The rationale and significance for the Lord’s Sabbaths
Let
me state from the outset that the rationale and significance for observing the
Lord’s Sabbaths should not be out of compulsion, cohesion or legalism for we
have been duly instructed saying: “One person esteems one day above another;
another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He
who observes the day (not a day), observes it to the Lord; and he who does not
observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it” (Romans 14:5-6).
We
have also been duly instructed saying; “Therefore by the deeds of the law no
flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:20).
The
purpose of the law therefore is to teach us what is right and what is wrong as
illustrated by the apostle Paul who wrote; “What shall we say then? Is the law
sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through
the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said,
"You shall not covet" (Romans 7:7).
Now
since we are all free moral agents it is left to each individual to choose for
themselves who and what to believe and follow and so we have been duly
instructed saying: “But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt
for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written: "As I live, says the LORD, Every
knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God." So then each
of us shall give account of himself to God. Therefore let us not judge one
another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a
cause to fall in our brother's way” (Romans 14: 10-13).
Therefore,
our obedience to God like I said before is not out of compulsion, cohesion,
command or legalism but out of love, reverence, respect, appreciation, adoration
and gratitude as illustrated by Jesus Christ who quite explicitly said;
"If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15).
By
observing the Sabbaths one perpetuates and keep in memory what the Lord did for
humanity on that particular day and so the rationale and significance for
observing the Sabbaths are as follows:
- To be refreshed both physically and spiritually
For it
is written; “there remains a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who
enters God’s [spiritual] rest also rests from his own work, just as God did
from His. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no
one will fall by following their examples of disobedience” (Hebrews 4:9-11).
Now
the way God rested is stated as follows; “…By the seventh day God had finished
the work He had been doing; so on the seventh day He rested from all His work.
And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it He rested from
all the work of creating that He had done” (Genesis 2:2).
Now
to be refreshed both physically and spiritually also means that we should take
delight in the Lord as we have been duly admonished saying: “If you turn away
your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call
the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the LORD honorable, and shall honor Him,
not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own
words, then you shall delight yourself in the LORD; And I will cause you to
ride on the high hills of the earth, and feed you with the heritage of Jacob
your father. The mouth of the LORD has spoken" (Isaiah 58:13-14).
So
if every believer would believe that the Lord has set aside the seventh day of
the week as a memorial of His creation and also rests from his own work, just
as God did from His, then we would all be speaking the same thing and there would
be no divisions among us, but rather, we would be perfectly joined together in
the same mind and in the same judgment.
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With brotherly love
Lucius Joseph
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