Good article.
As with so many of GOD’s commandments, Jews obey because it was YAHWEH’s law... and Christians obey because they understand that the Father loves us and gives us instruction in living that will BENEFIT us.
“The Sabbath was made for man”, said JESUS, “and not man for the Sabbath.”
There are two parts to this commandment: the work part and the rest part. Six days you shall work and do all your labor and on the seventh day you shall rest. Prager was good to address the rest part; but, Jesus was not an either/or man, he was a both/and man. Both parts are important. To be happy, man needs to be productive. Indeed, without the work part, the rest part is meaningless. Rest from what? The cycles of work and rest include the annual cycle as well as the weekly, and also the seven year cycle, the fifty year cycle, and even the cycle of life and death.
The Shmitah relates to years. Is he keeping the Shmitah, too? We're currently in the Shmitah year.
The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week. How the Roman Church changed the day its followers observe from the seventh day to the eighth is an interesting story more recently documented by the late Dr. Samuele Bacchiocchi in his book, From Sabbath to Sunday, published by Pope Gregorian University. (ISBN-10: 9998203945) Dr. Bacchiocchi was awarded a gold medal for his scholarship.
At least with respect to a day of rest, the majority of Christians don’t even observe that. Even one of the recent popes complained that his followers only observe an hour of rest if that. It is for this reason that they seem to treat the Ten Commandments more as a cultural icon than a set of operative living laws that must be respected and obeyed.
There are a small but surprisingly vigorous community of Sabbath-keeping Christians. Some make their Sabbath services and literature available online.
For example, see:
http://www.ucg.org/doctrinal-beliefs/sabbath/
for those who reject Christ, keeping the Sabbath makes perfect sense.
for those in Christ, we rest in Christ, He is our Sabbath.
We follow the law of Christ, namely to believe in Him and love one another.
Impossible today. Power plants, hospitals, must be fully staffed 24-7. Same for water plants and other utilities.
I still remember the olden days with the blue laws when, if you were traveling, you had to hunt for a cafe or gas station opened on Sunday because local laws required the towns to close down. And IF a store was open, you were forbidden to sell certain items on that day.
I remember our local drug store opened on Sunday. You could buy a newspaper, but NOTHING ELSE!
Religion wise, all Christians look to Jesus as the center of their faith. Sabbatharians look to the Sabbath.
As it was said by St Paul, “Believe on the Lord Jesus and you shall be saved!”
As the Sabbatharian preacher on AMAZING FACTS said years ago, “You are saved by GRACE if you keep the Sabbath”!
No mention of Jesus.
In America, Christmas, a tradition of men, an unbiblical feast day, is observed by both believers in Christ and unbelievers, every year, without fail. Businesses close. People have a feast. They have a tree inside their house. They give each other gifts.
Yet most Americans dishonor the Christian Sabbath. They watch sports, go shopping, go out to eat, find time for recreation. Many go to Church, then get on with their weekend fun. Others don’t even bother to go to Church.
52 times per year they reject the 4th commandment.
These same people will sometimes arrogantly spout off about eschatology, being led astray by false teachers, and they often maintain that they are not subject to Biblical moral law, that they have license to sin because Christ paid for their sins.
They childishly and stubbornly refuse to admit that there is a difference between Old Testament moral laws, which are permanent and timeless, and Old Testament ceremonial laws, which all served to point to Christ, so, after Christ’s ministry, sacrificial death and resurrection, they are fulfilled and are pointless to carry on afterwards. In fact, it is an outright rejection of Christ to carry on in ceremonial laws which pointed to Christ.
God’s moral laws, on the other hand, are unchanging as God is unchanging. Murder was against God’s Law in Old Testament times, and it continues to be against God’s Law as Christ reigns over his Kingdom at the right hand of God the Father.
Romans 3:31
Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.
Romans 6
1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?
2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
Romans 6:15
What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
I love Dennis’s outlook on humanity and morality. Excellent.
What work does a Jew or 10-Commandment-observant fellow avoid on the Sabbath? (I’m baiting here... Jews have an Oral ,Rabbinical tradition to follow. For non-Jews I have no idea what constitutes “work”... the word being “malacha” in Hebrew, which is different than exertion or labor or 9-to-5)
Noahide laws have recently been studied and expounded by some of the finest rabbinic minds in world Jewry today (orthodox Jewry...) Here is the majority opinion
http://noahideworldcenter.org/wp_en/?p=222
Do the 10 Commandments even apply to non-Jews? (in essence, yes)
http://noahideworldcenter.org/wp_en/?p=224
These are the orthodox mainstream Jewish opinions. BTW Jews are commanded to spread THIS good word (7 Noahide Laws and the ir expounded meanings/requirements) to non-Jews. You just didn’t get too much of it as Cossacks were pounding our heads in. G-d bless America and her soapbox. Preach on brother Jews everywhere. Halleluka.
The Sabbath was an old testament type.. It foreshadowed Jesus . Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath ... Remember that the curtain in the temple was rent from the top to the bottom ..showing the end of the rituals , the sacrifices and entering into a New, but better Covenant ... Jesus is our Sabbath rest .. we can cease from “working” and rest in Him in faith
God gave the Sabbath to the Israelites as a sign between God and the Israelites (Ex. 31:17). The Sabbath made the Israelites different from other nations—but Paul says that the laws that separated Jews and Gentiles have been done away by the cross of Christ (Eph. 2:11-18).... There is no longer a law to keep the Sabbath ..that type was fulfilled ...
Isa_56:2 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.
Isa_56:6 Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the LORD, to serve him, and to love the name of the LORD, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant;
Isa_58:13 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, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:
Isa_66:23 And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.