THE SEVENTH DAY OF THE WEEK
The seventh day of the week, the day commonly known as Saturday, is the Sabbath
day of YAHWEH the Almighty God of Israel. It was ordained of God as a day of
physical rest for all mankind, and the obligation to observe it arises from
- Yahweh's own example
- His act of blessing the seventh day
- And His explicit command to keep it holy.
- The seventh day Sabbath according to the Bible, was blessed, sanctified and
set apart for sacred use by the God of Israel at the creation of the world, and
on that memorable occasion it was first observed by the Lord Himself.
(Genesis 2: 2-3) - Furthermore, all mankind is required by divine law to keep holy the seventh
day of the week. The Sabbath command is one of the Ten Commandments, a law
which is not only scheduled to outlast this universe but which every soul on earth
is obliged to observe. Therefore as long as heaven and earth shall last, the
seventh day of the week is the Sabbath day. Disobedience of Yahweh's law, of
which the Sabbath commandment is merely a part, is sin. These unequivocal
facts cannot be rejected without serious consequences.
(Exodus 20: 8-11, Matthew 5: 17-19, 1 John 3: 4) - Sabbath desecration is strongly condemned by the true prophets of God and
their inspired messages have been recorded in the Scriptures for the benefit of
succeeding generations of readers from every nation under heaven. Dare we
ignore their warnings?
(Ezekiel 20: 19-24, Ezekiel 22: 8, 26, 31, Jeremiah 17: 27) - In recognition of the Sabbath commandment Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ)
kept holy the seventh day of the week (Saturday) and the Scriptures testify to
the fact that it was his custom to do so.
(Luke 4: 16) - Like his Master, it was also the custom of the Apostle Paul and his
companions to observe the seventh day Sabbath, the day commonly known as Saturday.
The disciple were still observing the true Sabbath day some sixteen to twenty years
after the resurrection.
(Acts 17: 2, Acts 18: 4) - In addition to the above, new converts, both Jews and Gentiles alike,
regularly attended the synagogue for worship on the Saturday Sabbath, and the
fact that interested Gentiles in Antioch requested further instruction of Paul
“on the next Sabbath” is irrefutable evidence that no separate
Sunday meetings were being held there by those early Christians.
In other words, the Gentiles were willing to wait a full week, till the next Saturday, for a meeting. Why?
Because they knew that Paul and his companions did not normally meet for divine
worship on a Sunday, but would instead be available for discussion again on the
next Sabbath. On the next Sabbath (Saturday) almost the whole city arrived for the meeting.
(Acts 13: 42-44)
- In his prophecy concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, the Master advised
his followers to pray that their flight from the city “be not in the winter,
neither on the Sabbath day.” This passage is also strong proof that Jesus Christ had
absolutely no intention whatsoever of doing away with the Sabbath commandment at the cross.
On the contrary it shows his high regard for the Sabbath day in that he
advised his followers - who were mostly Jews - to even go to the extent of
praying to God about it, that He would make it possible for them to keep the
Sabbath day some 40 years after the crucifixion!
(Matthew 24: 20)
- The Seventh day Sabbath is also the divine Sign which the God of Israel
places in the minds of His people. It is Yahweh's Signature which He
inscribes on the believer's mind to commemorate his work of creation,
sanctification and salvation through Jesus.
The Sabbath is, in fact, the eternal memorial token of the perpetual covenant between
The Almighty and His Church. What's more, it will continue to be so even in the new
heavens and the new earth.
(Exodus 20: 12 & 20, Isaiah 66: 22-23)
- The Sabbath rest is a token or sample of the divine Rest of God which the
Most High is eagerly looking forward to. Many believers are going to be
excluded from that divine rest because of their deliberate and persistent
disobedience of the Sabbath commandment.
(Psalm 95: 10-11, Hebrews 4: 9-11) - Students are therefore advised to “Remember the Seventh day to keep it
holy.” If they do this, they will, according to the divine declaration, feast
on the heritage of Jacob and be made welcome in the Holy Mountain of God.
(Isaiah 56:2-7, Isaiah 58:13-14) - In some strange way the Most high values His Sabbath days more than any
human mind can appreciate. They are to Him a unique, spiritual treasure of
inestimable worth. Try to understand His pleadings in these amazing words:
Note how the Sabbath is given a special place of honour, far above the other statutes and judgments, important as they obviously are. Yahweh's Sabbath is an eternal token of sanctification; the sacred sign that sets the obedient believer apart from all the other peoples of the earth.Ezekiel 20: 11: “And I gave them my statutes, and shewed them my judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them.
12: Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them.”
It is His SIGN, His Signature on the true believer's mind. We trust that you dear student are not missing out on this vital commandment?
- In addition to the weekly Sabbath day, Yahweh the Almighty God of Israel has seven annual Sabbaths. Every one of them is a memorial of a great event in the Plan of Salvation. The explanatory booklet entitled The Feast Days of The God of Israel is available online.
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