How do you keep the sabbath holy?

I'd like to offer my thoughts on why the Sabbath was first ordained at creation week.

It was a type right from the start. First God worked--creating the heavens and the earth, then He rested. The Sabbath was the LAST day of the week. Thus the pattern was set for man. Man was to work first, and look forward to the rest to come later. In Israel, man's work was to keep the Laws of God--and to look forward to a rest (cessation of the OT Law) yet to come.

Bottom line: OT Israel looked forward to a rest to come in the Messiah.

But once Christ was raised from the dead, the works of the Law ceased! He was raised on the FIRST day of the week to illustrate the new order. He was raised as the first man of the new creation. Christ finished His work on the first day. Then ever after, believers rest in His finished work. We look back on His finished work!

Bottom line: the NT church looks back on upon the finished work of Christ, resting in Him.

The typology is simple, yet profound.

In Christ,

Tim

 

You conflate two different groups of people The "you" of the verse you cite was Israel, who was living under the Mosaic Law. The "us" that you are referring to is believers, who are not under the Mosaic Law. Don't apply Scripture wrongly.

This isn't said anywhere in Scripture that I know of. Do you have some support for this?? The day of rest predated the sin problem. So we know that a day of rest has nothing to do with sin or saving our miserable hides.

And in this very statement, Christ violated the Sabbath day by working. Seems strange you would cite a verse for support when Christ does the very thing you are arguing we should not do.

 

Actually incorrect. Paul is addressing those who are being shamed into keeping holy days. Paul is saying they are of no value (vv. 23).

Absolutely right ... Paul is talking about dietary regulations from the OT Law. They are done away with, just like the celebration of certain days.

Not at all. You are missing the whole point of Colossians. Paul is telling the Gentile believers that the Judaizers are incorrect for trying to make them celebrate it.

Paul expressly says that we are not under the Law (Rom 10:4; Gal 3). He says that if we keep part of the Law, we have to keep it all (Gal 5) and condemns those who teach that. Paul is tellign the church at Colossae that they do not have to keep the Law. They are free from it because Christ died.

Nothing particularly.

Because the Bible says so. What other reason do we need?

 

Can somebody showw me a Scripture that states that the Ressurection of Christ took place on the Sunday?

Why does it say in prophecy in Isaiah 66:20-23 that the church will stream forward from all the nations to come up with the children of Israel and worship with them one sabbath to another, if the sabbath is finished?

 

BenW,

Is this a trick question? All the gospels refer to Christ's rising on the first day of the week. Try Mark 16:9 for one.

As far as your citation of Isaiah goes--it's a perfect example of the typology of the OT--which refered to NT events in OT terms. Thankfully the NT is a great commentary on the OT so these things become clearer there.

It's neat (to me at least)the way the OT is veiled, yet gives us clues of what's ahead. For example, Isaiah 66:19 mentions Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, and Tubal and Javan as places where God's glory would be declared among the gentiles. By NT times, these places were more commonly known as Ethiopia, Asia Minor, and Greece--places in which Acts specifically records the introduction of the gospel.

In Christ,

Tim

 

skanwmatos,

re: “We worship, as the bible commands, on the first day of the week, Sunday, in celebration of His resurrection...”

I’m not aware of any scripture that says that. Could you please identify your references.

 

We worship on Sunday because we are patterned after the New Testament Church.

I do not "keep the Sabbath", just as there are many other OT laws I don't keep. That is the only of the Ten Commandments not specifically restated in the New Testament BTW.

Jesus didn't always keep the Sabbath

 

This very interesting but I believed that God have establish that rest upon Jesus Christ for He was the only one to bare the cost of it. If we out too keep the Sabbath days are we not also out too keep the animal sacrifices? Is part of the law! A shadow that was place behind for the perfect sacrifice to come in and fulfill that payment. That is how I view it and read it.

 

Tim,

I stand Corrected, Mark 16:9 certainley does say that Jesus Christ Arose on the first day of the week.

I note that there is a not below saying that the scriptures from verse 9 onwards are not in the oldest manuscripts. Yet I do believe that the Bible as we have it is the correct cannon that God wanted us to have, so I will not use the note below as some type of cop out.

Mark 16:9 does say that Christ rose on Sunday. And to be honest it is the first time that I have seen it that way.

For me personally I cant see how I could keep the Sabbath to the letter of the law of the Old Testament. The Travelling restriction would get me for starters.

Yet why I advocate the church meeting on the Sabbath is because the Bible records the early church as doing so in Acts 13:42. I believe that the Catholic Church encouraged Anti semitism and the official change of the Sabbath in order to be seperate from the Jews. As I see it in Acts 13 it was common for the weekly church assembly to be on in the afternoon after synagogue in order to reach the Jewish people. It is a fact that the Gentiles are "Grafted" on to the Jewish root, and that God has called us to bring the Gospel to the Jews. I think that as we have gone forward in time we have seen the church move away from its understanding of Judaism and how Jewish people think and respond to the Gospel. I think it is a pity that there is a seperation between the Jewish Messianic believers and the churches. It is for that reason that I think that meeting on the Sabbath is a good idea, in order to follow the model of the early church.

 

skanwmatos --- Hebrew 4:9 says "there remains a keeping of a Sabbath rest to the people of God." And all Christians are "people of God".

Jesus is still the Lord of the Sabbath; the Sabbath is HIS day, Jesus acknowledged that (Matt. 12:8).

JESUS SAID THE SABBATH WAS MADE FOR MANKIND (Mark 2:27-28) -- NOT JUST THE JEWS.

Most Christians have Sunday for a symbol.

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Can somebody show me a Scripture that states that the Ressurection of Christ took place on the Sunday?

All that the "Sunday" reference show is when the women went to the tomb and found it empty.

Since commas were not used in the original language, the translators put it where they thought it should go. Mark 16:9 can also be rendered:

"Now when Jesus was risen, early the first day of the week he appeared first to Mary Magdalene....." This would agree with verse 2 of chapter 16.

http://www.centuryone.com/crucifixion.html -link

 

27 And He said to them, The Sabbath came into being for man's sake, and not man for the Sabbath’s sake.
It was for the man’s sake for in that Sabbath of rest they would come to God by offerings for their sins so that the wrath of God would not consume them.

qt
the sabbath was made for man; for his good, and not for his hurt; both for the good of his soul, that he might have an opportunity of attending divine worship, both in public and private; and for the good of his body, that he might have rest from his labour; and this was the end of the original institution and appointment of it; and therefore works of necessity are not forbidden on this day; such as are for the necessary comfort, support, and preservation of life; or otherwise it would be apparent, that the sabbath was not appointed for the good, but for the hurt of men. By "man", is not meant all mankind; for the sabbath was never appointed for all mankind, nor binding upon all;

 

BenW,

It is absolutely necessary that Christianity be separated from Judaism.

The Hebrew faith looked forward to the Messiah--those who believed in Him became the church. Their worship thus focused upon the resurrection as the central date in history-- so Sunday worship was a natural(not antisemetic) development.

But those Hebrews who continue to keep the Sabbath, in type overlook one significant aspect of Christ's resurrection, i.e. the finishing of the work. It is now behind us! We are no longer working (labors of the OT Law)--we have entered His rest. Thus the new sabbath symbolically begins the week AND JUST KEEPS GOING... AND GOING ...

Tim

PS. I appreciate your concesstion on Mark 16:9. It takes a real man to admit when he's wrong. So if I'm ever wrong, I'll be quick to admit it.

 

OK, OK --I just spelled concession wrong.

Tim

 

Tim,

re: “All the gospels refer to Christ's rising on the first day of the week. Try Mark 16:9 for one.”

With the possible exception of Mark 16:9, none of the gospels say anything about a first day of the week resurrection. And as has been noted, most good study Bible versions in their notes question whether Mark wrote verses 9-20 as opposed to them being added at a later date. But even if verse 9 were authentic it could just as well be translated with the comma being placed after the word “risen” (past tense) instead of after the word “week”. As you know, punctuation marks were not in the early writings and had to be determined by the translators according to their subjective understanding of the text’s meaning. Several versions that place the comma after “risen” are “The Centenary Translation”, “The Sacred Scriptures-Bethel Edition”, The Contemporary English Version”, and “God’s New Covenant-A New Testament Translation”. You really shouldn’t base the Sunday resurrection theory on such a questionable verse.

 

rstrats --

Thanks for those Bible translations that have the comma after "risen" - I want to check it out.

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Jesus' statement that the "Sabbath was made for MAN (Mark 2:27-28), presents a glorious and far-reaching maxim for the permanent establishment of the Sabbath and of the true FREEDOM of its observance.

Jesus further explains that HE is Lord even of the Sabbath day, not surely to abolish it -- that truly were a strange lordship, especially just after saying it was made and instituted for MAN -- but to own it, to interpret it, to preside over it and to ennoble it.

Jesus breathed a new air of liberty and love into the Day, giving the Sabbath new life and freedom in His Gospel.

In light of Jesus’ statement, it will be hard to show that the apostle Paul meant the Sabbath day to vanquish away, in regards to the New Testament Church. Even more so if the Sabbath day was more ancient than Judaism and if the Lawgiver Himself said of it when on earth, “The Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath Day”.

 

Why do you want to hold onto those OT shadows so tenaciously? The type is so clearly fulfilled in Christ.

If Christ actually rose on the last day of the week, why is there not a hint of it in the gospels? Everything points (even when not explicitly stated) to His rising on the first day of the week.

He is the firstfruits of the new creation. All the symbolism fits (as I detailed previously). Hebrews 3, 4 spells this out.

Your bias toward the Old Covenant is showing.

In Christ,

Tim

 

Tim,

IMO, If Christ actually rose on the first day of the week, why is there not a hint of it in the gospels?

Where is the evidence?

 

Matthew 28:1 seems like a bit of a hint. Matthew 28:1 Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave.

Clearly, Christ had not been risen for very long when these ladies came. In fact, all four of the gospels testify to the first day resurrection of Christ from the dead. There is no reason to believe anything different.

 

I do what the Commandment prescribes:

I worship, and I rest.

Surprisingly, I've found that worshipping is easy. Rest, otoh, is hard.