Introduction: This is my first topic for SAS group and yet I feel I should bring up the issue of the Sabbath. Before I enrolled at NIST, now ILU (International Leadership University), I had almost stopped observing the Sabbath. It is when we were studying the book of Romans and epistles in general that our teacher introduced a paper entitled “A Summary of the New Perspective on Paul.” In it, we learned that, contrary to the common teachings, Judaism is not legalistic. Secondly, Jews do not keep the law to be saved; they are already God’s people and what they seek is to maintain good fellowship with their God and deliverer.
My understanding is that the law of Yahweh as a whole is for the redeemed. Israelites were not seeking to be Yahweh’s people. They sought to maintain a close fellowship with their God by obeying his law. Obedience pleases Yahweh while disobedience is an abomination to him. We do not keep the Sabbath to be saved, as many are prone to saying. The day does not save anyone at all; Yahweh does. We are saved through Yeshua our redeemer and when we become Yahweh’s children, we seek to please Him by obeying His commands in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Sabbath is Yahweh’s Idea
Sabbath was Yahweh’s idea, not the Jews’ or Israelites’ idea. In the creation week, Yahweh rested on the seventh day. This resting was not because Yahweh was very tired and so needed rest. He ceased from doing what he was doing for 6 days. He stopped doing that which was normal for the preceding 6 days. This was the man’s 1st day. Sabbath is not man’s 7th day, it is Yahweh’s. Yahweh invites us to join Him in His rest.
2 By the seventh day God completed 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 it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made (Gen. 2:2-3, NASB).
On the seventh day of the creation week, God ceased from any more creating. The word Shabat means to “cease, desist, rest, stop.” Hence God did not rest as a result of exhaustion. All he did was to stop doing what he was doing for six days.
At this time, there was no sin. The Sabbath was not brought in by God as a result of sin, as part of sacrifices. It was God’s idea to have a separate day from the others. God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it (set it apart). The blessing of this day and setting it apart (from the other days) was as a result of his resting on it, “because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made” (Gen. 2:3).
Under the title Sabbath, MacMillan English dictionary says, “The Jewish Sabbath is Saturday and the Christian Sabbath is Sunday.” This implies that it was a Jewish idea to have a Sabbath on Saturday just as it was Christians’ idea to have a Sabbath on Sunday. This is not true. It was God who initiated the Sabbath by resting on it, then blessing it and setting it apart. There was no Jew then. There was only one couple then, Adam and Eve. Were they Jews? No. They are our first parents and that is why we are bin Adam, the children of Adam.
The New Webster’s Dictionary says this about the Sabbath: “The seventh day of the week, Saturday, as the day of rest and religious observances among the Jews and certain Christian sects, Ex. xx. 8-11; the first day of the week, Sunday, similarly observed by most Christians and in commemoration of the resurrection of Christ.” This dictionary specifies which day is the seventh day (Saturday) giving the reference of Exodus 20:8-11 as the Bible text for it while none is given for the first day of the week, Sunday.
The Complete Christian Dictionary says this on Sabbath “The day which God appointed to be observed by the Jews as a day of rest and worship. NOTE: This was formerly on the seventh day of the week (Saturday), the day on which God rested from the work of creation; and this day is still observed by the Jews and some Christians. But the Christian church very early began, and still continues, to observe the first day of the week, in commemoration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ on that day. Hence it is often called the Lord’s day, but some refer to it (Sunday) as the Sabbath.”
This dictionary explains that the seventh day is Saturday and the first day of the week is Sunday. The seventh day is the day God himself rested. God appointed this day to be observed by Jews, who still do. Hence if one wants to know the Sabbath ordained by God, he just needs to enquire form the Jews. This is not a Jewish Sabbath; it is Yahweh’s Sabbath (Exod. 16:23; 20:10; 31:13, 16; Lev. 23:3; Ezek. 20:12, 13, 16, 20).
According to this dictionary, early Christians ordained Sunday as a Sabbath. It was neither Yeshua (Jesus) nor Yahweh (Yehovah) who ordained it. It was mere people who changed the observance of the Sabbath from the seventh day of the week to the first day of the week. This is the complete opposite end of the week from Yahweh’s day. Man’s day is on the first day and that of Yahweh is on the last/seventh day.
Sabbath — the First Commandment after Redemption of Israel.
In Exodus 14, the Israelites crossed the Red Sea. Israel was completely delivered from bondage of Egypt. They were free people under a new King. In Exodus 15, they praised Yahweh for deliverance. What does Yahweh then say to them?
“Obey!”
Yahweh said, “If you will diligently obey Yahweh your God, and do what is right in his sight, and pay attention to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, then all the diseases79 that I brought on the Egyptians I will not bring on you, for I, Yahweh, am your healer” (Exod. 15:26, NET). If we diligently obey Yahweh, He pledges that He will be Yahweh our healer or Yahweh who heals us. This is not about deliverance; it is about a relationship. Yahweh will be their healer and will not allow plagues of Egypt to fall on the Israelites. Yahweh will bring good health and prosperity on the Israelites. After deliverance, they had a work to do; OBEY THEIR NEW KING. What was the first commandment? Let’s see.
In Exodus 16, what happens?
Yahweh gave them manna and the Sabbath.
4 Then Yahweh said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. 5 On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days” (Exod. 16:4-5).
22 “On the sixth day, they gathered twice as much–two omers for each person–and the leaders of the community came and reported this to Moses. 23 He said to them, ‘This is what Yahweh commanded: “Tomorrow is to be a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to Yahweh. So bake what you want to bake and boil what you want to boil. Save whatever is left and keep it until morning.”’ 24 So they saved it until morning, as Moses commanded, and it did not stink or get maggots in it. 25 ‘Eat it today,’ Moses said, ‘because today is a Sabbath to Yahweh. You will not find any of it on the ground today. 26 Six days you are to gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any.’ 27 Nevertheless, some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather it, but they found none. {Why did they find none? Because Yahweh had ceased to bring manna on the Sabbath.} 28 Then Yahweh said to Moses, ‘How long will you {The Hebrew is plural.} refuse to keep my commands and my instructions? 29 Bear in mind that Yahweh has given you the Sabbath; that is why on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Everyone is to stay where he is on the seventh day; no-one is to go out.’ 30 So the people rested on the seventh day” (Exod. 16:22-30).
The first thing Yahweh did was to show the Israelites His Sabbath and command them to rest on it.
- Sabbath is a test command to see if we shall be obedient to Yahweh — Verses 4, 28.
If we can obey the Sabbath command, other commands will be easier.
- Do your normal work for six days: Yahweh did His normal work for six days — Genesis 1; Exodus 16:4.
- He commanded Israel to do their normal work for six days:
- Gather manna for six days — Exod. 16:4, 26.
- On the sixth day, they were to do the following
- Gather twice as normal — Exod. 16:5, 22.
- Prepare all the food — Exod. 16:23
- Rest on the Sabbath
- Do not go out to get more food — Exod. 16:25, 26, 29.
- Eat what you prepared on the 6th day — vv 23-25.
- Yahweh provided the manna up to the 6th day, teaching us how to do our works.
For each of over 2000 Sabbaths in forty years, Yahweh ceased to supply manna to the children of Israel. Yahweh pointed out what day was the Sabbath that he had given to them. There was and still is no doubt to the Israelites as to what day is the Sabbath.
The Command:
8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labour and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to Yahweh your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. 11 For in six days Yahweh made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore Yahweh blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy” (Exod. 20:8-11, NIV).
CJB Exodus 20:8 – “Remember the day, Shabbat, to set it apart for God.”
- Remember the day, the Shabbat, to set it apart for Yahweh, v8. Set this day apart from others to do a different thing on it. Have it as Yahweh’s day to do what he has commanded on it.
- Labour and do ALL your work in 6 days, v 9.
- Do not do any work; it is the Sabbath of Yahweh (not of Jews) — on the Sabbath, vv 10, 11 (NASB).
- Yahweh rested on the seventh day, and because of this,
- He blessed the Sabbath,
- He set it apart. He separated it from other days of the week.
CJB Exodus 20:11 For in six days, Yahweh made heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. This is why Yahweh blessed the day, Shabbat, and separated it for himself. (CJB= Complete Jewish Bible).
CJB Genesis 2:3 God blessed the seventh day and separated it as holy; because on that day God rested from all his work which he had created, so that it itself could produce.
If God rested on this day, who are we to oppose Him?
If He blessed this day, who can curse it?
If God set it apart from other days, who dares oppose Him and set another day apart?
If He commands us to remember to set it apart as His day, who dares do otherwise?
Other commands
- Have a set apart assembly for meeting Yahweh — Leviticus 23:3.
- Do not do as you please. Isaiah 58:13-14 3 “If because of the Sabbath, you turn your foot from doing your own pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of Yahweh honorable, and honor it, desisting from your own ways, from seeking your own pleasure and speaking your own word, 14 Then you will take delight in Yahweh, And I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; And I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, For the mouth of Yahweh has spoken.”
Yahshua’s (Jesus’) Example
- His custom was to go to the synagogue on the Sabbath — Luke 4:16
- He said it is good to do good on the Sabbath and healed someone — Matt. 9:9-13; Mark 3:4; Luke 6:9, 10; 13:10-17; 14:1-6 — heal, take an animal out of ditch, untie animal to lead it to drink.
Hence it is good and lawful to
- Assemble together to hear the word and encourage one another — Lk 4:16
- Help the sick by taking them to hospital or cooking for them if an emergence, or making fire to warm them — Matt. 9:9-13
- To pay fare to come to church if no alternative (those with cars need to fill their petrol on 6th day before the Sabbath).
- To meet an emergence. Emergence means something like an accident. It could not have been foreseen. For a puncture, one needs to change the tyre and if on a longer journey, repair the puncture.
Paul’s Example
His custom was to go to the synagogue or assembly place on the Sabbath — Acts 13:14, 44; 16:13; 17:1, 2: 18:3.
Conclusion
The Sabbath was initiated by Yahweh and He then commanded His people Israel to keep it. This command was violated constantly by Israel from the start, (Exod. 16). Ezekiel 20 discloses how Israel now and then disobeyed this command (Ezek. 20:10-13, 16, 18-21, 24). We need to accept that Yahweh has not changed. Man may change as time goes on but Yahweh never changes. This is not my day but Yahweh’s. We need to keep it in the way He has commanded and not our way. Sabbath is not man’s choice; it is Yahweh’s and man can only choose to obey Yahweh or disobey. That is the only choice we have. Choose obedience.
For further information, contact
Bishop Elijah Ngugi
Tel. 0721-840838
