:12 And [they that shall be] of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.
58:13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, [from] doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking [thine own] words:
58:14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken [it].
May we be doers and not hearers only. God bless!