What is the Day of Sabbath?
When God gave the Ten Commandments to Prophet Moses, the first three commandments were related to God and the fourth commandment was about fellowship with God, considering a Day Holy, The Day of Prayer and for rest.
Exodus 20:1-7
And God spoke all these words:
2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
3 “You shall have no other gods before me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.” Exodus 20:8
In Hebrew and Arabic Sabbath or Shabbat is “Saturday”, we also need to remember God was speaking and giving these commandments to the Hebrew People, the generation of Eber. So God knew what He was calling Holy. All Jewish prophets, from Prophet Moses to Prophet John the Baptist, even JESUS Himself went for prayer on Shabbat and considered it holy. When we read the Gospel by Luke 4:16-21 “And JESUS came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.
Religious Christians, Romans, and Greeks who first worshipped other gods, and didn’t know the God of Israel before. When they accepted JESUS and made Christianity a state religion to keep their governance, people accepted JESUS as their savior and they didn’t want to lose their governance. At the Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325 Roman Emperor Constantine and the Catholic Church established Sunday as a day of rest. They considered the Sun as a god, so they declared Sunday as Shabbat declaring that JESUS was risen on Sunday. Christians around the world followed the same ritual as they were also not aware of Hebrew culture and language. Even many theologians ignore what’s written in Old Testament and Torah. The reason could be cultural and theologian barriers. Christian pastors just focused on clerical and episcopacy dioceses system.
But when we study the Holy Bible it also clearly tells, “After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.” Matthew 28:1-6
Jesus himself went into the synagogue on the sabbath day and he rose on the third day after the sabbath. We as believers of Christ must follow what Christ did, not what episcopacy or dioceses tell us to do. It’s good to worship God every day, and on Sunday, but Sabbath is only Saturday.
Sabbath and the Coming of Christ
The Sabbath = 7th Day
“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. 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 2:2-3
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.”
— Exodus 20:8
Adam to Jesus Christ (the Second Adam) = 4,000 Years
“But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”
— 2 Peter 3:8
Key Understanding:
- 1 Day = 1,000 Years
- 7 Days = 7,000 Years
Adam Was Created on the 6th Day
“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.”
— Genesis 1:27
Jesus Christ’s Death and the Sabbath
Jesus Christ died on the Preparation Day of the Sabbath — Friday.
“And that day was the preparation, and the Sabbath drew on.”
— Luke 23:54
- Preparation Day (6th Day): Friday
- Sabbath Day (7th Day): Saturday
- Resurrection Day (1st Day): Sunday
Timeline:
- From Adam to Jesus Christ = 4,000 Years (4 Days)
- From Jesus Christ to Present = Approximately 2,000 Years (2 Days)
- We are now in the 7th Day, the Sabbath period.
Jesus Christ and the Sabbath
Jesus healed on the Sabbath to restore peace and life to mankind:
- Matthew 12:10-12 — Jesus emphasizes that it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.
- Luke 13:15 — He calls out hypocrisy and declares the importance of setting free what is bound.
- Mark 3:4 — Jesus asks, “Is it lawful to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill on the Sabbath?”
The Coming of Christ
He is coming during this 7th Day to heal the brokenhearted, wipe away the tears of His people, and establish His Kingdom of Peace. His Kingdom will bring eternal joy and righteousness to all who follow Him.
“Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”
— Revelation 21:3-4