The Sabbath is a regularly recurring holy day. Keeping it is basic to a Christian's relationship with God. When He rested on the seventh day at creation, God set it apart, reaffirming it to Israel in the wilderness by giving it as the fourth of the Ten Commandments in the section Jesus summarized as showing how to love God. Idolatry and Sabbath breaking were largely responsible for Israel's downfall. Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath, clearly taught that the Sabbath is made for man. He and His apostles kept it, and it is nowhere abrogated either by command or example in the New Testament. The prophets show the Sabbath being kept after Christ's return.
Scripture References:
Genesis 2:1-3; 26:1-5; Exodus 16:4-30; 20:8-11; 31:13; Leviticus 23:1-3; Deuteronomy 5:12-15; Matthew 22:37-40; Ezekiel 20:12-16, 20, 24; Mark 2:27-28; Luke 4:16; Acts 17:2; 18:4, 11; Hebrews 4:4-10; Isaiah 58:13-14; 66:22-23; Ezekiel 45:17; 47:3-4, 12
From the Library: Sabbath
God's Sabbath
Bible Study by Richard T. RitenbaughThe seventh-day Sabbath is the key to understanding God, His purpose, and our potential, and it is far more than a weekly day of rest. It is the one day each week devoted totally to God, so it serves as a regulator and barometer of our relationship with Him. Made by God at Creation (Genesis 2:2-3) for all mankind, not only the …
The Purpose of the Sabbath
Sermonette by Craig SablichThe Sabbath enables us to learn spiritual principles rather than a set of rules, and to exercise righteous judgment, aligning our actions with God's purpose.
Did God Change the Sign From the Sabbath to the Holy Spirit?
Sermonette byA common idea is that the Sabbath is the sign of the Old Covenant, but the Holy Spirit is the sign of the New. Yet the seventh day has been holy since creation.
Remember the Sabbath Day
Sermonette by Hunter D. SwansonAll of God's people have at times felt overwhelmed by grief and exhaustion, needing a genuine rehabilitative rest. The Sabbath restores spiritual strength.
The Sabbath: Creation
Feast of Tabernacles Sermon by Richard T. RitenbaughThe Sabbath is a day God set apart as different from the other six, modeled on His own rest after creation (Genesis 2:1-3; Exodus 20:8-11). The Hebrew Shabbat means to cease or stop, and rest follows from stopping. God does not tire, so physical rest is not the main point. He stopped to reflect on finished work with …
Remember the Holy Sabbath
Sermon by Ronny H. GrahamThe Sabbath is holy time that God alone makes holy, and keeping it means actively treating it as He instructs. The fourth commandment begins with "remember," and the word "holy" denotes being set apart for sacred use. Claiming to keep every day holy is therefore pride, since it puts man in the place of God. According to Mark …
The Fourth Commandment (Part Two): Christ's Attitude Toward the Sabbath
'Personal' from John W. RitenbaughJesus never annulled the Sabbath by command or example; He kept it and magnified it, restoring its original God-given intent and loosening it only from the Pharisees' legalistic, bondage-producing approach. The Sabbath was made for man, not just for Jews, and Christ is Lord of it (Mark 2:27-28). God blessed it at creation to …
Sabbathkeeping (Part 4)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughThe Sabbath was made for mankind, not only for the Jews, and it cannot be swapped for another day because God Himself designated the seventh day as the sign that He is both Creator (Exodus 20) and Redeemer (Deuteronomy 5). It does not save anyone, but it regulates our relationships with God and man, and keeping it rightly is an …
For more resources, please see the library topic for Sabbath