The Christian Sabbath

Many people disagree about which day we should worship God. Why is there so much disagreement? Weekly worship of God is actually one of the Ten Commandments. It is an inexorable law that is binding upon all of us. The Bible makes it clear that God is going to judge us eternally on this observance so we need to prove this to ourselves one way or the other.

Does it make any difference which day we observe—or whether we keep it? Does the Bible establish Sunday as the Lord’s day? Was the Sabbath given for the Jewish people only—while Christians are commanded to keep Sunday as the Lord’s day?

God commands us to keep the Sabbath the seventh day of the week holy—for this great purpose. He did not sanctify the first day or the second third fourth fifth or sixth. He did not command us to keep one of those days holy. They are not holy and you cannot keep them holy. It would be like trying to keep cold water hot—you can’t because it never was hot. God made the seventh day a holy space of time to make men holy like God. He uses it to make human beings more perfect as He is perfect (Matthew 5:48)

God has never changed that holy period of time and men are incapable of changing it. Keeping it makes you quite different from other people who don’t keep it. It is a different day and it does take effort to keep it holy. But God promises us that if we do keep this test commandment this sign that He will make us “ride upon the high places of the Earth.” Your life will have meaning and success you haven’t even dreamed of if you will keep God’s command and really delight in the Sabbath sacrificing your own pleasure your own ways and your own words and concentrating your mind on God’s pleasure God’s ways God’s Word.

Jesus Christ told us to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and the other blessings of life will be added to us. In other words start by getting the Sabbath right then you will understand about the Kingdom. The Sabbath is a type of that Kingdom the refreshing the eternal peace that God will usher in. The Sabbath is a vision not only of the past re-creation in preparation for man but also of the future when God will complete in us His spiritual creation! That will be a wonderful wonderful indescribable time of peace and refreshing when we are fully made in God’s image after His likeness.

What a beautiful part this plays in man’s success in his spiritual excitement and growth. It all revolves around the Sabbath.