Sabbath: From Shadow to Substance

All right, well, this morning we come to one of the more challenging sermons that I may ever preach.

And we are compelled to go here because as we've been working our way through the story of Jesus and the Gospel of Luke,

we see this come up again and again.

We're talking today about the issue of the Sabbath.

And last Sunday we began to dig into this issue.

I explained how the Sabbath was the seventh day of the week,

counted from Friday at sundown to Saturday at sundown.

And we read the commandment that was given at Sinai

about how the Israelites were to keep that seventh day of the week holy and do no work.

From there we talked about how Israel went from blatant disregard for that commandment

into a hyper-legalistic, man-made religion of their own,

adding on countless rules and regulations which truly burdened the people

on the day that God intended for their burdens to be alleviated.

We saw in Luke chapter 6, verse 1 to 5, how Jesus was walking along with his disciples

Luke 6:1–5

and they were going through the grain fields on the Sabbath day

and he and his disciples were rebuked by the Pharisees

for gleaning and eating some of the wheat on their way by.

They charged Jesus and his disciples with breaking the law on the Sabbath.

And we looked at each of the Gospel accounts of that encounter

and saw how Jesus responded.

They were not guilty as far as the Old Testament commandment was concerned.

Jesus said they were innocent.

And he said also on that occasion that the Sabbath was made for the benefit of people,

not people for the benefit of the Sabbath.

And then we ended with Jesus' jaw-dropping claim to be the Lord of the Sabbath,

the one who is in charge of it,

and therefore the one to judge what was and wasn't a violation of the commandment.

Well, as we continue on through the Gospel of Luke,

we're going to see Jesus come into conflict with the Pharisees

three more times on this issue of Sabbath.

But before we go on to these passages,

I want to take a message here to speak about

how these passages on the Sabbath apply to us as followers of Jesus today.

These are the questions that we ended with last Sunday.

Must we as followers of Jesus keep the Sabbath?

And if so, how?

Is Sunday now to be our Sabbath day?

Or was the Sabbath commandment only fit to the Old Covenant?

This has been a point of division among followers of Jesus

since the earliest days of the church.

Men and women who love Jesus and who love the Word of God

have come to different answers on these questions.

We could skip over these passages

or just not try to apply them for unity's sake,

but I think it's better to grapple with them head on.

And so I want to begin this morning with two,

what I'll call North Star passages.

These are the passages we should keep before us

on this issue of the Sabbath.

And I believe they are clear enough

and strong enough to help us find our way through this issue

without dividing over it.

So North Star passage number one

is found in Colossians chapter two,

verse 16.

This is the Apostle Paul writing to the church at Colossae.

And he says,

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,

the reality, however,

is found in Christ.

Whatever conclusion you come to

from the Bible

about the Sabbath day,

no one

has any right

to judge you

or condemn you

for how you do

or don't

observe the Sabbath.

Isn't that what he's saying?

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.

whatever conclusion you come to

from the Bible

about the Sabbath day,

no one has any right

to judge you

or condemn you

for how you do

or don't

observe the Sabbath.

That Paul can make a statement

like this

about something as significant

as the fourth commandment

should be enough

to let us know

that with the coming of Christ,

things have changed

big time

for those who have faith

in Jesus.

In the past,

it was the responsibility

of the leaders

and elders

in Israel

to deal

with sin

in the camp,

which included

the sin

of breaking

the fourth commandment.

Let's remember,

I know I read it last Sunday,

but for those of you

who were not here

last Sunday,

let's remember

just what the Lord commanded

when he gave

the Ten Commandments

at Mount Sinai.

This is from Exodus

Exodus 20:8

chapter 20

verse 8.

The Lord said,

Remember the Sabbath day

by keeping it holy.

Six days

you shall labor

and do all your work,

but the seventh day

is a Sabbath

to the Lord your God.

On it

you shall not do

any work,

neither you

nor your son

or daughter

nor your male

or female servant

nor your animals

nor any foreigner

residing

in your towns.

For in six days

the Lord made

the heavens

and the earth

the sea

and all that is in them,

but he rested

on the seventh day.

Therefore,

the Lord blessed

the Sabbath day

and made it holy.

Now let's read about

what happened

on one occasion

not too long

after this command

was given

when a man

deliberately

disregarded

the Sabbath day

and went out

to work on it.

From Numbers

Numbers 15:32

chapter 15

verse 32.

While the Israelites

were in the wilderness,

a man was found

gathering wood

on the Sabbath day.

Those who found

him gathering wood

brought him to Moses

and Aaron

and the whole assembly

and they kept him

in custody

because it was not

clear what should

be done

to him.

Then the Lord

said to Moses,

the man

must die.

The whole assembly

must stone him

outside the camp.

So the assembly

took him outside

the camp

and stoned him

to death

as the Lord

commanded Moses.

What we see here

is that

defying God,

disobeying

his commandments

is a serious,

serious thing.

It was serious

enough that

God himself

said,

this man

deserves to die.

This is one

of about

six incidents

in the Old Testament,

some before

and even some

after the exile

when the people

of Israel

were clearly

liable to judgment

because of a failure

to keep

the Sabbath day

holy

as God

had commanded.

Well,

with the coming

of Christ

and his church,

there are also

imperatives

given to us

about

dealing with sin

in the church.

We are called

to correct

and rebuke

one another.

We're called

to confront

a brother or sister

who is sinning.

Sin is still

serious

and yet

when it comes

to Sabbath

it would seem

that we may not

correct

or rebuke

one another.

As Paul says,

do not let

anyone judge

you

with regard

to a

Sabbath day.

If working

on the Sabbath

is a sin,

how can Paul

say this?

And if we look

carefully at this

we see that Paul

does two things

here.

First,

he lumps

the Sabbath

in with three

other things

that were commanded

in the Old Testament

and nearly

all Christians

agree that we

do not need

to keep the

commands

in the law

for these first

three things

in the list.

The first one

is,

do not let

anyone judge

you by what

you eat

or drink.

We do not

need to obey

the commands

given to Israel

regarding food

and drink

or eating

what is

unclean

or clean.

Jesus himself

declared

all foods

clean.

That's found

in Mark

Mark 7:18

chapter 7

verse 18

where Jesus

says,

don't you see

that nothing

that enters

a person

from the

outside

can defile

them?

For it

doesn't go

into their

heart

but into

their stomach

and then

out of the

body.

In saying

this,

Jesus declared

all foods

clean.

With the

coming of

Christ,

there's a

massive

change

in God's

relationship

with man.

The old

garment

is to be

set aside

and the

new garment

to be

worn

instead.

We do

not need

to obey

those old

commands

given to

Israel

pertaining

to food

and drink.

Neither

do we need

to observe

the annual

religious

festivals.

The festivals

were deeply

connected

with journeying

up to the

temple in

Jerusalem

and with

the special

sacrifices

which were

to be

offered

there on

those

occasions.

We heard

last week

Jesus say

in Matthew

Matthew 12:6

chapter 12

verse 6,

I tell you

something

greater

than the

temple

is here.

Jesus would

then foretell

how the city

of Jerusalem

and the temple

would soon be

destroyed

and the good

news of Jesus

would be

proclaimed all

over the

world so

that even

the Gentiles

might be

included in

Christ as

well.

And so

naturally the

temple

sacrifices that

were commanded

and the

annual festivals

in Jerusalem

that were

commanded

would no

longer be

required to

be observed

for the

churches that

were arising

all over the

world.

The third

thing he

mentions is

the new

moon

celebration.

This is

actually a

reference to

the monthly

sacrifices that

were commanded

to be offered

by the

priests.

this is

found in

Numbers 28

Numbers 28:11

verse 11.

And I

think we

all kind

of just

intuitively

know that

this is not

something that

we are required

to do as

followers of

Jesus today.

And so on

these three

things we

can all agree

that we do

not need

to observe

what God

commanded in

the Old

Testament law.

We easily

recognize them

as pertaining

to the Old

Covenant.

but Paul

lumps in

with these

three

Sabbath

days.

This is

our signal

from the

word of

God that

the Sabbath

commandment

itself is

of the same

sort of stuff

as the food

and drink

laws,

the religious

festivals,

and the

monthly

sacrifices.

Not only

does Paul

lump the

Sabbath in

with those

other things

but second,

he states

that the

Sabbath was

merely a

shadow which

points to

Christ, the

substance or

the reality.

We were

meant to see

the shadows

and truly the

Israelites were

meant to keep

these shadows.

It was a

matter of

obedience and

disobedience for

them.

But the

shadows were

given so that

ultimately we

would follow the

shadow to the

substance.

Christ.

And with

him having

come, it

doesn't make

sense to

cling to the

shadow.

We need to

cling to the

one the

shadows point

to, to

Jesus.

This metaphor

of shadow

and substance

is also used

by the author

of Hebrews

to describe

how the

old and

temporary

must give

way to

the new

reality.

Look at

Hebrews

Hebrews 10:1

chapter 10

verse 1.

The law

is only a

shadow of

the good

things that

are coming,

not the

realities

themselves.

He will

then go on

in this

passage to

describe how

the sacrifices

commanded in

the old

covenant law

were fulfilled

and made

unnecessary

forever by

Christ's once

for all

sacrifice which

inaugurated the

new covenant.

And so we

are meant to

move off from

the shadows

to the

reality, to

Christ and

his sacrifice,

the substance.

Similarly with

the Sabbath,

the Sabbath,

says Paul,

just like the

ceremonial food

laws and

festivals is a

shadow of

things to

come, the

reality, the

substance is

found in

Christ.

Let's think

about that for a

moment.

What does that

mean?

How is the

Sabbath, a

shadow, pointing

to Christ, the

ultimate reality?

Well, what was

the Sabbath all

about?

The Sabbath was

all about rest.

It was about

ceasing our

strivings and

finding rest in

the Lord.

Paul is saying

that Christ

himself is the

reality, that

Sabbath was

pointing to.

Jesus is our

ultimate rest.

Not a day of

the week, but a

person and a

relationship with

him.

He is the one

who truly brings

an end to all

of our toil and

all of our

strivings.

What did Jesus

say?

Matthew 11, 28.

He said,

come to me,

all you who

are weary

and burdened,

and I will

give you rest.

Take my

yoke upon you

and learn from

me, for I am

gentle and

humble in

heart,

and you will

find rest

for your

souls.

for my

yoke is

easy, and

my burden

is light.

So that's

North Star

passage number

one, Colossians

2, 16 and

17.

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.

If we

can't even

judge a

brother or

sister's

keeping of

the Sabbath

anymore, then

surely the

commandment was

only binding

under the

old covenant

with Israel.

Paul speaks

of the

Sabbath among

other old

covenant things

that we know

we're not

beholden to,

and he tells

us that the

Sabbath's ultimate

reality has

come, and

that Jesus

is the

reality.

North Star

passage number

two, Romans

Romans 14:1–6

chapter 14,

verse 1 to

6.

Really just

5 and 6, but

we'll read from

1 to 6 to

kind of get

the context.

This is Paul

again writing to

the church at

Rome.

He says,

accept the

one whose faith

is weak,

without quarreling

over disputable

matters.

One person's

faith allows

them to eat

anything, but

another whose

faith is weak

eats only

vegetables.

The one who

eats everything

must not treat

with contempt the

one who does

not, and the

one who does

not eat

everything must

not judge the

one who does,

for God has

accepted them.

Who are you

to judge someone

else's servant?

To their own

master's servants

stand or fall,

and they will

stand, for the

Lord is able to

make them stand.

One person

considers one day

more sacred than

another.

Another considers

every day alike.

Each of them

should be fully

convinced in their

own mind.

Whoever regards

one day as

special does so

to the Lord.

Whoever eats

meat does so

to the Lord,

for they give

thanks to God,

and whoever

abstains does so

to the Lord,

and gives thanks

to God.

So Paul, again,

this time,

writing to the

church in Rome,

and this church

was a mixture of

Jewish and

Gentile believers,

some coming from

a background of

having observed

the Sabbath day

all their lives,

and some

having never.

He writes to

them about how

to handle what

he terms

disputable

matters.

Matters of

food and

drink,

and specifically

the issue of

how we consider

days in

relation to

each other.

First, let's

notice the

imperative of

Paul in

verse 1.

accept the

one whose

faith is

weak,

without

quarreling

over

disputable

matters.

And so

right off the

top, how

this is going

to end up,

how it should

end up, is

clear.

We're not to

break fellowship

with one

another over

these things.

We are to

accept one

another, even

if there are

differences among

us over

matters of

food and

drink, or

days of the

week.

we are to

accept as

brothers and

sisters those

who hold the

view that's

different from

ours.

And we're to

do so, he

says, without

quarreling,

without fighting

over these

things.

But now look at

what Paul says

with regard to

the days of the

week here in

verse 5 and

6.

One person

considers one

day more

sacred than

another.

Another

considers every

day alike.

Each of

them should

be fully

convinced in

their own

mind.

Whoever

regards one

day as

special does

so to the

Lord.

Notice how

Paul does

not condemn

the person

who considers

every day

alike.

If Christ

expected us to

keep the

Sabbath

commandment

just as they

did long

ago in

Israel, this

would have

been the

perfect

opportunity to

say it.

He could

have said,

one person

considers one

day more

sacred than

another.

Another

considers every

day alike,

but that

person

considering

every day

alike is

clearly not

keeping the

Sabbath day

holy.

They need to

be considering

that one

day, this

one day, as

special to

the Lord.

Keep it

holy to the

Lord.

But no,

Paul doesn't

say that.

Neither does

he condemn

the one who

regards one

day of the

week over

the others,

because he

does it to

the Lord.

So the

point here

is that

Sabbath

keeping is

no longer

a covenant

obligation for

those who

are in

Christ.

Rather, it

is now in

the arena of

Christian

freedom.

You may

observe a

day as

special to

the Lord,

like the

Israelites did

long ago,

or you

may consider

every day

alike.

A precious

gift of

God to

be lived in

worshipful

relationship to

him.

As with

what Paul

said in the

previous passage,

it's almost

impossible to

believe that

the fourth

commandment,

to keep the

Sabbath day

holy, is

binding on

all believers

everywhere.

How could it

be when Paul

validates the

one who

considers every

day alike,

rather than

calling that

attitude out as

immoral?

or sin?

And so these

are my two

North Star

passages when

it comes to

the issue of

the Sabbath.

I think that

taken together,

these are clear

enough to

help us see

that the

fourth

commandment,

as weighty

as it was

for Israel,

was not

carried forward

by God

into the

new covenant

as an

obligation.

And as

we've seen,

we're not to

judge one

another in

regard to

the Sabbath,

we're not to

quarrel over

it.

It's a

disputable

matter,

and we are

to accept

those who

come to a

different

conclusion than

we do.

That's really

the bulk of

my message for

this morning,

but there's so

many extra

things that we

could talk about

here, so just

some additional

thoughts in no

particular order.

The Sabbath

commandment was

the one

ceremonial commandment

of the ten.

Sometimes we

may struggle,

how could one

of the ten

not be

carried over?

Well, the

other nine

things, they

commanded things

that were

inherently good

or prohibited

things that were

inherently evil.

The Sabbath

was not like

that.

Murder, for

instance, was

evil long

before the

Ten Commandments

were given.

We see that all

through the

book of Genesis.

But working

on the seventh

day of the

week was not

immoral.

Those who

worked on the

seventh day

of the week

before the

commandment was

even given

were not

sinning.

They were not

doing something

wicked.

This was a

ceremonial commandment

and a societal

religious ordinance

intended only

for Israel

until Christ

came and

fulfilled it.

Another thing

to keep in mind

is that we

often confuse

the Sabbath

with Sunday.

Sunday.

And I think

it's an

innocent mistake.

Honestly, I

grew up thinking

Sunday was the

Sabbath day

and that those

who worked on

Sunday were

disregarding that.

We're simply

trying to read

and apply all

that the Bible

says about the

Sabbath to our

lives as followers

of Jesus.

But the weekly

Sabbath day in

the Bible was

always the

seventh day of

the week,

marked as the

Jews marked

days from

sunset on

Friday to

sunset on

Saturday.

Many of the

early churches

and followers

of Jesus

began to

meet for

fellowship and

worship on

the first day

of the week,

which was

Sunday.

Yet both

in Israel

and throughout

the Roman

Empire, the

first day of

the week,

Sunday,

was a work

day.

And so

what that

means is

that when

the church

gathered,

when Christians

gathered,

they either

met early

in the

morning and

then went

to work,

or they

went to

work and

then gathered

together in

the evening

after work.

It wasn't

until the

fourth century

that Sunday

was legally

declared to

be a day

of rest for

city dwellers,

magistrates,

and craftsmen

under Emperor

Constantine.

Furthermore,

the Bible

says nothing

about the

Sabbath day

being moved

to Sunday,

or shifted

from the

seventh day

of the week

to the

first day

of the week.

The commandment

as stated

in Exodus

20 is not

that we are

to take one

day in

seven to

rest,

but that we

are specifically

to rest on

the seventh

day,

which means

that for most

of us as

Christians,

we've never

kept the

Sabbath day

commandment,

except maybe

unintentionally.

There are

only two

places in

the entire

New Testament

where it's

even mentioned

about the

church gathering

on the

first day

of the week,

and this is

after the

resurrection of

Jesus.

One is in

the narrative

of Acts

Acts 20:7

chapter 20

verse 7

and refers

to,

did I lose

it there?

It refers

to the

gathering

of the

church

which Paul

stopped by

for the

night that

Eutychus

fell out

of the

window.

They met

on the

first day

of the

week that

time.

And the

other is

in Paul's

letter to

the Corinthian

church where

he tells

them to

put aside

money on

the first

day of

the week

to get

ready for

the collection

that Paul

was going

to make

for the

Jerusalem

gift.

So there's

hardly a

prescription

or a

mandate

in the

scriptures

for gathering

to worship

on the

first day

of the

week.

These are

maybe two

glimmers

in the

Bible of

the tradition

that emerged.

There's also

the mention

in Revelation

by the

Apostle

John of

the Lord's

day.

On the

Lord's day

I was in

the spirit

he said.

Most agree

that this

came to be a

Christian

reference to

the first day

of the week

since that's

the day that

Jesus rose

from the

dead and

that's the

day that

the church

began to

gather on

for worship.

But again

there's nothing

saying that the

Sabbath

became the

Lord's

day.

One of the

reasons why

Paul likely

taught what

he did about

the Sabbath

in these

two North

Star passages

is because

Sabbath

observance

actually

continued

amongst

Jewish

believers

in Israel.

It was

part of

the culture.

Everything

in Israel

ground to

a halt

on Friday

at sundown.

And so

it seems

the Jewish

Christians,

the Jewish

church there

just continued

doing what

they always

did.

They took

it as a

day to

rest.

But churches

elsewhere in

the Greco-Roman

world didn't

all do this.

Some of them

saw Sabbath

as distinctly

Jewish.

And they

just met for

fellowship and

worship after

work on

Sunday evening.

In fact,

there's even

more to it

than this.

For a time

in certain

regions,

Sabbath

observance

seems to

have become

popular among

Gentile

Christians.

For one,

there was a

certain

attractiveness

to it.

We've been

working seven

days a

week.

Take a

day off

every week

to rest?

Yes.

But then

there was

also the

influence of

the Jews

and even

the Judaizers

which sought

to compel

Christians to

keep the

Sabbath along

with the

other old

covenant

commandments.

And so in

some churches

they became

very opposed

to the

Sabbath

gathering,

to the

Sabbath

ordinance,

I mean.

And it

was important

to them

that we

worship

Christ

on the

Lord's

day,

but we

don't do

what the

Judaizers

are teaching

or what the

Jews are

trying to

force us

to do

on the

seventh

day.

Meanwhile,

in Israel,

some of the

Christians there,

it seems,

were likely to

do both.

They would

observe the

Sabbath day

and then they

would gather

for Christian

worship on

the first

day of

the week.

And so in

this context,

as things

kind of

developed and

the church

grew and

spread,

it's

understandable

why Paul

wrote what

he did

about the

Sabbath.

And it's

also evident

that the

Sabbath day

and the

Lord's

day were

never

conceived

of as

the same

thing by

the early

church.

The point

of all this

is to see

clearly that

keeping the

Sabbath is

not a

covenant

obligation for

Christians

today.

And yet,

as Jesus

said,

the Sabbath

was made

for man.

As in

for the

benefit of

man.

It's not

an obligation,

but it is

still something

that we may

choose to

do.

It was a

gift to a

people who

had just

come out of

slavery and

working non-stop

day after

day.

In Christ,

we have the

freedom to

consider one

day a week

special to

the Lord.

Just as

Paul said

some in

the church

at Rome

were doing.

And if it

was God's

idea to

give a

weekly day

of rest to

his people

as a gift

and for

their benefit,

perhaps we

shouldn't be

so quick to

just throw

out the

principle,

the principle

of Sabbath

as merely

an old

covenant

thing.

Here's a

reality that

we probably

all know.

People who

work seven

full days a

week,

often burn

out.

They find

themselves in

an awful

state.

And so

for Christians

who choose

to practice

the principle

of weekly

Sabbath on

any day of

the week,

it can be

such a

life-giving

and refreshing

thing and

is truly a

gift from

God.

So long as

we don't

turn it back

into a

religious rules,

do's and

don'ts,

which puts

us back

under the

law that

Christ has

set us

free from.

Here's

something you

can try if

you wish.

You have

the freedom

in Christ

to do

this.

Experiment.

Try for

one week

sometime

here,

observing the

Sabbath the

way some of

our Christian

brothers and

sisters in

the first

century may

have.

Friday at

sundown to

Saturday at

sundown.

Do all

your yard

work and

your meal

prep and

your errands

either before

or after,

but take a

full 24

hours to be

at home as

a family or

with friends

and just

rest.

Spend some

time in

family worship.

Enjoy your

backyard if

you have

one.

I'm not

saying do

this every

week.

I'm saying

as a one

time thing

to try to

experience

something of

what God

wanted to

give to

his people

one day

every week.

Maybe the

gift of

Sabbath in

principle is

what you

or your

family are

really in

need of.

Maybe you

and your

family have

been going

a million

miles an

hour and

traveling here

and there

and everywhere

for work,

sports,

family

gatherings,

meetings.

things.

Maybe what

you and

your family

really truly

need is a

day at home

with each

other each

week where

nothing is

planned,

where it's

not just a

home and

yard work

day but a

chance to

spend time

together.

Maybe play a

favorite game,

maybe throw the

football or the

frisbee.

And with the

freedom that we

have in Christ

on this matter,

there's nothing

saying you

have to stay

home.

What do you

find restful?

What is truly

restful?

Take a day out

at the lake

or at the

mineral spa or

whatever it is

for you.

Maybe in the

city.

Whatever truly

meets that need

for you and

your family.

Here's a

question.

If you don't

take a day

to rest each

week, when

do you rest?

Maybe the

benefit of a

full 24 hours

every week is

the needed

part of the

Sabbath principle

that you've

been missing.

Maybe that's

what would make

all the

difference to

your exhausted

and burnt

out state.

We don't

have to keep

the Sabbath

commandment

anymore, but

the Sabbath

was made for

man to meet

a need we

all have.

ironically, for

practical

considerations, for

those of us who

choose to

receive the

Sabbath in

principle as a

gift and take

a day to rest,

and because of

the way that our

society is still

set up today,

Saturday and

Sunday still end

up being the

logical choice for

many to take for

themselves a

Sabbath-like day

of rest.

Of course, on

those days, there's

no school, and

gathering for

worship like we

are right now,

here on Sunday

morning, it's a

life-giving thing.

It brings spiritual

renewal and

refreshment to us

in the Lord.

Those of us who

work Monday to

Friday, we still

need at least one

day a week to

do the home

stuff and the

yard stuff, the

gardening, all

that stuff, and

so that often ends

up being Saturday,

and so Sunday

ends up being the

day that we

practice Sabbath

rest if we

choose to.

Unless maybe you

do it the other

way around.

Maybe you take

your Saturday to

rest and recreate.

Come to church on

Sunday morning and

then do all your

yard work and all

that stuff after

church today.

Whatever you

choose, know that

you have the

freedom in Christ

to do so.

Let no one judge

you with regard to

the Sabbath, and

accept those who

think and do

differently than

you without

quarreling over