Enjoying the Sabbath as a Gift from God
Enjoying the Sabbath as a Gift from God A Special Sunday Message Isaiah 58: 13 -14 © November 04, 2018 Wade Harlan
The Sabbath Is a Gift from God
Why Keep The Sabbath? 1. It is a gift from God created to bring us joy and to bless us! - God gave it to us to benefit us. - It brings us joy and should be a delight for us. - God blessed the day. - Too much work is bad for us. - It stretches our faith. - It serves as a testimony of God’s goodness to non-believers. - We’re commanded to keep it holy.
Why Keep The Sabbath? 1. It is a gift from God to benefit us 23 One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. 24 And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath? ” 25 And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: 26 how he entered the house of God, in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him? ” 27 And 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. ” Mark 2: 23 -28
Why Keep The Sabbath? It’s a gift that brings us joy and should be a delight for us. “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, 14 then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob. ” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken. Isaiah 58: 13 -14 (NIV) 13
Why Keep The Sabbath? It is a gift from God because God blessed the day. 8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep 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, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. Exodus 20: 8 -11
Why Keep The Sabbath? 1. It is a gift from God because too much work is bad for us. - 22% of people in the world work more than 49 hours per week. - there is a 61% higher injury rate when people are working overtime. Example: an all-nighter
Why Keep The Sabbath? It is a gift from God because it stretches our faith. (like manna) 22 On the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers each. And when all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses, 23 he said to them, “This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord; bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over lay aside to be kept till the morning. ’” 24 So they laid it aside till the morning, as Moses commanded them, and it did not stink, and there were no worms in it. 25 Moses said, “Eat it today, for today is a Sabbath to the Lord; today you will not find it in the field. 26 Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is a Sabbath, there will be none. ” Exodus 16: 22 -26
Why Keep The Sabbath? It is a gift from God because it stretches our faith. (like manna) 27 On the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, but they found none. 28 And the Lord said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws? 29 See! The Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Remain each of you in his place; let no one go out of his place on the seventh day. ” 30 So the people rested on the seventh day. Bad examples: Good examples:
Why Keep The Sabbath? 1. It is a gift from God because It serves as a testimony of God’s goodness to non-believers. 6 Observe [these commands] carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. ” 7 What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him? 8 And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws as this body of laws I am setting before you today? Deuteronomy 4: 6 -8 (NIV)
Why Keep The Sabbath? 1. It is a gift from God created to bring us joy and to bless us! - We’re commanded to keep it holy. 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 an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day. Deuteronomy 5: 12 -15 (NIV)
Some say we no longer need to keep the Sabbath. 1. It’s the only of the 10 Commandments not repeated in the New Testament. 2. Hebrews 4 seems to indicate Christ fulfilled the Sabbath rest. 1 Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. 2 For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed. 3 Now we who have believed enter that rest… 9 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10 for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. 11 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. Hebrews 4: 1 -3, 9 -11 (NIV)
Some say we no longer need to keep the Sabbath. 2. But Jesus and Paul regularly attended and taught in the synagogue on the Sabbath. 16 And [Jesus] came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. Luke 4: 16 (also Mk 1: 21, Mk. 6: 2, Lk. 4: 31, Lk. 6: 6) 1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2 And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures. Acts 17: 1 -3 (also Acts 13: 14)
Some say we no longer need to keep the Sabbath. 3. After the resurrection Christians began celebrating the Sabbath on the first day of the week. 7 On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight. Acts 20: 7 1 Now concerning the collection for the saints: as I directed the churches of Galatia, so you also are to do. 2 On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come. 1 Corinthians 16: 1 -2
Some say we no longer need to keep the Sabbath. 4. The common sense test.
Realize that Jesus taught that the Pharisees Were Way Too Legalistic About the Sabbath 1 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. 2 But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, “Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath. ” 3 He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, and those who were with him: 4 how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? 5 Or have you not read in the Law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are guiltless? 6 I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. 7 And if you had known what this means, I desire mercy, and not sacrifice, ’ you would not have condemned the guiltless. 8 For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath. Matthew 12: 1 -8
Realize that Jesus taught that the Pharisees Were Way Too Legalistic About the Sabbath 9 He went on from there and entered their synagogue. 10 And a man was there with a withered hand. And they asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath? ” —so that they might accuse him. 11 He said to them, “Which one of you who has a sheep, if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out? 12 Of how much more value is a man than a sheep! So it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. ” 13 Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand. ” And the man stretched it out, and it was restored, healthy like the other. 14 But the Pharisees went out and conspired against him, how to destroy him. Matthew 12: 9 -14 Was Jesus concerned more with the letter or the spirit of the law?
Recommendations For How to Celebrate the Sabbath Better 1) Enjoy worshipping the Lord with others at church and Home group. 2) If you’re not able to rest from work on Sunday, take a 24 hours period of physical & spiritual refreshment sometime each week. 3) If the Sabbath feels like a burden, acknowledge that something is not right. 4) Remember that the spirit of the command is of more importance to God than the letter of the command. 5) Pray and ask God for wisdom, experiment, be creative, and evaluate - do what brings physical and spiritual refreshment. 6) Give special attention to the spiritual – our souls tend to wander from God
4) Give special attention to the spiritual because our souls tend to wander from God Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing Oh to grace how great a debtor, daily I'm constrained to be Let thy goodness like a fetter* bind my wandering heart to Thee Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it Prone to leave the God I love. Here's my heart, oh, take and seal it Seal it for Thy courts above *chain or shackle put on a prisoner
How do you figure out if what you’re doing honors the Sabbath or not? 1. Ask the question. ”At the end of the day am I more or less spiritually and physically refreshed? 2. Ask the “Lord of the Sabbath. ”
SOME OF MY FAVORITE SABBATHS 1) With Mennonite family in Montana. 2) Sunday evening with Fuller Students on worshipping at Anaheim Vineyard 3) Our Sunday afternoon at Rancho Palos Verdes. 4) Recently going to a park near our house on Sunday evening. 5) An enjoyable Sunday afternoon Bible study. 6) A church picnic with prayer & a short devotional.
Why Keep The Sabbath? 1. It is a gift from God created to bring us joy and to bless us! - God gave it to us to benefit us. - It brings us joy and should be a delight for us. - God blessed the day. - Too much work is bad for us. - It stretches our faith. - It serves as a testimony of God’s goodness to non-believers. - We’re commanded to keep it holy.
WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH THIS GIFT GOD IS OFFERING YOU?
TWO PRACTICAL QUESTIONS FOR OUR EVERYDAY LIFE 1. After your Sabbath rest each week, how mentally, spiritually and physically refreshed do you feel? What could you do to improve in this? 2. Describe a Sabbath’s that you’ve had that was particularly mentally, spiritually and physically refreshing?
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