THE SABBATH, AND THE DOCTRINE OF REST- BY PASTOR ELKAN

_“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.”_ – Ex 20:8  

The Sabbath is one the most important elements of the Mosaic Law and – by implication – all of Scripture. Yet many Christians today are ignorant of its meaning and its purpose. Indeed, entire denominations of Christianity, and even entire religions have gone into error because of a fundamental misunderstanding of this Day.

What is the Sabbath? Stated simply, Sabbath (Hebrew _shabbat)_ means _“Day of rest,”_ (Ex 20:8–11). It is observed on the last day of a 7-day week. This is done in remembrance of Gen 2:2 where it is stated that _“on the seventh day God ended His work which he had made; and He RESTED on the seventh day from all His work which He had made.”_ 

This original application of “Shabbat_ to the Almighty God makes us see that Sabbath doesn’t actually mean rest in the sense of relaxation or rejuvenation after work; but literally _cessation from work!_ This distinction is important and is actually the meaning given to it in scripture (see Lev 23:3; Heb 4:4).  

The Sabbath – and thus the concept of the 7-day week that’s observed virtually globally – is a uniquely Biblical institution. Attempts by secular philosophers and anthropologists to trace the Sabbath to ancient Babylonian, Assyrian or Egyptian customs have failed. 

The biblical importance of the Sabbath can be inferred not just in the fact that it’s situated in the 10 Commandments (or that it’s the most expanded of the 10); but that it’s literally the first of the Mosaic Law to be invoked in scripture. As early as Gen 2:3 where, after mentioning that God created the world in 6 days, it says _“And God blessed the 7th day, and sanctified it: because in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.”_

In Dt 5:15, Moses gave the Israelites an additional reason for the institution of the Sabbath: as a memorial of their deliverance from Egyptian bondage. 

Thus, the Sabbath means two things:

1) Cessation from work. 

2) Deliverance from bondage. 

These two truths must lie at the foundation of any interpretation of the significance of the 7th day.

[To be continued…]

AMEN

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

PASTOR GREG ELKAN

- Nigeria