The Sabbath: the Memorial of God's Creation

LESSON 1

THE SABBATH: THE MEMORIAL OF GOD'S CREATION

You are welcome to another edition of Insights from God's Word, a Bible study programme that is committed to sharing God's Word by allowing the Bible to speak for itself.

In this edition, we continue with our series on The Sabbath Question. The topic for this study is: The Sabbath: the Memorial of God's Creation. In this study, I want us to trace the origin and purpose of the Seventh - day Sabbath from the light of the Old Testament.

Beloved, the Seventh - day Sabbath was instituted right after God had finished creating everything on our planet. One can actually describe the Sabbath as a memorial of God's creation. The Creator God did not place a physical monument somewhere in our world to continually remind us that He created everything. Rather than building a physical monument, God instituted a monument in time that will continually tell of His creatorship through the ceaseless ages of eternity.

Friends, this monument that God placed in time to reveal His Creatorship is the Seventh - day Sabbath. From Genesis 2:1-3, we read about this important memorial of creation: "2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.

2:2 And 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.

2:3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made."

(Genesis 2:1-3) Beloved, from this passage of Scripture, we come away with the fact that God instituted the Sabbath day right after the six days of creation when sin had not yet marred anything He had created. We are told that God rested on the day, blessed the day, and sanctified it.

As we progress through Scripture, we come to the point where God inscribed the Seventh - day Sabbath as one of His Ten Commandments. From Exodus 20:8-11, we read the following in relation to the fourth commandment of the Decalogue: "20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.

20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:

20:10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:

20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it."

(Exodus 20:8-11) Friends, of all the commandments that we read about in the Decalogue, it is only the Sabbath commandment which begins with the word 'remember'. This key word 'remember', helps us to understand that the Sabbath had been in existence before God gave the Ten Commandments to the Israelites on Mount Sinai (see Exodus 16; Genesis 2:1-3). When we consider the fourth commandment carefully, we find the signature of a Creator God. From Exodus 20:11, we read the following:

"For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it" (compare Exodus 20:11 with Genesis 2:1-3)

Beloved, it is very clear that God gave the Sabbath commandment to His chosen people so it will remind them that He is the Creator God. Through the Sabbath commandment, God is claiming CREATORSHIP of the heavens and the earth, the seas and the fountains of water. Thus friends, the purpose of the Sabbath is to remind us of our roots. The Sabbath gives us the assurance that we are created by a loving God. The Sabbath gives us the assurance that our lives have a definite purpose here on earth.

Friends, our lives begin to have meaning when we come to understand and keep the Sabbath; for we realize that we did not originate from apes or caterpillars but that a loving God created us, and placed us here for a definite purpose. If mankind had consistently kept the Sabbath, we will have discovered our origin, and found the best answers for why we are here, and where we are going from here. The Sabbath will have led us to the One who created us all, and loved us with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3).

Beloved, the Sabbath day is not like any other day. God has specifically reserved rich blessings for all who will keep the day holy. In fact, in obeying the Sabbath, the people of God are sanctified (see Ezekiel 20:12, 20). From Isaiah 56:2, we read the following beautiful words: "Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil."

From Isaiaih 58:13-14, we come across another passage of blessings: "13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: 14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it."

Friends, as the texts above bring out; God has reserved rich blessings for those who keep the Sabbath. The Sabbath is a day of sweet delight (review Isaiah 58:13), a day where we have the opportunity to commune with the Creator of the vast cosmos. It is however sad to note that many in our world today miss out on the rich blessings of Jehovah by refusing to obey the Sabbath commandment. Millions are struggling to find meaning and purpose for their lives for the simple reason that they have rejected the Sabbath of the Creator God.

But you see beloved, our God is a God of love. It is His delight to save mankind from the secularism that has led many to live a life without hope and purpose. In the closing hours of this earth's history, the Lord is giving a message through His servants that calls upon all mankind to come back and worship Him by honouring the Sabbath, the only monument in time that tells of His creatorship, and helps us to discover our roots. From the apocalyptic book of Revelation, we read the following powerful words: "14:6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,

14:7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: AND WORSHIP HIM THAT MADE HEAVEN, AND EARTH, AND THE SEA, AND THE FOUNTAINS OF WATERS."

(Revelation 14:6-7; Capital Emphasis Added. Compare this text with Exodus 20:11) Exhortation: Throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity, the people of God will hallow the Sabbath, the memorial of God's creatorship. From the prophet Isaiah, we read about this amazing truth: "22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain. 23 And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD" (Isaiah 66:22-23). In our next study, we will consider the topic: The Feast Days and the Sabbath. The Bible Study references for this study are Exodus 25:8, Leviticus 23, Colossians 2:14-16, Genesis 2:1-3, Exodus 20:8-11 and Revelation 14:12. Please do well to go through these passages before the next study is released.

Stay blessed and keep shining for King Jesus.

Maranatha!

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