THE LORD OF THE SABBATH

“ ‘The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath’ " (Mark 2:27, 28, NKJV).

The seventh-day Sabbath, in every way, points us to Jesus, our Creator and our Redeemer.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:1–13).

That is, Jesus as Creator and Jesus as Redeemer.

THE SABBATH IN GENESIS

Genesis 2: ¹ Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. ² By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. ³ Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

How many times the phrase “the seventh day” is repeated in Genesis 2:1–3. What possible significance does that repetition have?

The special blessing is for the seventh day and no other…With the creation of the seventh-day Sabbath, God ended His creative work. He took the seven days of time and crafted them into a week….Thus, God demonstrates His manifold power over not just space and the things of space but over time, as well.

How important, then, that we learn to trust the Lord with the little amount of time we have here on earth…How well do you use your time? What things occupy your time? How might you use your time, the little bit you have here, better? 

 

THE SABBATH IN EXODUS

Exodus 20: ⁸ “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. ⁹ Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. ¹¹ For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

 

THE SABBATH IN DEUTERONOMY

Deuteronomy 5: ¹² “Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the LORD your God has commanded you. ¹³ Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁴ but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns, so that your male and female servants may rest, as you do. ¹⁵ Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.

The Sabbath, on a purely practical level, offered servants some protection from the master who would work them nonstop—a protection built right into a commandment that had its origins in Creation itself.

Thus, as first conceived, the Sabbath was a symbol of Creation; after sin, it came to be a symbol of both Creation and Redemption, which is itself a type of re-creation…Both versions of the commandment show that the seventh-day Sabbath is the symbol of the work of Jesus, our Creator and our Redeemer.

^{John 1: 10} He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him…¹² Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— ¹³ children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

 

JESUS AND HIS SABBATH 1

Matt.12: ⁷ If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’^[a] you would not have condemned the innocent.

Properly kept, the Sabbath allows us more opportunity to show kindness and mercy to those in need than would other days of the week when we are forced to earn a living…The Sabbath had become law without love, which is harsh legalism. This is what Jesus was fighting against by His Sabbath healing.

 

JESUS AND HIS SABBATH 2

Jesus, through His Sabbath miracles, demonstrated what the Sabbath is really about. It is a day for healing and restoration. Jesus intended for the Sabbath to call to mind God’s creative power. Thus, the Sabbath is the day when He frees the captives (Luke 4:31–37), makes the lame walk (Luke 13:10–17, John 5:1–9), and restores sight to the blind (John 9).

For Jesus, the Sabbath was more about people than about rules, which is no doubt partly why He made His famous statement about the Sabbath being made for humankind and not humankind for the Sabbath.

After He cried out, “It is finished!” (John 19:30), that is, after His work of Redemption (prior to His heavenly intercession) was done, what does Jesus do? He rested on the seventh day. Sound familiar? Where have we already seen that? Of course, in Genesis 2:1–3. After God’s work of creation, He rested on the seventh day. Now, after His work of Redemption, He does the same thing.


FURTHER STUDY
“Should God forbid the sun to perform its office upon the Sabbath, cut off its genial rays from warming the earth and nourishing vegetation?… “In such a case, men would miss the fruits of the earth, and the blessings that make life desirable…He will not be held guiltless who neglects to relieve suffering on the Sabbath. God’s holy rest day was made for man, and acts of mercy are in perfect harmony with its intent. God does not desire His creatures to suffer an hour’s pain that may be relieved upon the Sabbath or any other day.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, pp. 206, 207
  
Examine more…this idea that God rested after His work of Creation and His work of Redemption. How are we to understand the significance of this amazing fact?

The Bible reveals the Lord as the Lord of the seventh-day Sabbath, the most basic sign of Him as Creator and Redeemer.

The Experiential version from the Collegiate Quarterly www.cqbiblestudy.org

INTRODUCTIION: WHY DO WE REMEMBER?

Ex.20: ⁸ “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.

…this day, which is more than just another day of the week, holds God’s own holy imprint, and that it is a sign and a reminder of not only His creative and sanctifying power, but also of His Lordship and His goodness to humanity.

Afia Birago Donkor, Ontario, Canada

 

LOGOS: THE LORD OF THE SABBATH

Mark 2:23-28

New International Version (NIV)

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

Mark 2: ²³ One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. ²⁴ The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

 ²⁵ He answered, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? ²⁶ In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.”

 ²⁷ Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. ²⁸ So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Why was it permissible for David and his companions to eat the shewbread, when by God’s command only the priests were to eat it? Presumably, it was permissible because they were hungry, and eating the shewbread was their only option to satisfy that hunger. In such a case, human need was more important than religious form (the sacred­ness of the shewbread). In the same way, Jesus’ disciples were not at fault because they, too, were in need of food, and picking heads of grain from a field was lawful. The fact that they were doing it on the Sabbath didn’t make any difference.

With such laws, Jews must have constantly worried if even the simplest activities on the Sabbath were violations of the commandment. With such a mind-set, there must have been very little opportunity for enjoying the Sabbath.

God created humans to need rest, to need spiritual rejuvenation, and He created the Sabbath to meet that need. It’s not as if God needed His Sabbath to be kept, and so created humans to meet that need.

Ellen White encouraged the church to read and to put into practice Isaiah 58, which reminds us that God is displeased when we put the forms of religion before people in need.

Yes, Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath. This is great news. He alone deter­mines what the purpose of the Sabbath is, and He has determined that it should be a blessing and a delight to humans (Isa. 58:13).

Are you blessed by the Sabbath each week, or has it become a burden to you? If it is a blessing, how can you share that blessing with others?

Luke Self, Overland Park, Kansas, U.S.A.

 

TESTIMONY: DELIGHTING IN THE SABBATH

^{Gen.1: 31} God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

“There was joy at the institution of the Sabbath. God looked with satis­faction upon the work of His hands. All things that He had made He pro­nounced ‘very good.’ ”1 “Because He had rested upon the Sabbath, ‘God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it,’—set it apart to a holy use. He gave it to Adam as a day of rest.” The Desire of Ages, p. 281.

“Because the Sabbath was made for man, it is the Lord’s day. It be­longs to Christ.  For ‘all things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.’ John 1:3. Since He made all things, He made the Sabbath.  By Him it was set apart as a memorial of the work of creation. It points to Him as both the Creator and the Sanctifier. . . .To all who receive the Sabbath as a sign of Christ’s creative and redeeming power, it will be a delight. Seeing Christ in it, they delight themselves in Him. . . . And every object in nature repeats His invitation, ‘Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.’ ” The Desire of Ages, pp. 288, 289.

Compiled by Kimi-Roux James, Westbury, New York, U.S.A.

 

EVIDENCE: THE SABBATH: TOUCHING THE FACE OF GOD

Genesis 2: ¹ Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. ² By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. ³ Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

During the French Revolution, Napoleon and his supporters wanted to abolish all vestiges of Christianity, which included the seven-day weekly cycle. So they created a new calendar named the French Revolutionary Calendar or the French Republican Calendar, which was used for about 12 years from late 1793. Eventually this “calendar was abolished because having a ten-day work week gave workers less rest (one day off every ten instead of one day off every seven).”

Nature testifies to an infinite, eternal, omnipotent, omni­scient, living, personal God, who cares so much for His human creation that He set aside an entire day so they could rest. Our need to rest is paramount to our survival, especially now because of the effects of sin. Without the rest God affords us on the Sabbath, we’d fall apart physically, psychologically, and spiritually. This is the work of the Master Designer who knew what we would need before He created us. Thus in the Sabbath we get a glimpse of a loving God who gave us a special time not only to rest, but to commune with Him in special ways and to commemorate His creation.

During the Sabbath, God invites us to touch Him.

Have you considered what it would be like for you to be on the go all the time?

Sammy R. Browne, Westbury, New York, U.S.A.

 

HOW TO:    HANDLING THE SABBATH WITH CARE

Make sure you know the Artist...If you don’t know the Maker of the Sabbath, it’s hard to treasure the gift of the Sabbath.

  

Be purposeful in how you keep the Sabbath…Choose activities that will reap rich spiritual dividends, such as in-depth Bible study, special prayer time, na­ture walks, or being of service to someone.

Plan for the Sabbath throughout the week…The Sabbath was made for humanity because God knew how much we would need time with Him. Handling the Sabbath with care may take thought and effort, but the rewards of a deepened relationship with God that the Sabbath gives us are endless.

Julie Cook, Altamonte Springs, Florida, U.S.A.

OPINION:    THE SON OF MAN IS IN CHARGE OF THE SABBATH

The Sabbath is a special day given to us as both a privilege and a command…It’s a day in which we can find rest both mentally and physi­cally, which helps us to be ready for the six days of work that will follow. Faithfully keeping the Sabbath helps us to appreciate being able to rest from all our toil and cares.

Whenever we as humans begin to focus on the actual Sabbath day more than on the Lord of the Sabbath, we are departing from the heart of His command.

They were more concerned about a law being bro­ken rather than the comfort and well-being of people…The Son of Man is in charge of the Sabbath; thus He focuses more on the hearts of His people rather than on rituals.

Michelle Bobb-Semple, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.

 

EXPLORATION:    PRACTICING HIS PRESENCE

^{Isaiah 66: 23} From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me,” says the LORD.

Matt.12: ⁸ For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

^{Mark 2: 27} Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

“It [the Sabbath] was designed to keep the living God ever before the minds of men as the source of being and the object of reverence and wor­ship.” Chris Blake, Searching for a God to Love, chap. 8, “I Got No Time for God.”

When the Sabbath is all God planned it to be, we’ll begin to sense His presence more fully and experience a relationship with Him that will continue throughout eternity.

Renee Coffee, Gobles, Michigan, U.S.A.

 

GOD THE LAWGIVER. “For the Lord is our Judge, the Lord is our Lawgiver, the Lord is our King; He will save us" (Isaiah 33:22, NKJV).
God’s law is an inseparable part of the whole Bible, Old and New Testament. It is also an expression of His love. And so, when we love, we reveal the fullness and beauty of God’s law.

When we understand God’s law as a hedge, a protection, something created for us, for our own good, then we come to understand more about what God is like.

Jo Ann Davidson, Professor of Theology, Andrews University, www.ssnet.org

A LOVE AS TOUGH AS THE DESERT. Ex.16: ²⁹ Bear in mind that the LORD has given you the Sabbath; that is why on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Everyone is to stay where they are on the seventh day; no one is to go out.” ³⁰ So the people rested on the seventh day.

Similarly, what kind of God would we have if, after creating us and claim­ing to love us, gave us no guidelines on how to live our lives?

Thus God, being the loving God that He is, provided a law by which we are to live…It is a law given to us because of His great love for us; and because of that, we regard our keeping of it as being based on our love for Him and for humanity (Luke 18:18–22).

Trufosa Mochache, Collegiate Quarterly, www.cqbiblestudy.org

THE LAW AT SINAI. Ex.19: ¹⁸La montagne de Sinaï était tout en fumée, parce que l'Éternel y était descendu au milieu du feu; cette fumée s'élevait comme la fumée d'une fournaise, et toute la montagne tremblait avec violence. ¹⁹Le son de la trompette retentissait de plus en plus fortement. Moïse parlait, et Dieu lui répondait à haute voix.

Hébreux 12: ²¹Et ce spectacle était si terrible que Moïse dit: Je suis épouvanté et tout tremblant!

“For as God’s great rule of right was presented before them, they realized as never before the offensive character of sin, and their own guilt in the sight of a holy God. They shrank away from the mountain in fear and awe.”—Ellen G. White
It was right after the giving of the law that they were given instructions to build the sanctuary, which revealed to them the plan of salvation. The law was to point people to the Cross, to their need of atonement and Redemption. No wonder, then, that they trembled before the law, because the law showed them just how sinful and fallen they were.

Psalm 119: ⁶ Then I would not be put to shame when I consider all your commands.

The problem is not with God’s law; the problem is with sinners who have violated the law, as we all have done. Paul is showing how the law is inseparably tied to the gospel, that the law is what shows us just how sinful and fallen we are.

THE DAY A MOUNTAIN DANCED. Ex.19: ⁹ The LORD said to Moses, “I am going to come to you in a dense cloud, so that the people will hear me speaking with you and will always put their trust in you.” Then Moses told the LORD what the people had said.

^{Ex.19: 18} Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain^[a] trembled violently.

Prior to descending to meet with His people, God instructed Moses to have them sanctify themselves for two days, and on the third day He would visit them.

“Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever.”

Like the Sinai experience, Christ’s coming will be glorious, literal, visible, audible, and dramatic.

“God’s law is given for two basic reasons—for our joy and protection. The Ten Commandments were not written to restrict our happiness; they free us to enjoy life to the fullest. Obedience is the doorway to happiness.”* The psalmist also discovered that “great peace have those who love Your law, / and nothing causes them to stumble” (Ps. 119:165, NKJV).

T. Makini Mogere, Collegiate Quarterly, www.cqbiblestudy.org