Sabbath: Covenant Sign
Image © Pacific Press
Sabbath Afternoon
Read for This Week’s Study: Genesis 2:2-3; Exodus 20:11; Exodus 16:1-36; Hebrews 4:1-4; Exodus 31:12-17; Deuteronomy 5:14.
Memory Verse: “Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant” (Exodus 31:16).
The seventh-day Sabbath is like a nail that — Thwack! — with unbroken regularity returns us each week to the foundation of all that we are or could be. We are so busy, running to and fro, spending money, making money, going here, going there, going everywhere, and then — Thwack! — Sabbath comes and reattaches us to our foundation, the starting point of everything that follows, because everything that is anything to us becomes that only because God created it and us to begin with.
With unceasing regularity, and with no exceptions, the Sabbath silently hurls over the horizon and into every crack and cranny of our lives. It reminds us that every crack and cranny belong to our Maker, the One who put us here, the One who “in the beginning” created the heavens and the earth, an act that remains the irrefutable foundation of all Christian belief and of which the seventh-day Sabbath — Thwack! — is the irrefutable, unobtrusive and unyielding sign.
This week we look at this sign in the context of the Sinai covenant.
The Week at a Glance: Where does the Sabbath have it origins? What evidence proves that the Sabbath existed before Sinai? What makes the Sabbath such an appropriate covenant sign?
Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, May 29.</
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One of the pieces of advice that my wife, Carmel, has passed on to me many times is; "Never argue with a primary school child. They will always win!" I have seen her in action. A conflict situation will arise between her and a child and she will take their hand and say, "Watch this!" or something like that. She will then show the child something that will completely take the child's mind off the argument and in a few moments has the child eating out of her hand. That is the skill of a true primary school teacher.
When it comes to the Sabbath methinks that we like to argue too much. We like to quote 50 bible verses and prove that the law wasn't done away with. We like to give the Papacy a hard time about changing times. But arguments are seldom won by words alone. Perhaps we should try Carmel's approach and say, "Watch this!" and then proceed to share a Sabbath experience that others will want to enjoy as well.
Happy Sabbath folk. May you be double blessed this Sabbath by sharing it with someone else.
The Sabbath has caused as much confusion and angst as it has been a Blessing. The cause of the confusion and angst is that satan has deceived mankind about Worship, of which The Sabbath is the definition of Worship. So rather than developing the meaning of Worship, satan deceives us into defining the day, hour, place, method, type, requirements, et.al of Worship rather than developing Worship as a lifestyle for The LORD Jesus Christ. I pray that all Seventh-Day Adventists develop a Sabbath Lifestyle rather than constraining the Sabbath into a religious ritual day.
Maybe if Sabbath was more about the relationship and less about the law(as important as the law is)? Many can debate the day, to whom it actually has little meaning in their lives. I think this comes through in their "defense" of the law.
If we can share our delight in the law/Sabbath, how much better!
If thou turn away thy feet from the sabbath...Isa 58:13-14.
Covenant Sign
Thank you Jesus that today is the sabbath and you have set up guidelines how I should celebrate it. Your guidelines are like guiderails to me. Guiderails only occurs at dangerous areas of a road or bridge. I have a new friend who invited me to go shopping on one sabbath. I explained to her that the bible prohibits shopping on the sabbath. She did not know because her religion does not read the bible.
The bible says six days we have to do all our work- its so ironic that we have six commandments delegated to man. The seventh day or the last of the week is delegated for our loving heavenly Father. Personally speaking, if their was not a sabbath I would have worked myself to sickness and finally death.
I am spending some time reading and re-reading https://egwwritings.org/?ref=en_PP.308.6¶=84.1365#. The law given to Israel which is also for me because I claim to be spiritual Israel.
The precepts of the law which no man can keep of themselves, except the Holy Spirit dwells in them and help them to keep it.
Sinners cant abide near to, next to, nor obey, much less keep the law because the law/10 commandments are holy.
When I go to visit my friend on sabbath, I go with an intention. To share Jesus. I try to stare the conversation in one way, i.e for her to know Jesus.
Dont forget that all these laws were given to Israel to learn about God and teach this knowledge to the whole world, so the law is given to the whole of humanity.
Setting aside the Sabbath from the Mt.Sinai Covenant is among the much discussed points in the Judean Christian Faith religion. Circumcision was done away with when the Gentiles became partakers of the Grace of God, but to remember the Sabbath remained. Believers in the Faith of Christ still chose to remember the Sabbath as the Day of Rest of the Creator Father.
Gen.2:1-3KJV – v.3: ”And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made”.
Exodus 20:8-11 KJV – v.8: ”Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy”.
Isa.58:13-14KJV - “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, honorable: and shalt honor him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: 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.”
Mark2:27-28KJV - ”And he (Jesus) said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: Therefore the Son of man (Jesus) is also Lord of the Sabbath.”
Matt.12:11-12KJV - ”And he said unto them: what man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it and lift it out? How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.”
Heb.4:9-11KJV – ”For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. There remaineth therefore a rest (or, keeping of a sabbath) to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.”
When resisting the pressures to engage in the affairs of daily life on His Holy Day and stop to think that we can earn our salvation through obedience to the works of the Law, ‘then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD, calling the Sabbath a delight’ and join the Creator in His Rest, a time to reflect and thank and praise Him for His Goodness and Mercy.
How many of us keep it holy and spend time with God! Often I find we are so busy with church that we forget what we are really there for
beautiful story mr maurice..thanks for sharing.God Bless Carmel.
Does our week center on the Sabbath, or are those sacred hours merely a speed-bump in our busy lives? The importance of Sabbath will either reflect in all we do or nothing we do, depending on our true interest in our day to day living. Do we plan for this day in advance or find ourselves trying to figure it out in haste as the sacred hours approach. Does our Sabbath begin with peace and deliberate intention or without warning? This covenant sign is more important that many might realize.
One of the online SS classes we listen to proposed that Sabbath is a day that God can prepare us for the week to come. I grew up viewing it as how we end our week, and it does come at the end of usually a hectic week. But what if we viewed it as a way to just rest and learn and be powered up (spiritually) for the new week ahead of us? I really like that way of looking at Sabbath. I also think that we are told in many places in scripture to “worship Him who created ...”. Sabbath was part of that creation and cannot be set aside. Revelation 14 seems to make things very clear, at least to me.
Adventists are great at making the Sabbath a day where we end up doing more work at church than we would if did not go to church. We are more about making church a must, and therefore many people find it too much of a chore.
We need to come back to the relationship with our creator!!