Clarifying The Confusion Over Sunday And The Sabbath
Posted: Saturday, October 22, 2011
by Joel Hendon
http://hebronics.org/index.html
The Dictionary of King James words lists the meaning of sabbath as: A rest. A cessation of work. So there are many ways to use the term. Some folks take a month’s sabbatical from a certain work or assignment. It would do no harm to the word if a hard working man simply got up one morning and decided to take a sabbath day.
And the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God finished his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and hallowed it; because that in it he rested from all his work which God had created and made. (Genesis 2:1-3 KJV)
Now the definition at the start of the article shows that it simply means a period of rest, and rest means a cessation of work. You do not have to be tired. Any stoppage of work for any period is a sabbath. Any pause in activity or motion is a period of sabbath. Check your dictionary and you’ll see that it does not mean what we commonly think to say rest. I consider a rest as a recuperation from fatigue. But that is not what it is.
You will also notice that the scripture here makes no mention of the word sabbath, although it was a sabbath, or day of rest. But he goes no further with it. He did not set it apart here as a continuing day of rest. A day of rest as the sabbath is not mentioned in scripture until the 16th chapter of Exodus, verse 23, which was 2513 years after the creation.
God had already freed the Israelites from Egyptian captivity and they were in the wilderness without sufficient food and God had started giving them manna. They were to gather enough of it each day to only last through the day. If they gathered more it melted and stank. But at this point God, through Moses told them to gather twice as much on the sixth day and it would not deteriorate and he assigned that day as a day of rest, a sabbath.
These people were living a very grueling life style. Moving from place to place, making daily sacrifices and caring for their children and livestock. They very much needed a day of rest each week.
The Sabbath on each seventh day of the week along with the Mosaical Law, was for as long as their generations existed. It contained very rigid requirements, absolutely no manual labor was to be performed. One man was stoned to death for gathering up sticks on the Sabbath. They were not allowed to travel farther than six tenths of one mile on that day.
Acts 1:12 says this: Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day's journey. Scholars have determined that the distance described here is approximately six-tenths mile. We also know they were allowed to leave their homes (tents) to travel to the tabernacle while in the wilderness which was situated with the tribes encircling it and the primary distance was about 1,000 yards. Of course, the encampment was huge so there is no doubt a number of them were at the full limit.
Now, when Jesus Christ came to this earth, taught his disciples and the Jewish people when he had the opportunity, promised to establish his church which would supercede the law under Moses and be offered to all men, Jew and Gentile alike. He then gave his life on the cross by which he purchased that church which offers salvation to all mankind. As I have shown in several articles, much of the writings of the apostles and other inspired men of the New Testament, deals with the problems which stood in the way of the growing of his church. That of which is often referred to as Judaising teachers. These were many of the Jews who had been converted to Christ, but had extreme difficulty in being able to leave the Old Law they had known all of their lives. They tried to enforce circumcision, Sabbath day keeping and many other such things.
But, the scriptures tell plainly that the things given under Moses were taken out of the way and nailed to the cross of Jesus Christ. Not one time can you find any inference that the Christians ever kept the Sabbath as an holy day. Those who propose that we are still obligated to observe it base largely on the fact that Paul as well as some others visited the tabernacle on the Jewish Sabbath. Granted, he did, but his purpose there was to convert them, not to participate in their worship. Why else would he have been thrown out of their assembly and mistreated badly. Paul was even stoned and left for dead once. Here are a few quotes from early Christians which verify this. The fact that some uninspired individual who lived only a few centuries ago, professed to have been given a message to the contrary, won’t cut the mustard. Paul told the people if any man, although he be an angel from heaven, brought any gospel other than they had heard, to let him be accursed.
Justin Martyr 150AD But if we do not admit this, we shall be liable to fall into foolish opinion, as if it were not the same God who existed in the times of Enoch and all the rest, who neither were circumcised after the flesh, nor observed Sabbaths, nor any other rites, seeing that Moses enjoined such observances... For if there was no need of circumcision before Abraham, or of the observance of Sabbaths, of feasts and sacrifices, before Moses; no more need is there of them now, after that, according to the will of God, Jesus Christ the Son of God has been born without sin, of a virgin sprung from the stock of Abraham. (Dialogue With Trypho the Jew, 150-165 AD, Ante-Nicene Fathers , vol. 1, page 206)
Origen-220AD "On Sunday none of the actions of the world should be done. If then, you abstain from all the works of this world and keep yourselves free for spiritual things, go to church, listen to the readings and divine homilies, meditate on heavenly things. (Homil. 23 in Numeros 4, PG 12:749)
350 AD Cyril of Jerusalem "Fall not away either into the sect of the Samaritans or into Judaism, for Jesus Christ has henceforth ransomed you. Stand aloof from all observance of Sabbaths and from calling any indifferent meats common or unclean" (Catechetical Lectures 4:37).
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