Tag Archives: sabbath

Colossians 2- The Sabbath

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Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, Colossians 2:16-18

Christians are often very confused when it comes to the topic of Keeping the Sabbath” I actually did a whole teaching on this topic on my YouTube Channel. So to first understand this topic, we need to understand , what is the Sabbath? And what does it mean to Keep the Sabbath? If you ask a Hebrew Roots person or Seven Day Adventist, how do you Keep the Sabbath? Most likely they will say, they worship God on a specific day and don’t work

So as you can probably guess, most Christians on Sunday worship God and don’t usually work, so are they still Keeping the Sabbath? Well in a spiritual sense, Yes, but the legalist will say No, you must observe Saturday as your Sabbath. I would like to first start with some more questions, what Covenant are you in? Hopefully you said your in the New Covenant with Christ. Then , when did Jesus or the Apostles command us to Keep the Saturday Sabbath in the New Testament? The fact is nobody ever commanded the Sabbath to be kept in the New Covenant.

In Exodus 31:13, God told Moses “Tell the Children of Israel, to Keep my Sabbaths as a sign between me and You” So who was this command for? The Israelites and why? Because it was a sign of the Mosaic Covenant. As the Apostle Paul teaches here “Let no one judge you in regard to what you eat, or drink, or regard to a feast, new moon or Sabbath” (v16) Why? Because we are in the New Covenant with Christ, we are not in the Mosaic Covenant with Moses. As the author of Hebrews says “He (Christ) is a mediator of a Better Covenant which was established on better promises (Hebrews 8:6) and also says “By calling the covenant New he made the first one obsolete” (Hebrews 8:13)

So what was the purpose of the Sabbath and all the rituals of the Mosaic Covenant? As Paul says here “Which are a shadow of things to come” The Sabbath was a foreshadow of Christ, just as the sacrificial system was a foreshadow of Christ, just as the temple was a foreshadow of Christ. Jesus Christ is our Rest (Hebrews 4, Matthew 11:28)

So how do we keep the 4th commandment? We abide in Christ, we are Born Again in Christ. As Jesus said “Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden, and I (Christ) will give you Rest”(Matthew 11:28), Amen!

Matthew 12- Jesus Heals On The Sabbath

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And when he was departed thence, he went into their synagogue: And, behold, there was a man which had his hand withered. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him. And he said unto them, What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out? How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days. Matthew 12:9-12

Again today we are looking at Jesus addressing the Sabbath, those who say Jesus was silent on the issue of the Sabbath, need to reread their Bible. Here we see Jesus healing on the Sabbath, of course the religious leaders use this as an opportunity to condemn Christ for doing anything on the Sabbath. It was a trap the religious leaders tried to set they asked Jesus “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath”? Now these men are supposed to be experts in The Law, so how do they not know this if they are going to condemn Christ for it? 

The religious leaders tried to set a trap, however as other attempts it always fails. Jesus said to them “It is lawful to do well on the Sabbath” meaning if you are ok with retrieving your lost sheep then why wouldn’t you be ok with healing a person? These religious leaders were hypocrites, they were trying to use Gods Law to condemn Christ to death

Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, like as the other. Then the Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy him. Matthew 12:13-14

Jesus then healed the man on the Sabbath, and instead of the religious leaders being grateful to see God’s work, they instead tried to use God’s Law to kill the Messiah! Jesus is demonstrating his deity here, not only because Christ healed the man but also demonstrated that Christ is Lord of The Sabbath

The religious leaders would say Christ broke the Sabbath Law, however Jesus is The Sabbath and is God in the flesh, Christ can do whatever He wants on the Sabbath. The religious leaders failure to understand who Jesus Is and the hardness of their hearts, leaves them condemned in their sin even if they “Kept the Sabbath”

True Sabbath Rest can only be found in Jesus Christ alone, without Christ you can’t enter into Gods Rest (Hebrews 4) Amen!

Matthew 12- Lord Of The Sabbath

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At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day. But he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and they that were with him; How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests? Matthew 12:1-4

One of the most debated issues of Christianity still  today is about “Keeping The Sabbath”, are Chrstians to “Keep The Sabbath”? What does it mean to Keep The Sabbath? What is the Sabbath? The Sabbath was a sign of the Mosaic Covenant (Exodus 31:13, 17) It was the sign to set apart Israel from the surrounding Pagan nations, much like Circumcision was the sign of the Abrahamic Covenant to set them apart

Sabbath simply means “Rest” , as I talked about in my previous post, Jesus Is Our Rest (Matthew 11:28) Keeping The Sabbath as a Christian is to Abide in Jesus Christ, you can’t enter into God’s Rest without Christ (Hebrews 4) Nobody can come to the Father except through Jesus Christ (John 14:6) To “Keep The Sabbath” without Christ , would be pointless and useless. Salvation can only be found in Jesus Christ alone (Acts 4:12)

So as we look at our gospel reading today, we see Jesus and the Apostles “Breaking The Sabbath”, they are traveling on the Sabbath, eating and picking corn on the Sabbath. When the Pharisees called them out on their actions, what they didn’t realize is Jesus Is Lord of The Sabbath, Jesus is Lord of Lords, Jesus is The Sabbath

Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless? But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple. But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day. Matthew 12:5-8

Jesus said “Something greater than the Temple is Here” Christ was talking about himself, remember “Destroy this temple in 3 days I will raise it Up” (John 2:19) Christ is the fulfillment of The Temple, Christ is the fulfillment of The Sabbath, Christ is the fulfillment of The Law. All of the things were shadows to point to Christ, but now the Christ is here! God became Flesh and He lived among us (John 1:14) You kept The Sabbath to learn about Christ, but now the Christ has come!

The Temple was the focal point of the Mosaic Covenant, without the Temple nothing could be accomplished. But now something greater than The Temple is here, the sacrificial system pointed to Christ, the Levitical priest line point to Christ, the show bread pointed to Christ, and Christ raised up His Temple on the 3rd day defeating sin and death forever!

Jesus is Lord of The Sabbath, He didn’t regard Breaking the Sabbath because Christ is The Sabbath. We don’t just worship Christ one day a week, we worship Christ seven days a week, and we only enter into God’s Rest through Christ , Amen!

Luke 14- Jesus Heals on The Sabbath Part 2

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And it came to pass, as he went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the sabbath day, that they watched him. And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy. And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day? And they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go;  Luke 14:1-4

Here again we see Jesus challenging the religious leaders about the Sabbath. Why does Jesus spend so much time challenging the Sabbath? Because the Sabbath was a sign between Israel and God, it was the sign of the Old (Mosaic) Covenant (Exodus 20:20, Exodus 31:13) Jesus is bring the New Covenant , a better Covenant (Hebrews 8:6) Therefor Jesus is our Sabbath Rest, Jesus is our High Priest, Jesus is our sacrifice and atonement for sin

When Jesus challenged the religious leaders about the Sabbath, they remained silent, why? Because they created a religion full of man-made rules and traditions. They took the blessing of God’s Sabbath and used it to control and condemn people. This is not what God intended with the Sabbath, God intended for the Sabbath to bless the Israelites and provide them with needed physical rest of their daily lives

Jesus healed the man on the Sabbath, under the Mosaic Law this would be a violation. But Jesus is Lord of The Sabbath, Christ is introducing His New Covenant, where Christ is our everything!

And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day? And they could not answer him again to these things. Luke 14:5-6

Jesus provided them a practical example of their hypocrisy. If one of their animals fell in the pit on the Sabbath, they would surely rescue the animal, right? Because they need that animal for survival to provide for their families. So if they wouldn’t hesitate to save an animal’s life, why would they hesitate to heal a man? Because it’s not truly about honoring God, their hearts are hardened, they love their religion more than they love God

It’s important to love the Lord God with all your mind, heart, and soul, being religious or zealous about your religion is not going to save your soul from eternal Hell. Its time to understand who Jesus truly is, receive him as your Lord, as your Sabbath, receive him as your everything Amen!

Luke 13- Jesus Heals on The Sabbath

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And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. Luke 13:10-13

On a Sabbath day, Jesus was teaching in the synagogue, and he noticed a woman who had been disabled for 18 years. Christ called the woman over and said “You are healed” and set his hands on her and she was healed. Now for most of us this sounds like a great story and something we would expect the Messiah to do, however the synagogue leader didn’t see it that way! They were angry because Jesus healed someone on the Sabbath day, can you imagine the hardness of their hearts!

But most importantly, Jesus called this woman and set her free instantly! Many of us have struggled with some disability or disease for a long time, Christ can set you free in an instant! Is the Savior calling you today?

And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day. The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering? And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day? Luke 13:14-16

How many of us are legalists like the synagogue leader? Well Jesus can’t heal because of this and that, ect. The reality is Jesus is Lord of Lords , he can heal anyone , anywhere, at any time, Jesus is even Lord of The Sabbath! (Matthew 12, Mark 2) To make things more comprehensible in our minds, we like to put limitations and labels on things, this is what mostly religion is about, trying to define God to make it understandable for our human minds

But Jesus said “You hypocrites!, you take care of your animals on the Sabbath, why wouldn’t you want this Jewish woman to be healed?” Why were the religious leaders so upset when Jesus healed on the Sabbath? Because they rather ignore the miracle by God and focus on the legalism of man

Because if they accepted what Jesus did, then they would have to accept that Jesus is Lord and God. When you receive this, your whole life changes, you are no longer a Pharisee or a Sadducee, you are a Child of God through Jesus Christ Amen!

Luke 10- Mary and Martha

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Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus’ feet, and heard his word But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. Luke 10:38-40

In today’s reading we see two sisters , Mary and Martha. Now these sisters were more famous for their brother Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead (John 11) It was well documented that Jesus was close friends with this family, that’s why the raising of Lazarus was very personal for him, as its noted “Jesus wept” over the death of Lazarus.

Martha hosted a gathering for their friend and Lord Jesus. Now while Christ was teaching, Mary took a break from her choirs and sat at the feet of Jesus and listened to his teachings. This made her sister Martha very angry, as she was the only one doing all the work at this dinner party. Now anyone who has hosted a dinner party or takes care of a home, knows how much work Martha was tasked with, so it’s understandable  her frustration with her sister Mary

In fact Martha wanted Jesus to rebuke her sister Mary and tell her to get to work. However Jesus was going to teach Martha and all of us, the importance of a Sabbath rest to be with God

And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her. Luke 10:41-42

Jesus was telling Martha “There are alot of things in this world we can be busy or distracted with, however we must choose time for God” I know this is a complete paraphrase but I think this is the point Christ is trying to make. While Jesus was there, Mary chose to spend time with The Lord, which was a wise choice. Even though Martha’s work seemed very important at the time, she was going to miss out on her time with Christ

I think Jesus was trying to teach us about the “Sabbath Rest”. Often Christians don’t think about a Sabbath Rest or even know about it, because we are too divided on what day is the Sabbath and whether we should we observe it. The point is God wants us to devote a day and time of rest and reflection upon Him. Remember to dedicate some time for God and take a rest from your daily work and burdens in Jesus name Amen!

Luke 6- Lord of The Sabbath

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And it came to pass on the second sabbath after the first, that he went through the corn fields; and his disciples plucked the ears of corn, and did eat, rubbing them in their hands. And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do ye that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath days? And Jesus answering them said, Have ye not read so much as this, what David did, when himself was an hungred, and they which were with him; How he went into the house of God, and did take and eat the shewbread, and gave also to them that were with him; which it is not lawful to eat but for the priests alone? And he said unto them, That the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath. Luke 6:1-5

One of the many titles of Jesus we probably dont think about that much is “Lord of the Sabbath ” , what does that mean? Well when the religious leaders decided to accuse Jesus and his disciples of “breaking the Sabbath” he decided to reveal some things to them. First Jesus references a story about David, who actually ate the showbread from the Temple, which is against the Torah

However, how many Jews today point out that David broke the Torah? Most Rabbis won’t mention this as David is highly regarded by the Jews. The point Jesus is making is, these religious leaders are hypocrites! The rabbis want to call out Jesus and his disciples from eating corn on the Sabbath, but yet are ok with David eating the holy showbread from the Temple. 

Jesus revealed to them , He is the Son of Man (Daniel 7) and He is the Lord of the Sabbath! Jesus can’t “break the Sabbath” because Jesus is the Sabbath, Jesus is our Rest (Hebrews 4, Matthew 11:28)

And it came to pass also on another sabbath, that he entered into the synagogue and taught: and there was a man whose right hand was withered. And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him. But he knew their thoughts, and said to the man which had the withered hand, Rise up, and stand forth in the midst. And he arose and stood forth. 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? Luke 6:6-9

Then Jesus did an unimaginable thing, note the sarcasm, he healed a man on the Sabbath! Now a few things here, first Jesus is revealing his deity by healing the man, secondly , Jesus is revealing he is Lord of the Sabbath, by “breaking the Sabbath” to heal a man

Notice Jesus knows the evil thoughts of the religious leaders and calls them out on it. Jesus says “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or evil”? The Sabbath is not a legalistic issue its a moral issue

And looking round about upon them all, he said unto the man, Stretch forth thy hand. And he did so: and his hand was restored whole as the other. And they were filled with madness; and communed one with another what they might do to Jesus. Luke 6:10-11

Now notice the religious leader’s reaction here, Jesus healed a man, and instead of them praising God , they were “filled with madness” , they were enraged because Jesus healed on the Sabbath, do you think their hearts are right with God? And instead of understanding that the Son of Man, the Christ was standing right before them, they plotted to kill the Lord of the Sabbath

Many people still today, try to make the Sabbath a legal issue. Where is your heart? If Jesus healed on the Sabbath , are you going to condemn him also? Jesus is Lord of The Sabbath, and Lord over You! Find your rest in Christ, and not in legalism Amen!

Mark 3- Lord of The Sabbath Part 2

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And he entered again into the synagogue; and there was a man there which had a withered hand. And they watched him, whether he would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse him. And he saith unto the man which had the withered hand, Stand forth. Mark 3:1-3

The religious leaders once again are looking to trap Jesus, to try and charge him with any crime, so they could get rid of him. The religious leaders decided to use the Sabbath as their trap, as mentioned previously the Sabbath was abused by Israel as a yoke to burden the people rather than to free them as intended by God

There was a man with a withered hand and they wanted to see if Jesus would heal him. This was their trap, if Jesus heals the man he is “breaking the Sabbath” , anyone can realize that healing someone is not morally wrong it’s actually a blessing. Why would the religious leaders take a healing from God and make it a sin? It displays the wickedness of their hearts, it displays the arrogant pride of the religious leaders.

Jesus, who is Lord of The Sabbath (Mark 2) told the man to stand up. Jesus knew exactly what was in the hearts and minds of the religious leaders and was going to demonstrate true justice. Jesus is going to demonstrate, that not only does he have the power to heal, but he is also Lord of The Sabbath

And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace. And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other. Mark 3:4-5

Jesus called them out, asking them a simple question, “Is it lawful to do good or evil on the Sabbath” Common sense will tell you, you should do good on the Sabbath, such as healing, but these wicked religious leaders were blinded by their own pride. It says “They held their peace” meaning they couldn’t respond to Jesus because they knew they were hypocrites.

Jesus grieved at the hardness of their hearts, notice Jesus still loved these men but he mourned their wickedness. They claimed to love God and be teachers of The Law, yet had no love in their hearts. 

Christ healed the man right before everyone, he made him whole. But their was no rejoicing or joy coming from the religious leaders, their legalism has cut them off from God. They made themselves Lords of the Sabbath however there is only one Lord and it’s Jesus Christ

And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him. Mark 3:6

Did witnessing this miracle change anyone? No the Pharisees and Herodians came together to try and plot to kill Jesus instead. People ask for signs and wonders, these religious leaders experienced it and still rejected Christ

Jesus is Lord of The Sabbath, as Jesus is Lord over everything. Jesus is our Rest and our salvation Amen!

Mark 2- Lord of The Sabbath Part 1

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And it came to pass, that he went through the corn fields on the sabbath day; and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn. And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful? And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they that were with him? Mark 2:23-25

One of the great debates still in Christianity is the Sabbath, should Christians still keep the Sabbath? Was the Sabbath abolished? Jesus addresses the Sabbath and shows how it pertains to the New Covenant. The first thing to note, is Jesus never commanded us anywhere to “Keep the Sabbath in the New Covenant”. The Sabbath was a sign of the Mosaic Covenant (Exodus 31:13) Any Christian who says “You need to Keep the Sabbath” challenge them where this is in Jesus or the Apostles teachings!

We see in this story, the Sabbath being broken. The Pharisees try to charge Jesus with breaking the Sabbath, which is ironic because as Jesus reveals to us he is the “Lord of The Sabbath”. Jesus gives an example of David breaking the Sabbath, eating the showbread while he was hungry, which was unlawful in the Torah

Why didn’t the Pharisees condemn David for this? Jesus is trying to show how hypocritical the Pharisees are, they want to condemn Christ but say nothing about David. 

How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him? And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath Mark 2:26-28

Was David a High Priest? No therefore he broke the Torah laws yet was never condemned by the Pharisees. But yet they want to condemn Jesus for healing on the Sabbath, is this righteous judgement? No , Jesus also revealed “The Sabbath was made for man not man for the Sabbath” God created the Sabbath as a sign for Israel to separate from the rest of the world, also to provide physical and spiritual rest. However the religious leaders took this Law and made it a yoke that nobody could  carry or maintain.

Jesus made another statement “The Son of Man is Lord of The Sabbath” How could Jesus fulfill the Sabbath? Easy, he is the Lord of the Sabbath, as he is the Lord of everything! If you want to keep the Sabbath, go ahead but don’t use it as a yoke or stumbling block for other believers. Through Christ we are no longer under the law but under grace (Romans 6:14)

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. Matthew 11:28-29

The word Sabbath means Rest, the only way to find Rest is in Jesus Christ! Jesus is your Sabbath , Amen!