The Lord of
the Sabbath.
Are the 10
commandments applicable to the church today?
John
Owen (1616-1683) is called the prince of the puritan theologians. And I am
going to use John Owens arguments against the modern church that the 10
commandments, the moral law of God is not abolished.
Let us see some of the scriptures that John Owen uses to show "uttermost
tittle" of the law of God is still required of us: Matthew 5:17, 1 John
3:4, Romans 3:31, James 2:8-10.
1) Matthew 5:17 establishes the abiding validity of the law.
Mt 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am
not come to destroy, but to fulfill.
Owen chooses this passage because it is the thesis of Christ's first sermon
(Matthew 5-7). Christ did not come to destroy the law but to "fill it to
the full (plhrwsai) The Beatitudes was where Christ exposed the law.
Ro 7:7 What shall
we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the
law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.
Mt 22:37 Jesus said
unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy
soul, and with all thy mind.
38 This is the
first and great commandment.
39 And the second
is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
40 On these two
commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
In the 10
Commandments the fourth commandment is treated more extensively than the other
commandments. Many Christians are so confused today when it comes to the fourth
commandment, the Sabbath Day. There are some who teach it does not apply to the
church today, in that case there are no 10 commandments there are only 9
commandments, which should be "Ennealogue," not of the Decalogue.
Calvin believes the
external observances of the fourth commandment the ceremonial laws of it were abolished
by the Lord Jesus Christ, but the moral law still continues. John Calvin said,
yes the ceremonial law the shadows that contains the Sabbath is done away, but
the moral law of the Sabbath still continues.
Only
the ceremonial law was abolished in Christ Jesus, and there is nowhere in the
scriptures to show that the moral law was abolished.
Philip
Schaff the great church historian who wrote volumes of church history said,
"It is incorporated in the Decalogue [the Ten Commandments], the moral
law, which Christ did not come to destroy, but to fulfill, and which cannot be
robbed of one commandment without injury to all the rest." (Taken from
the eight volume History of the Christian Church by Philip Schaff; volume 1,
pages 476-480.) Also he said, " Next to the Church and the
Bible, the Lord's Day is the chief pillar of Christian society."
The
ceremonial law was done away when Christ fulfilled its types, but in the Moral
Law, which was written by the finger of God Himself upon tables of stone, to
signify to us its permanent nature."
I
am going to show now that the Sabbath Day points to the Lord Jesus Christ as
Jesus said, he is the Lord of the Sabbath. This is very significant in the Old
Testament. The Old Testament is the Gospel in the bud; the New Testament is the
Gospel in full flower.
The
word Sabbath means to rest. We need to go to the book of Genesis to see the
significance of the Sabbath Day.
2
And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on
the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that
in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made. (Genesis
2:2-3)
First
we see on verse two God rested on the seventh Day from all his work. It does
not mean that God was very tired and he had to take a physical rest. We know
that God is spirit so he does not need a physical rest. Isaiah 40:28
"Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the
LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?
there is no searching of his understanding." It does not say
on the seventh day God did not do any work, if God stopped work on the seventh
day the entire universe would have crashed, as he governs the universe. God's
activities on the seventh day was different than the previous six days.
We see on verse three that God blessed the seventh day and sanctified.
When God created all kinds of animals, fish, creatures and the birds he blessed
them. ( Genesis 1:22) Then again when God created man and woman he
blessed them. (Genesis 1:28) Now we see the day that God rested the Sabbath
Day he blessed.
Genesis
2:2-3 is the key for our correct understanding of the Sabbath Day.
The blessing is transmitted from the greater to the lesser. It was always the
father who blessed their children, and God to his creatures as we saw in
Genesis 1:22 and 1:28. and in here the Sabbath Day was blessed. That God
blessed it for someone who is lesser than him. He did not bless the
Sabbath Day for the Angels nor for the animals but for another lesser creature
and that is man. The Sabbath day is a blessing for man.
Mark 2:27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and
not man for the sabbath:
The Sabbath was made for man. So when God blessed the Sabbath day and the
blessing is for man.
For
us to understand the reason for the blessing we need to study the balance
portion of the scripture in Genesis 2:3. Not only God blessed the seventh day
he sanctified it. The Hebrew word for sanctified is qodesh
means holy and sacred it is unique from the others.
It
is like black and white, there is a difference. It is like Christian and non
Christian. To the Christian Sunday is the Christian Sabbath Day and it is a
blessing to hear the word of God and to worship God, to have fellowship with
the brethren and to do service for Gods glory. On the other hand the non
Christian will tell Sunday is the only day I can sleep, it is the day for me to
watch the football game, it is the day for me to enjoy in the flesh. It is holy
and unholy.
Ex 31:13 Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my
sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your
generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you.
14 Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you:
every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth
any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.
15 Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of
rest, holy to the LORD: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall
surely be put to death.
16 Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to
observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant.
17 It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for
in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested,
and was refreshed.
In
the Old Testament, it is a commandment to keep the Sabbath Day holy as it was
the day of redemption.
De 5:15 And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and
that the LORD thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a
stretched out arm: therefore the LORD thy God commanded thee to keep the
sabbath day.
Ex
20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Why
did God mentioned in the Ten Commandments, remember the Sabbath Day?
Remember is something that you knew of. The Sabbath is mentioned soon
after the redemption of the Israelites from their enemies.
Ex
16:23 And he said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, To morrow
is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake to
day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for
you to be kept until the morning.
In
the same way Sabbath Day is reserved for us to look back to the cross and
remind the people of that great deliverance. How we were delivered from the
hand of Satan and sin. We see in the Sabbath the redemption of his elect.
The Israelites were redeemed by God from the enemy and God wanted them to
remember that day and to give reverance for him on the day that was set
apart. And this is a sign only between him and his people as he made a
covenant with his elect. The greatest redemption was when the Lord Jesus
came and delivered us from Satan's bondage and he made a sign of his delivery
on the cross with his blood, and the day was changed to the first day of the
week the Lord's Day. The ultimate purpose of the Sabbath day has to do
with redemption of man.
In
Genesis 2:2-3 we see God's work on creation and the seventh day which is
blessed for man, the holy day is reserved for the Lord of the Sabbath who will
come and redeem his people who were lost, there will be a new creation of man,
the old man will die and there will be a new creation in Christ Jesus. In the
beginning we see how God created Adam and Eve. It was a marvelous creation,
very unique.
Great was the work of creation of man and it was the power of God that the
first man was made holy. Man was distinct from other creatures. He was
made holy in the image of God. But when man sinned he became utterly
unholy. The work of creation was great but the work of redemption was
greater. When God created man holy there was no opposition but in the
work of redemption there was opposition as God delivered us from the bondage of
the enemy and we who were utterly depraved and unholy he made us holy and
righteous.
Haggai 2:9 The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the
former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the
LORD of hosts.
It
cost more to redeem us than to create us. In creation the Lord just spoke
the word. In redemption the Lord Jesus have to shed his blood. In creation it
was the work of God with his fingers (Psalm 8:3) but in redemption it was the
work of his arm. In creation we had life in Adam but in redemption we
have life in Christ Jesus. Oh what a day that God already set apart in
Genesis 2:2-3 for that great redemption through Jesus Christ.
Genesis
2:2-3 is the key for our correct understanding of the Sabbath Day.
The blessing is transmitted from the greater to the lesser. God made the
Sabbath Day holy, sacred as it pointed to his Son, Jesus Christ, the holy one
of God who came to redeem his people. God blessed the Sabbath Day, the
redemption is a blessing for us. Sabbath is made for man, not for any other
creations.
The
word blessing is that the presence of the Lord and his grace will be there.
We see this clearly in the following scriptures.
Numbers 6:23 Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye
shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them,
24 The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:
25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto
thee:
26 The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.
27 And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I
will bless them.
The
fullness of the blessing appeared when God emptied himself and became a man and
dwelt among men.
Mt
1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and
they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
Ceremonial laws
were nailed to the cross, various sacrifices, offerings, fleshly ordinances,
foods and drinks, seventh day Sabbaths, the Jewish Sabbaths, Sabbatical years,
Passover, Pentecost, new moons, and feast of tabernacles were all ceremonial,
they were abolished. Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath and as the Lord of the
Sabbath lives the moral value of Sabbath still continues, he was resurrected on
the first day of the week which is Sunday. The Lord of the Sabbath is not dead.
The ceremonial laws were nailed to the cross and the substance of the Sabbath
still continues, as the veil of the curtain is torn down now we can come boldly
to his throne room without and any ceremonial laws.
Then
in 70 AD Titus the Roman Emperor with his army totally destroyed the temple.
There was no temple and no priests. But our High Priest is seated at the
right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens. The earthly tabernacle
was destroyed, the ceremonial laws were nailed to the cross but the true
tabernacle still exists. Let us turn to scripture.
Heb
8:1 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an
high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the
heavens;
2 A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the
Lord pitched, and not man.
Heb
9:10 Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal
ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation.
11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a
greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not
of this building;
12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he
entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.
All
the ceremonial laws and the tabernacle were shadows, and were pointing to the
true tabernacle the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus is the true tabernacle;
the ceremonial laws existed until the coming of the true tabernacle the Lord
Jesus. Lord, which brought redemption.
The
Sabbath day was changed, after the resurrection of the Lord to the first day of
the week. The first day of the week Sunday is the Christian Sabbath.
Sunday was observed as a day of worship, and in special commemoration of the
Resurrection, whereby the work of redemption was finished (John 20:19,26;
Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:2; Revelation 1:10).
The
Lord's Day brought us freedom to worship, without any ceremonial laws. The
freedom was given to worship him and not to have fleshly pleasure.
2Co
3:17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is
liberty.
Before
the reformation the people were under the bondage of Roman Catholicism.
There were no proper worship, only the priest was allowed to teach and the
people were not allowed to read the Bible. The common people were kept in
darkness. With the Reformation came the light of the Bible to the people.
The Reformation broke the bondage of Romanism and brought freedom to worship
the Lord. Worshipping the Lord on the Lord's Day is not a burden but joy
and a delight! Now we can worship the Lord in spirit and in truth..
Freedom
for some Christians is to have worldly pleasure on the Lords Day. But the true
Christian understand we were under the bondage before now we are set free to
worship the Lord. The Lord told Moses to tell Pharoh, let my people go so they
can worship me. There is freedom in the new covenant as we can worship God not
externally but internally in spirit and truth. There is freedom to worship him.
Jer
31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the
day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which
my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:
33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of
Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward
parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be
my people.
34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man
his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least
of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their
iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
The new covenant refers very clearly to the new covenant that Jesus made with
the Church, to the time of the gospel of grace. This prophecy was
fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ. This covenant was made with the house
of Israel and the house of Judah. The Old Testament church was alienated
from God. Then God promises that they would become one body again. They
would be united to one house and not two houses. The ceremonial law of the Old
Covenant was broken as the middle wall was broken and the outward form of the
law was done away and the moral law, the substance of the covenant was exposed
by the Lord Jesus Christ in the Beatitudes and it still continues. The
new covenant was established through his Son Jesus Christ.
The
Holy Spirit came and regenerated us, and made us a new man, now
there is no outward form of worship as there are no ceremonial laws, no veil of
separation as God speaks to us face to face directly from the Bible,
as the veil is removed and instead of the veil now there is Christ, not a
separation but the way to the Father and through Christ we can come directly to
the Father.
The author of Hebrews quotes directly from Jeremiah. (Heb 8:8)
Heb
10:16 This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith
the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write
them;
17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.
Ro
11:27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.
Heb
12:24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of
sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.
The
ultimate sacrifice was the Lamb of God, with one sacrifice he removed our sins.
Mt 26:28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many
for the remission of sins.
The
Early Church Met on Sunday
Ac
20:6 And we sailed away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread, and
came unto them to Troas in five days; where we abode seven days.
Ac 20:7 And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came
together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the
morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.
Ac 20:16 For Paul had determined to sail by Ephesus, because he would
not spend the time in Asia: for he hasted, if it were possible for him, to be
at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost.
Ac 20:18 And when they were come to him, he said unto them, Ye know, from
the first day that I came into Asia, after what manner I have been with you at
all seasons,
Acts
20:7. The apostle Paul was now returning from his famous mission to Macedonia
and Achaia in full prospect of captivity at Jerusalem. He stops at the favorite
little church of Troas to spend a week with his converts there. "And upon
the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread,
Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his
speech until midnight." Paul preached to the disciples on Sunday, while he
had been, as the sixth verse shows, a whole week at Troas, including the Jewish
Sabbath. Why did he wait a whole week? Paul could have preached to the church
on the Jewish Sabbath day, We learn from verse sixteen that Paul had very
little time to spare, because he had to make the whole journey from Philippi to
Jerusalem. Paul was in rush, he was hurrying to be in Jerusalem on the day of
Pentecost, first day of the week Sunday. He was obviously waiting for the church's
sacred day in order to join them in their public worship. Again we see on verse
seven, "When the disciples came together to break bread," show that
the first day of the week was the one on which they met to celebrate the Lord's
supper. So it appears that this church at Troas, planted and trained by Paul,
kept the first day of the week for public worship and the sacrament of
communion.
The Church
Offerings were collected on Sunday.
1Co
16:1 Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order
to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye.
2 Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in
store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.
The
next clear instance is in 1Cor. 16:1, 2: "Now, concerning the collection
for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do
ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store as
God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come." We here
learn two things: that the weekly offerings was fixed for the Lord's day, and
that this rule given not only for the church at Corinth, but for all the
churches of Galatia. It is very clear he is speaking to all the churches here.
What he is really saying is "Let every one every Sunday morning set apart
some money for the ministry.
The
Revelation was given to John on the Lord's Day.
Re
1:10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice,
as of a trumpet.
"I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day." The apostle was "in the
isle that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of
Jesus." We know from history exactly what this means. The pagan
magistrates had banished him to this rocky, desolate island in the Ƨean Sea as
a punishment for preaching the gospel and testifying that Jesus is our risen
Saviour. He was there alone, separated from all his brethren. But he "was
in the Spirit on the Lord's day."
The
church fathers are those who were the disciples of the apostles and the early
Christians would also disagree with the dispensational view on the fourth
commandment as they too saw the moral law of the Sabbath Day. Let us see
some of their quotations.
Ignatius,
Bishop of Antioch, A.D. 101, says: "Let every one that loves Christ
keep holy the Lord's day--,the queen of days, the resurrection day, the highest
of all days."
Theophilus,
Bishop of Antioch, who wrote in the second century, says: "Both custom
and reason challenge from us that we should honor the Lord's day, seeing on that
day it was that our Lord Jesus completed his resurrection from the dead."
Irenaeus
Bishop of Lyons, who also lived in the second century, and who was a disciple
of Polycarp, who was a companion of apostle John, speaks of the Lord's Day as
the Christian Sabbath. "On the Lord's day," said he, "every
one of us Christians keeps the Sabbath."
Clement of Alexandria, of the same century, testifies: "A Christian,
according to the command of the gospel, observes the Lord's day, thereby
glorifying the resurrection of the Lord."
Lu 6:9 Then said
Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the sabbath days to
do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it?
The Sabbath was
made for man. So when God blessed the Sabbath day and the blessing is for
man. We were terribly wicked in our sins, living in darkness, the blessing came
through Jesus Christ the Lord of the Sabbath as he saved us from sin and evil,
gave us eternal life.