How to Keep the Sabbath
Here's a recent article written by Chip Brogden -- wondering if anyone would like to discuss what he's saying here - do we observe the Sabbath in the New Covenant?
How to Keep the Sabbath by Chip Brogden
"The Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath day" (Mt. 12:8).
The Sabbath (and every other thing in the Old Covenant) points to a spiritual fulfillment in Christ. Jesus is not bound by any rule, or regulation, or tradition, that says thou shalt, or thou shalt not. He is Lord over the Sabbath; the Sabbath is not lord over Him.
We who are in Christ do keep the Sabbath, but the Sabbath for us is not a day of the week. It is certainly not a day for attending religious services. It has nothing to do with the calendar. If we want to keep the Sabbath we need only abide, continue, and dwell in Christ, as the branch abides, continues, and dwells in the Vine. For the branch is resting in the Vine. The branch does not struggle or worry or force itself through sheer effort to produce fruit. Instead, it simply lives in union with the Vine, and in that sense, it rests. It trusts in the Life of the Vine to produce the fruit. And this is the principle of the Sabbath rest.
Now we see this rest in Christ. You would suppose that, as the Son of God, He had the liberty and freedom to say and do whatever He pleased. But He frankly stated, "I do nothing of Myself. It is the Father that dwells in Me, and He does the works." This, my friend, is rest. He is the Lord of the Sabbath. Jesus mastered the art of observing the Sabbath day. What does it mean? It means I do nothing of Myself. My teaching is not My own, but it belongs to the One Who sent Me. And I do nothing except what I see my Father do, and I speak nothing except what I hear my Father speak. That is extraordinary. But that is what it means to rest in the Lord.
Now our relationship to Christ is to be exactly the same as Christ's relationship to the Father. I do nothing apart from Christ. I speak nothing apart from Christ. And I do nothing and speak nothing in my own strength, but I trust in the life of the Lord Jesus to do in me and through me what I cannot do.
Or, if you like, it is the place Paul describes in Galatians 2:20: "It is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me." Not I, but Christ. This is the secret to the Christian life. And may I say that this: "not I, but Christ" is the normal Christian life. It is the way it is supposed to be, from the very beginning.
Remember that Adam's first day of life, after he was created, was a day of rest. Now the Christian life begins the same way. If any one is in Christ, the Bible says that he or she is a new creation. You are born-again; you are born from above. And the first lesson you learn in this spiritual life in Christ is not doing, but being; it is not working, but resting.
How disappointing that the harlot church – the religious system – does not teach you how to enter into rest. It wants to immediately put you to work. And so you wear yourself out, trying to be holy, trying to be more like Christ, trying to please people – the pastor, the elders, your fellow church members. And you sometimes feel as if you can never do enough. You can never give enough, you can never volunteer enough, you can never attend enough. And my, the guilt you feel whenever you say no, or whenever you feel as if you aren't doing enough!
Your first day in Christ is a day of rest. Now let's not get tied down to a calendar. That first "day" in Christ may take weeks or years. We are after the spiritual principle of the Sabbath day, and we are not talking about a twenty-four hour period. This is something you learn and you walk in the rest of your life. How unfortunate that people do not begin with resting in Christ. They get saved, and they go to work for religion, and they are like a slave living in Egypt instead of a Hebrew living in the land of milk and honey. Then after so many years of slavery they become institutionalized, and think this is the way the Christian life is supposed to be.
Well, it is that way for many people, but it does not have to be that way. Your first day in Christ is a day of rest. Works will come. But your first day as a new creature in Christ is a day of rest. It will be a day of rest until you learn what it means to abide in Christ, to dwell in Him, to rest in His finished work. That is the basis of everything else. If the word "season" helps you to understand this better than a "day" then think of it as a Sabbath season. But the first lesson is how to rest. That is the principle of the Sabbath.
I hope you are beginning to see how far and beyond this goes. From this perspective you see how silly it is to get all worked up into a lather over Sunday or Saturday, Sabbath day or Lord's day, what you can do and what you can't do. Those are arguments for little children. Let us go on to maturity. Let us put away childish things and become men and women of spiritual wisdom and discernment. God is after a spiritual condition, a spiritual result, and to get it He goes to work deep within your heart. That is the basis of the New Covenant.
How to Keep the Sabbath by Chip Brogden
"The Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath day" (Mt. 12:8).
The Sabbath (and every other thing in the Old Covenant) points to a spiritual fulfillment in Christ. Jesus is not bound by any rule, or regulation, or tradition, that says thou shalt, or thou shalt not. He is Lord over the Sabbath; the Sabbath is not lord over Him.
We who are in Christ do keep the Sabbath, but the Sabbath for us is not a day of the week. It is certainly not a day for attending religious services. It has nothing to do with the calendar. If we want to keep the Sabbath we need only abide, continue, and dwell in Christ, as the branch abides, continues, and dwells in the Vine. For the branch is resting in the Vine. The branch does not struggle or worry or force itself through sheer effort to produce fruit. Instead, it simply lives in union with the Vine, and in that sense, it rests. It trusts in the Life of the Vine to produce the fruit. And this is the principle of the Sabbath rest.
Now we see this rest in Christ. You would suppose that, as the Son of God, He had the liberty and freedom to say and do whatever He pleased. But He frankly stated, "I do nothing of Myself. It is the Father that dwells in Me, and He does the works." This, my friend, is rest. He is the Lord of the Sabbath. Jesus mastered the art of observing the Sabbath day. What does it mean? It means I do nothing of Myself. My teaching is not My own, but it belongs to the One Who sent Me. And I do nothing except what I see my Father do, and I speak nothing except what I hear my Father speak. That is extraordinary. But that is what it means to rest in the Lord.
Now our relationship to Christ is to be exactly the same as Christ's relationship to the Father. I do nothing apart from Christ. I speak nothing apart from Christ. And I do nothing and speak nothing in my own strength, but I trust in the life of the Lord Jesus to do in me and through me what I cannot do.
Or, if you like, it is the place Paul describes in Galatians 2:20: "It is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me." Not I, but Christ. This is the secret to the Christian life. And may I say that this: "not I, but Christ" is the normal Christian life. It is the way it is supposed to be, from the very beginning.
Remember that Adam's first day of life, after he was created, was a day of rest. Now the Christian life begins the same way. If any one is in Christ, the Bible says that he or she is a new creation. You are born-again; you are born from above. And the first lesson you learn in this spiritual life in Christ is not doing, but being; it is not working, but resting.
How disappointing that the harlot church – the religious system – does not teach you how to enter into rest. It wants to immediately put you to work. And so you wear yourself out, trying to be holy, trying to be more like Christ, trying to please people – the pastor, the elders, your fellow church members. And you sometimes feel as if you can never do enough. You can never give enough, you can never volunteer enough, you can never attend enough. And my, the guilt you feel whenever you say no, or whenever you feel as if you aren't doing enough!
Your first day in Christ is a day of rest. Now let's not get tied down to a calendar. That first "day" in Christ may take weeks or years. We are after the spiritual principle of the Sabbath day, and we are not talking about a twenty-four hour period. This is something you learn and you walk in the rest of your life. How unfortunate that people do not begin with resting in Christ. They get saved, and they go to work for religion, and they are like a slave living in Egypt instead of a Hebrew living in the land of milk and honey. Then after so many years of slavery they become institutionalized, and think this is the way the Christian life is supposed to be.
Well, it is that way for many people, but it does not have to be that way. Your first day in Christ is a day of rest. Works will come. But your first day as a new creature in Christ is a day of rest. It will be a day of rest until you learn what it means to abide in Christ, to dwell in Him, to rest in His finished work. That is the basis of everything else. If the word "season" helps you to understand this better than a "day" then think of it as a Sabbath season. But the first lesson is how to rest. That is the principle of the Sabbath.
I hope you are beginning to see how far and beyond this goes. From this perspective you see how silly it is to get all worked up into a lather over Sunday or Saturday, Sabbath day or Lord's day, what you can do and what you can't do. Those are arguments for little children. Let us go on to maturity. Let us put away childish things and become men and women of spiritual wisdom and discernment. God is after a spiritual condition, a spiritual result, and to get it He goes to work deep within your heart. That is the basis of the New Covenant.
Views: 17
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by michael on -
How about this for a viable perspective? Do the one without neglecting the other. In other words, literally set aside a day (sundown Friday to sundown Saturday has biblical precedent) while embracing all that such a day points to. And...never condemning people who choose to view all days as unto the Lord (while hoping they won't condemn those of us who find joy in setting aside one day as special...unto the Lord - Rom 14).
Shalom from Manila,
--Michael
-
Permalink Reply by Nik P. on -
Dena,
Point of curiosity, who is Chip Brogdon? (author of the piece you started with)
Welcome Michael. . .
I got lost on the thread. You suggested having both; both what? What were you agreeing with? Thanks :)
nik
-
Permalink Reply by Dena Brehm on -
Chip is a rather prolific house/simple church guy ... writes books, articles, etc.
Here's his site: http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/
Here's a list of blogs: http://en.wordpress.com/tag/chip-brogden/
On of his recent books I enjoyed is "The Irresistable Kingdom"
Shalom, Dena
-
Permalink Reply by Rod on -
I think I should keep a seventh day sabbath The one who became Jesus Christ says after creating the world: "For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the 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.
Thus every Sabbath day is to me a important memorial of this event. The exact same words are given in Exodus. 20;11.Pretty much everyone in the bible keeps it. It's only in the forth century when you have Constinttine changing many things as Viola says in his book because of his paganism do you have this aspect of the Sabbath changed.
It is to me a part of the law. Jesus keeps it or we have no savior. Doesn't it say great will be those who teach the least of the law. Jesus says not the smallest letter of the law will disappear and anyone who breaks the least commandment and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom and whoever teaches and practices them will be called Great in the kingdom of heaven. Paul a Pharisee says much about the law in Romans concluding with 7:12 saying the law is holy and the commandment is holy, righteous and good. But the book of Revelation sums up the matter of who will have the right to the tree of life as those who do His commandments 22:14.
Once you get into it it's a great pleasure to keep. You have time for God. Time to rest. Time for other believers. I believe we should keep it speritually not speritually doing the will of God. The karite Jews want to turn off the electricity on Friday which is legally correct but is that God's will that we sit in the house dark all Sabbath. The Sabbath was made for man not man for the Sabbath. No need to leave your cow in the ditch all Sabbath.
The only trouble is ...finding other organic Christians to meet with who have time during the Sabbath. Most Sabbath keeping Christians keep a kind of sit and listen to sermon type of meeting.
I have read the same texts for years and wondered. Even though I'm not a regular , or have not yet been a regular attendant I just wanted to say that the generally accepted concept of love in the church as attending a service is somehow lacking credibility. For years I'd attended services with people I'd never see except at church. We were to love each other by continuing to come. There was no relationship. If you called people up on the phone there would be a uncomfterable surprise not love as exists in family terms the bible uses. People would greet you with a businessman's hand shake as you came to take your seat in the rows. And you would continue to love them by continuing to attend services hoping for the love the bible talks of. The minister loved you by giving long sermons with many biblical proof texts. You loved the minister and the brethern by sitting through it and continuing to come and tithing so that TV and radio time could be bought and the message could go out more could come. The minister loved you by making up the multi proof text sermon week after week and working hard making up sermons. Yet in my bible reading I'd read the texts that you suggest and wonder. When John came the people would wonder is this the Christ or dose another come? I wondered is this the church or dose another come?
-Rod
-
Permalink Reply by Dena Brehm on
-
My own view (may each one be convinced in their own minds, as led by Him):
I see the entire old covenant as a tangible foreshadowing of what was to come: the spiritual (& more real) fulfillment in the new coveant. I see that we were taught about the intangibles to come, through the tangibles which we could experience. I see that it's about moving from the immature, to the mature. I see that it's about moving from the external, to the internal.
So, we had the following external (old covenant) examples, which were fulfilled and manifested in the internal (new covenant) realities:
Temple (literal, physical)----------------------------->Temple within us (we are the temples of the Holy Spirit)
Circumcision (literal, physical)--------------------->Circumcision of the Heart (invisible, spiritual)
Law Written on Stone (literal, physical---------->Law written on Our Hearts (invisible, spiritual)
Sacrifice Atonement w/ animals------------------->Sacrifice of Jesus in Heaven/Holy of Holies
Manna provided in wilderness----------------------->Jesus is Bread of Life (invisible, spiritual)
Sabbath a Specific Day of Rest-------------------->Jesus IS our Sabbath Rest (it's now internal, spiritually realized)
When we forsake the more real manifestation (in the new covenant) and instead embrace the former foreshadowed symbol, we become like the Judaizers, who were unable to move into the covenantal transition (what they proposed, returning to the Law, and thus rejecting the Atonement, was referred to as "doctrines of demons").
When we have the real thing, why would we return to the shadow of that thing..?
The Rest we've entered is a way of life, the abundant life ... life in/with/by/through Jesus. We're now led from within, rather than by an external rule-book. Now, when He says "take a day of rest"... go for it...! ;)
BTW, Jesus said that not the smallest part of the Law would pass away *until* it was all fulfilled ---He did fulfill it.
(just my POV -- be led by Him, not me)
Shalom, Dena
-
Permalink Reply by Joe on -
Let me start by saying I believe it is okay for Christians to worship God on any day of the week. I will only give the New Testament basis for what I believe.
Colossians 2: 16 “Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.”
Romans 14: 5 “One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.”
The Sabbath is a day to rest from labor, to get closer to God in prayer, to study, do good to others, care for the sick, visit the afflicted, and if possible assemble with other believers on the Sabbath. Christ said the Sabbath was a day to do good. It is a time of active, loving service to needy souls.
Mark 3: 2 So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. 3 And He said to the man who had the withered hand, “Step forward.” 4 Then He said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they kept silent. 5 And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other 6 Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him.
Matt 12: 11 Then He said to them, “What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out? 12 Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep? Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.”
The Sabbath is a figurative day. It was made so man can relate to an eternal and immortal God. Genesis does not mention an end to God's seventh-day rest. It is an ongoing state. It did not use the formula “and there was evening and morning, a seventh day”. The characteristics of that first seventh day were designed by God to continue - and would have continued had it not been for the sin of Adam and Eve. The eternal rest of God will be ultimately experienced by the redeemed.
For me, if God makes a commandment, and repeats it 3 times in the scriptures, it gets and keeps my attention. I know I can’t keep His law. I am a sinner. I became a saint through the salvation of Jesus. When I pray for my daily bread. I ask for my daily Bread to be of the Body of Jesus - to wash away the sins of this day. The 10 commandment tells me what God expects. Jesus is the only hope for an eternal life for this sinner.
The Sabbath was made with someone in mind. Christ says it was made "for man" It was something created for the benefit of all of mankind, not just for a certain group of people.
Mark 2: 25 But He said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he was in need and hungry, he and those with him: 26 how he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the showbread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and also gave some to those who were with him?” 27 And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. 28 Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.
As you know the Old Testament God commanded us to keep the Sabbath.
Most major languages of the old and the new world designate the last, or seventh, day of the week as the "Sabbath." No language designates any other day as the "day of rest."
Hebrews 4: 9 There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. 10 For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. 11 Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
Matthew 24: 19 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20 And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.
Hebrews 4: 8 For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day. 9 There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. 10 For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.
For me the Sabbath is on Saturday, the 7th day of the week. I am trying to find my way to understanding the creation week. I am extremely inclined to see it as a figurative week – not a literal 7 days. This would seem to contradict the idea of the Sabbath being the 7th “Day”. I choose to stay with the calendar 7th day.
The creation week is and remains a challenging work in progress.
Lord, strengthen my faith. Joe
-
Permalink Reply by Dena Brehm on
-
I see that the 7th day, the day of Rest, became an eternal ongoing reality in Christ... He is our Sabbath Rest.
It's now our continuous state of being, previously foreshadowed by a day of observation.
It's now a reality to live, every day, 24/7, without end.
We are now IN that very Rest that was foreshadowed.
To return to the observation of the foreshadowing, is, to me, a denial of the greater spiritual reality that has been fulfilled.
Yes, let each one be convinced in their own mind ... and let us continue to allow Him to renew our minds, and thus convince us of more and more truth...
Shalom, Dena
-
Permalink Reply by michael on
-
In the Torah it was/is expected that all who dwelt in the Land (the EZRAKH - nativeborn Israelite plus full converts, as well as the GER - Gentile who had entered covenant with YHWH, but whose required Torah-observance was still graded and differed on occasion from that of the EZRAKH) were to keep the Sabbath and its accompanying stipulations. However, outside the Land of Israel, the Sabbath laws were more difficult to enforce/legislate. In Paul's day, Jews in the Diaspora who maintained communal contact with other Jews, were still legally bound to keep the Sabbath or else their local synagogue leadership were empowered by the Roman government to punish Sabbath-breakers. However, such punishment was less than the Torah-regulated death penalty, and only included floggings or, at worse, KHEREM (i.e. expulsion from the local community). Such a Jew could, however, theoretically, move to another area and take up residence in good standing among the local Jews, so long as no one from his prior community "ratted him out." Gentiles outside the Land of Israel, who had not fully converted to Judaism, were never required to observe the Sabbath. Never!
Paul, in Romans 14, seems to be arguing for a freedom of conscience on the issue of Sabbath-observance...but let us remember that he was writing to Jews and Gentiles (and at this point in his letter, still mostly to Gentiles - see Rom 11:13ff) who were living in Rome, thus outside the Land of Israel. His argument was that Christian unity was more important than uniformity of practice regarding food and days kept. He does not "down" one side on the issue or the other. He simply directs the believer's gaze upward so that each could see that there is something transcendant at stake. All of Paul's letter to the Romans is about unity between Jew and Gentile in Christ's one Body, and that lesson has been the hardest one to learn down through the centuries, with Gentiles in the Body arrogantly regarding God's ancient people, and trying to steal their position and identity, and with Jews in the Body often subtly implying that Gentile believers are incomplete as Gentiles; that we would be just a little bit holier, a little bit closer to God if we just imitated what the Jews do. And so our unity remains tenuous and aloof to this day.
While living as a Gentile Christian in the Land of Israel (1998-2003) I kept the Sabbath. And, even though I now live in the Philippines (2004-present), I still keep the Sabbath...although I recognize this as a matter of conscience. I do not look down upon a fellow Gentile believer who consciously chooses to regard all days unto the Lord. For me, the unity issue is much more important. The few Jewish believers I meet here in Manila, I encourage to walk in the Torah. But I do not condemn and I back up and respect those, even among my Jewish brothers and sisters in Christ, who do not see things eye to eye with me regarding the Sabbath and regarding the Torah. Unity is more important.
Shalom from Manila,
--Michael
-
Permalink Reply by michael on
-
Chip Brogden wrote:
Jesus is not bound by any rule, or regulation, or tradition, that says thou shalt, or thou shalt not.
This is not exactly correct. Note what the writer to the Hebrews said in his context, when the temple was still standing:
"For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, of which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood" (Heb 7:14)
Together with:
"For if [Christ] were on earth, He would not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law..." (Heb 8:4).
The writer's point, although ultimately to show the superiority of Christ, his heavenly priesthood, and the New Covenant, was still that Christ was/is bound by what has been written in the Torah. There are jurisdictions, and Christ's priesthood has a heavenly jurisdiction that affects what happens on earth. Nevertheless, the jurisdiction of the Torah was/is earth, and the laws written therein regarding lineage and priesthood were recognised and respected by not only the writer to the Hebrews, but by Christ himself. He was from Judah, not from Levi, thus while he was on earth he was bound by the Torah regarding who could and could not offer sacrifices in the earthly temple. Consequently, brother Chip's statement above, although admirably intending to exalt Christ as Lord, in fact makes a false assumption that Christ's being Lord somehow exempts Christ entirely from "any rule, or regulation, or tradition, that says thou shalt, or thou shalt not." In light of the above statements by the writer to the Hebrews, we see that this assumption is incorrect.
Shalom from Manila,
--Michael
-
Permalink Reply by Dena Brehm on
-
I see it differently ... I see that Jesus would not institute the fullness of the new covenant (of which He is the High Priest), until the old covenant completely disappeared. According to the author of Hebrews, the old covenant was *becoming* obsolete, and would soon (but hadn't yet) pass away. The old covenant didn't completely disappear until the Temple had been destroyed in 70AD.
Hebrews was (as I understand it) written in ~65AD ... they were waiting the imminent end of the age -- when everything would change.
Shalom, Dena
-
Permalink Reply by michael on
-
And I see it still differently. :)
Christ's priesthod in heaven was already established and functioning when the writer to the Hebrew wrote (c. 65-68 A.D.). His priesthood was not dependent upon the temple's later destruction. It had been established and functioning since the crucixion-->ascension event of around 33 A.D.
Nevertheless, the New Covenant had not been fully functioning, not when Christ inititiated it at his Last Supper, not when Christ had risen from the dead and ascended to the Father, not when the writer to the Hebrews wrote his letter, and not even when the temple was destroyed. In fact, the New Covenant is not fully functioning now (as an honest reading of Jer 31:31ff will reveal). The full functioning of the New Covenant depends upon the return of Christ and the return of Israel en masse to her King. So there has been a partial fulfillment of the New Covenant prophecies, but there is a yet consummate fulfillment still to be expected. This future fulfillment will (if I understand things correctly) radically affect K'LAL YISRAEL ("greater Israel") and, then consequently, it will radically affect the nations of this planet.
Shalom from Manila,
--Michael
P.S. Therefore, since the New Covenant has not been fully brought it, the Mosaic Covenant has not yet fully passed away.
-
Permalink Reply by Sean Steckbeck on -
michael,
very good observations!
Our Partners
Badge
© 2012 Created by Dale Interactive.
