What IS the Sabbath Rest?

[Claudia_T]

I thought that some might want to know what Seventh Day Adventists believe when it comes to the Sabbath rest. Two men named A.T. Jones and E.J. Waggoner often did writings on this and other subjects concerning Righteousness by Faith.

Unfortunately, the Jews had turned the Sabbath into something that God had never intended at all. Jesus, however, came and restored the true Sabbath into its proper setting, by His own example. Jesus never sinned, He never broke the Sabbath, He kept it according to the commandment. You can read more on that here:



The Gospel in Creation
by E. J. Waggoner

[ July 20, 2005, 03:24 PM: Message edited by: dianetavegia ]

 

[Claudia_T]

or you could just go read it here instead:

[ July 20, 2005, 03:26 PM: Message edited by: dianetavegia ]

 

[Eric B]

God is Spirit, therefore the rest that He took after creation was spiritual rest. There was no physical weariness incurred in creating the earth. "The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary" (Isaiah 40:28). Creation was not a physical work; it was wholly spiritual. God spake, and it was. And His word is spirit. Therefore, to keep God's Sabbath, or rest, is to enjoy spiritual rest. The Sabbath is not designed for mere physical rest, but for spiritual. It has a higher meaning than is commonly attached to it. True, we are enjoined from doing our own labor on that day, but the cessation from physical labor on the Sabbath day is but an emblem of the spiritual rest which God gives to those who accept Him as the Creator of all things. Without spiritual rest there is no true Sabbath-keeping. The Lord says that they who turn away their feet from the Sabbath, and do not do their own ways on His holy day, but call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable, shall delight themselves in the Lord. (Isaiah 58:13, 14). A man may refrain from labor on the seventh day as scrupulously as ever the strictest Pharisee did; yet if he does not know and delight in the Lord Jesus Christ, he is not keeping the Sabbath of the Lord. True Sabbath rest can be found only in Christ.

Let it not be forgotten that the Sabbath was given to man in Eden before sin entered into the world. Work was given to Adam, but it was not wearisome labor. Labor is no part of the curse, but weariness from labor is. It was not until after the fall that it was said to Adam, "Cursed is the ground for thy sake: in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return" (Genesis 3:17-19). All this was because he had sinned. If he had remained loyal to God, the earth would have yielded bountifully only that which is good, and labor would have been a pleasure. Yet the sabbath would have been observed, not as a rest for the body, which would never have become weary, but as a season of delightful communion with God.

A practical lesson maybe learned right here in regard to Sabbath legislation. If the Sabbath were merely for the purpose of giving men physical rest, in order that they might be able to begin the next week's pursuit of wealth the more eagerly, it would be possible for the government to require all men to keep the Sabbath. But since the rest of the Sabbath is a spiritual rest, the impossibility of compelling anybody to keep the Sabbath must be apparent. Spiritual pertains to the Spirit of God. The rest of the Sabbath, being spiritual, is the rest which only the Spirit of God can give, and the Spirit of God is not subject to acts of parliament or the decrees of courts. Even though the seventh day, the day which the Lord Himself blessed and sanctified, were the day sought to be enforced, the result would be the same. God does not use compulsion, and He has not authorized any man or body of men to use it in His place. The Sabbath is for man; it is the greatest blessing that God has for man. It is that which shows him the power by which he may be saved. To compel men, therefore, to keep the Sabbath, would be the same as to compel them to be saved. Christ says that He will draw men to Him, but He does not drive them. He is the Good Shepherd; as such He goes before His sheep, and leads them by His voice, but He does not drive with a club.

It is clear that mere bodily recuperation is not the object of the Sabbath day and that merely refraining from bodily toil does not at all constitute the sums of Sabbath-keeping.

The rest that is here spoken of is evidently the rest that remains for the people of God in the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. It is rest in the earth made new, which the ancient Jews did not obtain because of unbelief. That which they received in the land of Canaan was only a shadow of the real rest which God had promised them. The same gospel of the kingdom, which is preached to us, was first preached to them. But what has the seventh day to do with that eternal rest in the kingdom of God? We shall see.

The Sabbath is the memorial of creation, as we have seen. But let it not be forgotten that the Sabbath was given at the time when "God saw all that He had made; and, behold, it was very good." So the Sabbath commemorates a perfect creation. It reminds us that the earth was not always in the condition in which we now see it. Then, since no word of God can fail, and every purpose will be carried out, just as surely as the Sabbath reminds us of a perfect creation completed for the dwelling-place of man, it assures us that the earth will be renewed and made fit for the dwelling-place of those who shall be made meet for the inheritance of the saints in light.

God made the earth and placed man upon it. When man was created, he was upright; therefore, God intended the earth to be inhabited by a race of perfect beings. To these beings He gave the Sabbath, that they might keep in mind their Creator and thus retain their perfection. That perfection was not merely physical perfection, but it was spiritual as well. Man, in perfection of character, was made in the image of God. So he was to observe the Sabbath as a reminder of the spiritual perfection that he had received from God and that could be preserved by Him alone. Now it is to that perfect condition that the Lord is going to restore the earth, and through the gospel He is preparing a perfect people to inhabit the restored earth. Although man has fallen and the earth has been defiled, the Sabbath still remains, a fragment of Eden, both as a reminder to man of what God prepared in the beginning and as a means of lifting him up to that high position, so that he may enjoy it when it is restored.

The rest that remains, therefore, is the earth renewed and Eden restored. The works were finished from the foundation of the world. That is, as soon as the earth was created, it was man's rest. Man was given work to do, but it was not wearisome work.

Then the Sabbath was given to man as a sign that he was to rest to all eternity with the Lord. That is, he was to enjoy spiritual rest--perfect freedom from all sin.

This is the rest that Christ gives to all that come to Him. He says, "Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls" (Matthew 11:28, 29). We are to come and rest upon the word that upholds the universe. This is what the Sabbath means. It commemorates creation; but redemption is simply the power that created all things, working to restore them. So the Sabbath marks the highest gospel attainments.

And all of this is precisely the point that "observing" a DAY by ceasing from PHYSICAL work is not the true intent or fulfillment of the command. That was a CARNAL application of it given to the Israelites because of sin. Gen. does not tell us what God required of adam on that first sabbath, or that He required abything of him; only that God Himself "rested", and yes, this was "spiritual".

It is clear that mere bodily recuperation is not the object of the Sabbath day and that merely refraining from bodily toil does not at all constitute the sums of Sabbath-keeping. Yet entire cessation from our own work, of whatever kind it may be, is enjoined on the seventh day. This, not alone for the purpose of giving us time to contemplate the works of God without interruption, but to impress a much needed lesson of trust in God. As we cease all our labor by which we earn our living, we are reminded of the fact that God supplies us not only with spiritual blessings, but also with all temporal necessities. We thereby acknowledge that although, in obedience to His command, we labor for our daily bread, we are as dependent upon Him as though we did nothing.


A proper understanding of the Sabbath and its object, therefore, would forever set at rest the inquiry that often arises in the minds of persons who are convinced that they ought to obey God in the matter of Sabbath observance. The question is, "If I should keep the seventh day, how could I make a living? I shall doubtless lose my position, and since comparatively few people keep that day, and it is the principal business day of the week, I shall not be able to find employment. What can I do?" I say such a question will never be asked by one who knows the nature and object of the Sabbath. He will know that the Sabbath itself points out the answer. The very idea of Sabbath observance is that of perfect trust in God, whose power brought the universe from nothing, and upholds it, and whose love for His creatures is equal to His power to do them good.

It will also solve the question, or rather prevent its arising, as to whether a man should in an extremity labor on the Sabbath in harvest, when that seems to be the only hope of securing the crop. He will know that the God who alone can make the corn grow, is fully able to protect it, or to make ample provision for him in another way if it should be destroyed. But all will understand that perfect Sabbath-keeping is consistent with bestowing all needful care upon the afflicted; for the Sabbath itself reminds us that God is "gracious and full of compassion."

This is the same fallacy I was tying to highlight in the discussion I tried to start on the emotional Health gospel. You can read about this here "God shall privide all your needs" is taken out of context (God's specific dealings with Israel, spiritual salvation and a special grace to the original apostles and others in the NT), and used to try to force people into some passive docility, under the premise of God' sill for them. But has a Christian never lost everything and wound up on the street? Yes, and then we just say that was God's will for them, but we make it sounds like that could never happen. So just quit your job today, and God will take care of the rest. But the sabbath was not designed as such a "test" for us( though it was used as one for Israel). One of the "blessings" of our spiritual rest is that we are not held up to some performance based test like that.

A strictly literal rendering of Genesis 2:15 would be, that God caused man to rest in the garden which He had planted. He gave man rest in the earth that was ready for his enjoyment.

"strictly literal"? That basically turns the verse on it's ear/ God "puts" him in the goarden to do work, and this is saying it was for "rest".

Thus it is that "we which have believed do enter into rest." And he that hath entered into rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from His. Before men fully accept the simple word of the Lord, everything is from self. The works of the flesh are only sin; and even though men profess to serve God and have earnest desires to do right, their own works to that end are failures. "All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags" Isaiah 64:6. But when we realize the power of the word of God and know that it is able to build up those who trust it, then we cease our own works and allow God to work in us, both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Then all our works are wrought in Him, and they are right. This is indeed rest. The rest that comes when we realize that salvation does not come from ourselves but from the word which made the heavens and the earth and which upholds them, is the rest which the Sabbath brings to us when it is kept as the Lord designs.

"our own works" is not just what we cnormall call "the works of the flesh" (sins) but also trying to justify ouselves by worlks of the OT Law.

 

[BobRyan]

And all of this is precisely the point that "observing" a DAY by ceasing from PHYSICAL work is not the true intent or fulfillment of the command. That was a CARNAL application of it given to the Israelites because of sin. Gen. does not tell us what God required of adam on that first sabbath, or that He required abything of him; only that God Himself "rested", and yes, this was "spiritual".

Not according to God's Word.

Christ said that when the day was MADE it was made as a blessing FOR mankind (Mark 2:27).

Christ the Creator HIMSELF - "made it" in Gen 2:3 according to scripture because on that day it was MADE "A holy day".

In Exodus 20:8-11 we are told that the Gen 1-2:3 details "ALONE" establish the day as a rest day "BECAUSE God rested" not BECAUSE God later thought it might be good if mankind ALSO rested. The argument IN The commandment is that the FACT of God resting and the fact of the day being made a holy day -- those facts ALONE establish the obligation for mankind to show honor and respect for what God has MADE a Holy Day -- by observing that HE rested and we are to "do likewise".

Impossible to miss.

In Christ,

Bob

 

[Eric B]

Read the above quote, Bob. God's rest was not PHYSICAL, as you are insisting, but spiritual. So all Exodus tell us is that it was established as such FOR THEM at THAT TIME. None of that says anything about the people before, or us now.
I forgot to add, that just as adultery is expanded to lust, and murder to hatred, the spiritual rest is expanded to EVERY day. We are to rest in God and worship Him as Creator (as the above discussed) every day. We cannot physically rest every day, but we can spiritually rest every day, and that means letting go of works-righteousness.

 

[BobRyan]

Read the above quote, Bob. God's rest was not PHYSICAL, as you are insisting, but spiritual. So all Exodus tell us is that it was established as such FOR THEM at THAT TIME.

Wrong.

God did not say "As God did not REALLY rest so you are NOT to REALLY rest" in His statement on Christ the Creator's Gen 2:3 HOLY day.

IT was MADE a Holy Day in Gen 2:3 and God argues that THIS FACT ALONE requires that WE DO AS GOD DID.

You say "fine - God did not REALLY REST so --- " neither should we?????

God never makes that point - funny that you should be going that direction.

Read the text of Exodus 20:8-11 SHOW that God points to something OTHER THAN HIS rest as the example to FOLLOW.

It is not there.

RAther God argues ALL aspects of obedience are BASED on the ONE EXAMPLE the ONE Model of GOD resting! AND of God MAKING the day a Holy Day IN Gen 2:3.

God ONLY refers to the PREVIOUS Gen 1-2:3 facts to make the case for Sabbath - NOTHING new is added/changed/invented in Exodus 20:8-11 to CREATE Sabbath.

It is said IN THE commandment to ALREADY have BEEN made a Holy Day (and Gen 2:3 points that out as well).

The point remains.

In Christ,

Bob

 

[Eric B]

Argue with Claudia's article, Bob. She is the one who said it was spiritual (I believe that too, but for the sake of this argument; I was referring to ther quote, just like you keep throwing up Moody to us). Gen. gives us "facts" of the creation of something called a sabbath, but does not give details on what it means for man. Never until Exodus. God is said to have "rested", but as the article correctly points out, this could not be physical rest. God is not a physical being.