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The Sabbath - Everything You Ever Wanted To Know |
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This controversy has been going on for hundreds of years, and the most accepted day for "religious worship" has been Sunday. But, is this the RIGHT DAY? Is this the day that God established, set aside as Holy time? Can we really know and does it actually make a difference anyway? You will see that, YES, it DOES make a difference!
The "Sabbath" certainly sounds like a "religious" word, and usually brings up "Jewish" beliefs. However, there is much confusion on this subject, and therefore much misunderstanding.
In order to place this topic into perspective, you need to understand the material elsewhere described. We tend to look at time as a physical concept, and rightly so. However, WE are also physical beings that function within time. Time affects us every minute of our lives. When God established "special" time which He has called "Holy," set aside for specific purposes, you can be sure that there is something to it.
When was this "Sabbath" established? Let's go to the beginning, as usual.
Genesis 2:2-3 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and "sanctified" (set apart for Holy use) it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made. (NKJV)
The Sabbath day was established shortly after mankind was created. God RESTED that day and He set the day apart as Holy time, to be used for specific purposes. The Sabbath, or the seventh day, is well known to be Saturday. Just look on any calendar and you will see that Saturday is the last day of the week.
As was mentioned before, God established the days beginning at sundown and going to the next sundown, therefore, the Sabbath actually begins on Friday evening at sundown. If you have read the previous material, you will understand that it is God who upholds all physical elements. HE created the concept of time and placed us within its frame. Since He is the cause of all that is, HE is the one who PLACES the power within specific times which He established for specific purposes.
Did Christ keep the Sabbath Day? Yes, He did. But many will say, "Of course He kept it, He was Jewish." But was the Sabbath made for Jews? Is there any proof from the bible that only the Jewish people kept it? Let's examine some specific scriptures that will answer these questions.
In the Old Testament, "Israel" was the group of people whom God was working with as an example. You will find that "Israel" consisted of BOTH Jews AND others. Israel WAS NOT ALL JEWISH people. The tribe of "Judah" was just ONE tribe of the 12 tribes of Israel, yet ALL Israel was commanded to keep the Sabbath. (In 1Kings 16:6, you will find the word "Jews" used for the first time, and they are AT WAR with Israel. You can also look at the 12 tribe names and see that they were NOT all Jewish. Jews come from the tribe of Judah.)
Exodus 16:23 Then he said to them, "This [is what] the LORD has said: 'Tomorrow [is] a Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD. Bake what you will bake [today,] and boil what you will boil; and lay up for yourselves all that remains, to be kept until morning.' " (NKJV)
While Israel was in the wilderness, God made special provisions of food for them, PROVIDING DOUBLE PORTIONS ON FRIDAY, so they would not have to do the work of gathering the manna on the Sabbath. It is quite plain that God made it clear which day was the Sabbath and what He expected Israel to do on that day. You will also notice that the Sabbath day was established PRIOR to the giving of the 10 commandments, which doesn't occur until later, in chapter 20.
Exodus 20:8-11 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. :9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, :10 but the seventh day [is] the Sabbath of the LORD your God. [In it] you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who [is] within your gates. :11 For [in] six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that [is] in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it. (NKJV)
Notice God said, "Remember" the Sabbath day. . . You don't "remember" something that you don't even know about. Obviously the Sabbath day was well known prior to the giving of the Laws of God. From this point on, the Sabbath day is a pivotal point in history which affected millions of people throughout the Old Testament times, even to the point where God allowed Israel, His own chosen people, to go into captivity. WHY?
The word remember is the key. Israel DID NOT remember, the Sabbath any more than they "remembered" the other laws. When we observe something such as a holiday, we are meant to REMEMBER what the day stands for and it keeps us mindful of specific events. The Sabbath is no different. It points to God in many ways. It reminds us of creation, since that is where the Sabbath originated. It reminds us of the millennial time where everyone will be at rest from the spiritual forces that pound on us daily. It also is a day for physical and mental rest from normal work. We, as a nation, have FORGOTTEN the Sabbath day. Do you think we couldn't go back into captivity because of that?
Luke 4:16 So He (Christ) 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 to read. (NKJV)
Mark 2:27 And He (Christ) said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. (NKJV)
Christ's custom was to observe the Sabbath day. Notice also that Christ Himself stated that the Sabbath was made for MAN, not just for "Jews." This day was established for all mankind, men and women. It is a day that has a special spiritual component to it, which God Himself places there. HE sanctified the day, setting it apart for Holy use. Do you think observing the wrong day wouldn't make a difference, spiritually speaking?
Can you go anywhere in the bible and NOT find ANY command to observe Sunday as the day of rest? The subject of how the days were changed is an interesting one, one which even the Catholic church itself agrees that the change is nowhere commanded in the bible. For further reading on the subject, see the end of this page.
The Sabbath day was observed by the apostles and other converted Christians of the first century. Some people try to claim that Christ's death did away with all of the commandments, including the Sabbath day, so why are the apostles observing it LONG after Christ died?
Acts 13:14 But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down. (NKJV)
Acts 15:21 "For Moses has had throughout many generations those who preach him in every city, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath." (NKJV)
Acts 17:2 Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, (NKJV)
Acts 18:4 And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded both "Jews and Greeks." (NKJV)
The above scriptures make plain the fact that the apostles regularly keep the seventh day Sabbath, just as Christ did.
Hebrews 4:9 There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. (NKJV)
The word translated "rest" comes from the Greek word, 4520 sabbatismos {sab-bat-is-mos'}
1) a keeping (of the) sabbath
2) the blessed rest from toils and troubles looked for in the age to
come by the true worshippers of God and true Christians
Literally, the scripture states, "Therefore, there remains a keeping of the Sabbath for the people of God."
The observance of Sunday as the traditional day of "Rest," is almost universal. As to whether people really rest on this day is questionable. God tells us to refrain from ALL normal work, except for preparing of meals. We don't go to work or do other usual pastime pleasures. . .
Isaiah 58:13-14 " If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, [From] doing your pleasure on My holy day, And call the Sabbath a delight, The holy [day] of the LORD honorable, And shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, Nor finding your own pleasure, Nor speaking [your own] words, 14 Then you shall delight yourself in the LORD; And I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth, And feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father. The mouth of the LORD has spoken." (NKJV)
Does the above scripture make it sound as if the Sabbath is a relative thing? Does it sound like it doesn't matter which day is the real Sabbath? Remember, Satan has a counterfeit for EVERY aspect of God's plan. His counterfeits usually "dis-empower" people because they draw attention and focus AWAY from truth and get people wrapped up in lies. Remember, the Sabbath is set apart for Holy use. God placed an actual blessing on the Sabbath day itself, the actual TIME is Holy. How can you tap into a spiritual power on another day when there IS none there on any other week day?
All you have to do is take a good hard look at traditional Christian beliefs and you may better understand WHY confusion abounds. If people have no access to TRUE SPIRITUAL POWER that is imbedded in the Holy time by God, how CAN they understand spiritual things? Remember, the whole world is deceived. . . Revelation 12:9. . . that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world. . .
The world is deceived in MOST aspects of spiritual truth. Sure, that is hard to believe, but the bible plainly states that. If you are keeping up with the other pages, you will come to see how this is possible, and what the only solution for it is. Do you have the strength to face the facts? You'll have to sooner or later!
For further reading on the Sabbath question, you can refer to A book titled, "From Sabbath to Sunday," by Dr. Samuele Bacchiocchi.
Web pages created and material written by Jeffrey T. Maehr. Copyright
1997. All rights reserved.
www.true-health.com/sabbath.htm