In Genesis 2:1-3a we read: “Thus the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed. On the seventh day God completed the work he had been doing; he rested... God blessed the seventh day and made it holy.” The Sabbath was created by God not for Himself but for man to know that he should stop working, turn to the Creator, and worship! Since seven is a deeply symbolic number in Scripture, signifying perfection, God wanted us to exercise our role as priest, as we are anointed at baptism. With the Third Commandment given through Moses on Mount Sinai, God calls us to “remember the sabbath day—keep it holy…You shall not do any work” (Ex 20:8,10a).
Should we then just sit around twiddling our thumbs? No! We should turn our minds to the things of heaven, to our Creator! We should meet in the church to sing songs of praise, to bring our Love offering, and to thank Him for all He has provided during the previous week. We should rest our bodies and our minds from the concerns of our daily work, which can be burdensome. We should pray for one another, petition for our sick, care for the needy, and inspire and encourage them to participate in worship and by sharing the word of God with them. We should continue the Great Commission by bringing the Gospel (Good News) and the love of God to the ends of the earth.
In Matthew 5:17, Jesus said “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” Yet in Mark 2:27-28, He reminded us that “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath. That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath”
Is this a contradiction? No! Jesus healed the sick on the Sabbath. He proclaimed the Gospel. He chased demons on the Sabbath! But He also let His disciples pick the grains from the field on the Sabbath day because they were hungry and needed food for their bodies, which are the temple of God, just as King David and his men did when they ate the consecrated food in the temple. Anything done in the spirit of giving glory to God is keeping the Sabbath holy.
Let us on the Sabbath day stand in front of Him, to whom all glory and praise is due, and worship!
In Matthew 5:17, Jesus said “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” Yet in Mark 2:27-28, He reminded us that “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath. That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath”
Is this a contradiction? No! Jesus healed the sick on the Sabbath. He proclaimed the Gospel. He chased demons on the Sabbath! But He also let His disciples pick the grains from the field on the Sabbath day because they were hungry and needed food for their bodies, which are the temple of God, just as King David and his men did when they ate the consecrated food in the temple. Anything done in the spirit of giving glory to God is keeping the Sabbath holy.
Let us on the Sabbath day stand in front of Him, to whom all glory and praise is due, and worship!