Good day everyone,
Recently I was given a question by a viewer about the Sabbath. There is much debate over this promise of God. Some say the Sabbath is simply a day when you stop all your literal work on a certain day. Some take it so literally that they wont use an oven or even electricity on this day. There is also much debate over what literal day this is. Some declare the sabbath to be on Sunday, others say that day is Saturday, others say we use a different calendar today and that the Sabbath is another day all together.
However, this is not how I have come to understand what the Sabbath Rest is. This is a promise to us all from God. One, that we are all meant to enter into. So when I was asked to clarify what I believe the Sabbath is and how we should celebrate it I wrote a brief email breaking down how I understand it to be.
After responding, I felt it was important for me to also share this with all of you. I understand there are many people that will judge a person’s faith by whether or not they attend church, mosque, synagogue, and more. There are many religious leaders that will put their flock under the bondage of a literal law, which is actually meant to be a pattern for the spiritual law God has provided for all of us.
Whether or not a person keeps the Sabbath, and how they keep it, in religious circles seems to be more about the WORK of the individual not doing this or that on a certain day and less about the covenant we are meant to enter into with God, to keep God’s Sabbath Holy.
I myself have been criticized for my understanding of Gods Sabbath Rest, and my teaching on it by people who were taught that we MUST Literally not do a thing on Saturdays, or Sundays, or whatever days they believe it to be, with the exception of enjoying the food God blessed us with.
FOOD by the way is a wonderful allegory for God’s truth. Jesus made this clear to his disciples when they were worried he didn’t eat enough in the book of John. Jesus’s response to them reveals a mystery to us all.
John 4:33,34 – Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him ought to eat? Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.
To do God’s will is what we must eat (Becoming One With) – Our purpose is the food he provides essentially, along with his commandments, which you will soon see is how we are meant to keep the Sabbath Holy.
Now remember the Sabbath rest is a day we ALL must enter into. Like everything there is a physical representation and an eternal, spiritual, heavenly one. We understand the Heavens by what we see and experience in the literal Earth through faith.
Hebrews 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
This means the temporal is NOT what truly matters, but what we learn from the temporal and incorporate into our spiritual lives.
So every Saturday ceasing from your labor is a pattern for the REAL SABBATH rest we are meant to enter into. This of course is how I understand it to be, as we are meant to enter into GOD’S REST not ours if the book of Hebrews be true. And the ONLY way to enter into this rest was by faith, by belief, not works.
HEBREWS 4:1 Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. 2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. 3 For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. 4 For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works. 5 And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest. 6 Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: 7 Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. 8 For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. 9 There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
Notice verse 9, there REMAINS A REST for God’s people. Meaning people hadnt yet entered into it spiritually. Many during the time the book of Hebrews was written were LITERALLY performing the tradition of not working and such on the “Sabbath” but this tradition, in my opinion, is yet more a carnal mankind taking the truth of God and turning it into another vain tradition that leads no one to the TRUE REST that awaits… we are to CEASE from OUR WORKS. It’s NOT about us, it’s about God and doing God’s will. This is why Jesus said, not my will Lord but thine be done.
Hebrews 4:10 For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
Now, unlike many who will tell people how they must serve God via rights, traditions, and works, I dont ever tell anyone how to practice their faith. Simply put, entering into Gods rest in my opinion is ceasing to do evil, to stop behaving wickedly… to have and hold faith above all else. To trust that God is in control and to not Kick against the Pricks that God uses to keep you on the straight and narrow path. To cease from doing evil and to do good, that is key.
Jesus healed on the LITERAL Sabbath day… and they gave him a hard time for that… his response was… the SABBATH REST is to do GOOD.
Matthew 12:12 – Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.
How does one defile or pollute the Sabbath? It’s simple doing evil.
Isaiah 56:1-3 Thus saith the Lord, Keep ye judgment, and do justice: for my salvation is near to come, and my righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil.
It is also important to note that the Sabbath is a promise of God. That it is a gift for all of mankind to enter into. Jesus explained clearly that the Sabbath was made for MAN not the other way around.
Mark 2:27 – And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath.
Now as I stated earlier, the literal tradition of keeping the Sabbath was a pattern. It was a physical representation of what it means to enter into God’s presence and Kingdom. Just as literal baptism and the laying on of hands and more. This is why we are told to move pass these temporal things and into the unity of the Holy Spirit. We are encouraged to move unto perfection. Not being justified in our works like getting literally baptized, fasting, or not working on Saturday, all of these things are as a pattern for us all.
Hebrews 6:1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, 2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.
Not laying again the foundation of dead works… you see these are a foundation. A building block, a pattern for us to learn from. They are as the book of Colossians states A SHADOW of the THINGS TO COME.
Colossians 2: 16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the SABBATH days: 17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ
Notice, we are instructed to not let anyone JUDGE US in what we eat or drink or how we celebrate holy days… or of SABBATHS… so not only is it wrong for Sabbath teachers to condemn others for not adhering to their interpretation of what the Sabbath is, but that this interpretation is called a SHADOW of THINGS TO COME… meaning ITS NOT THE LIGHT, it’s something that BLOCKS THE LIGHT. Get it?
We are also instructed not to be unequally yoked with unbelievers. Believe it or not, a unbeliever would be someone who believes we can WORK our way to the Kingdom of God. An unbeliever is someone who will say to Jesus, how dare you eat without washing your hands first. Which once again is a shadow for us to learn from.
Eating we learned earlier is to do God’s will. Hands symbolic of our works. We are NOT MEANT to do God’s will with unclean hands, which quite clearly means a sinful life.
Hebrews 4:9 – There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
A day where we REST in the Spirit of God, no more doing what we will but what God wills for us… no more fear, no more hate, prejudice, no more worry and doubt and pain… as GOD RESTED from his WORK we must stop working ourselves and ENTER INTO HIS REST. Meaning, we have FAITH because it is impossible to please God without it.
I believe the traditional LITERAL Sabbath rest was a pattern that we are all meant to enter into on the SEVENTH DAY — which may not be a literal day of a literal week as well, but the close of God’s creation… The Thousand year reign of Christ if you will… a day when Gods Kingdom is Established in the earth… this is the DAY we ALL MUST ENTER INTO TO.
2 Peter 3:8
But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one dayis with the Lord as athousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
Now does that mean we cannot enter into God’s Rest now? God forbid. This REST is a promise for us all to enter into. It is important to note that to do this we MUST keep his Sabbath Holy.
Exodus 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
And how do we do this? The rest of Exodus gives us the commandments…
Exodus 20: 12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. 13 Thou shalt not kill. 14 Thou shalt not commit adultery. 15 Thou shalt not steal. 16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.
I hope you all can see that the vain traditions and dead works of religion were all there for us to learn from. Like the boy who cried wolf, it is not about the literal boy or the literal wolf, it is about what do we learn from the SPIRIT of the STORY. Because it is the SPIRIT of the story that gives us LIFE AND TRUE UNDERSTANDING. And we are meant to be MINISTERS of a NEW TESTAMENT! One that doesn’t go here or there judging how religious traditions are kept. No, we are meant to move unto perfect and into the glorious Kingdom God has prepared for us in the here and now.
2 Corinthians 3:6 – Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, BUT THE SPIRIT GIVES LIFE.
Once again, this is simply the way I understand God’s Sabbath Rest and I do pray we ALL ENTER IN… I hope this helps, because I do know a lot of people want to make a whole religion over keeping the Sabbath… the problem is they are MAKING IT ABOUT THEIR WORKS… meaning NOT WORKING, NOT DOING THIS AND THAT… but in so doing they are DOING THEIR WORK instead of GODS to do that, this seems to be a religious tradition to me, which we are told to avoid.
However, to be HOLY to enter Gods Rest, to have Faith, to Keep His Commandments, this is what I believe it means to keep the Sabbath and I believe that day is coming for many, and I pray and hope it has come for ALL OF YOU.
Much love Jacob – Once again, I’m not the authority God is, always pray and seek and use Godly judgment, not worldly.
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