Closer To Heaven
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You can view an in-depth discussion of Sabbath Rest in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris. Click on the image to view:
With thanks to Hope Channel – Television that will change your life.
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During World War II, England was expecting an imminent invasion by the German army. Preparations were made to defend the island home as much as possible. Extra fortifications were installed along the beaches. Roads, of course, would offer the enemy the fastest routes to their objectives, and consequently, blockades were installed at strategic points. English authorities then did something strange. In order to slow down and confuse the enemy, railway signs were removed and road signs were taken down. Engraved markers on stone or on buildings couldn’t be taken down, but they were covered with cement.
Signs are significant. They serve as markers and guides. In the pre-GPS era, we all had maps and watched for signs.
Image © Review & Herald Publishing at Goodsalt.com
Though these words were spoken specifically for ancient Israel, we who are Christ’s are “Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29), and the Sabbath today remains a sign between God and His people. Exodus 31 points out that the Sabbath is a sign of God’s perpetual (or eternal) covenant ( Exodus 31.16-17). This sign helps us to “know” our Creator, our Redeemer, and our Sanctifier. It’s like a flag that gets raised every seven days and functions as something to help us remember, since we tend to forget.
God’s Sabbath is a constant reminder of our origins, our liberation, our destiny, and our responsibility to the outcasts and the marginalized. In fact, the Sabbath is so important that instead of our coming to it, it comes to us, every week and without exception, a perpetual reminder of who we are, who made us, what He is doing for us, and what He will ultimately do for us when He makes new heavens and a new earth.
A holy God invites His human covenant partners to consider the rhythm that governs what really counts — the saving relationship between the Creator and Redeemer and His wayward creation. Every week, and with the force and authority that comes from God, we are commanded to enter into the rest that we have been freely given in Christ Jesus, “the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross” (Hebrews 12:2).
How can you learn to have a deeper experience with God during the Sabbath?
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In the New Testament world, the religious leaders had Sabbath keeping down to a fine art. There were dozens of prohibitions and rules established to help keep the Sabbath holy.
This included a prohibition against tying or untying anything, separating two threads, extinguishing a fire, transporting an object between a private domain and the public domain, or transporting something for more than a specific distance in the public domain.
Image © Rolf Jansson from GoodSalt.com
Completely ignoring the wonderful miracle that Jesus had performed and the freedom from disease that He had given this man, the leaders were obsessed that the healed man was carrying his bed in public on Sabbath. Instead of seeing how the “Lord of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:28) utilized this special day, the leaders were intent on maintaining their own rules and regulations. We need to be careful that in our own way and in our own context we don’t make similar mistakes.
God does not want empty worship or pious silence. He wants to see His people engaged with other people, especially the downtrodden and marginalized.
Isaiah makes this very plain in Isaiah 58.13-14: “If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the LORD honorable, and shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, then you shall delight yourself in the LORD; and I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth, and feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father. The mouth of the LORD has spoken” ( Isaiah 58.13-14, NKJV).
Pursuing our “pleasure” (Isaiah 58:13, or our “own interests,” as the NRSV translates here) is equivalent to “trampling the Sabbath” (NRSV). Human agendas are not part of God’s Sabbath ideal. Rather, we are invited to look out for those who struggle, who are captives, who are hungry and naked, and walk in darkness and whose names no one seems to remember. More than any other day of the week, Sabbath should take us out of ourselves and our own selfishness and cause us to think more about others and others’ needs than only about ourselves and our needs.
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Israel had been called out of Egypt to be God’s covenant people, the nation through whom, had they stayed faithful, the gospel would have been spread to the world. No question, they were the object of God’s special care and concern, given special privileges, and at the same time, given special responsibilities.
Image © Sally Weimer at Goodsalt.com
The universality of the Sabbath is something that many people miss. Of course, the most common error is that it was only for the Jews, an error exposed in the first two chapters of Genesis. After all, God created all people; so, all people should remember the Sabbath day.
Though we should always keep in mind what the Sabbath represents to us, we should remember, too, what it should tell us about others, as well. In a sense, our resting and relating to our Creator and Redeemer will drive us automatically to look at others with new eyes, to see them as beings created by the same God as we were, loved by the same God who loves us and who died for them as well as for us. As we have seen (Exodus 20:10, Deuteronomy 5:14), the servants, the strangers, even the animals should be given a Sabbath rest.
That even the strangers within their gates, that is even those not (yet) partaking of the covenantal promises given to Israel — that even they should enjoy the Sabbath rest says a lot. Human beings, even animals, should never be exploited, abused, taken advantage of. Every week, the Hebrew people (and we, too) should be reminded in a powerful way of just how much in common we have with other people, and even if we do enjoy blessings and privileges that others don’t, we must remember that we are still part of the same human family, and thus we are to treat others with respect and dignity.
| How could your own Sabbath keeping, perhaps, become a blessing to those who don’t keep the Sabbath? That is, how can you use the Sabbath as a witness to others? |
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Rest. The word used most frequently in our Sabbath School Lesson pamphlet this quarter. “Thou shalt rest, Thou shalt rest!” These are words repeated each verse of
Hymn 387 – Come, O Sabbath Day, our theme hymn for this quarter.
We could add to the theme
Hymn 529 – Under His Wings. Each week of study this quarter, gives more and more of showing God’s deepest care for us, His 
children. As God’s children we find out about the Biblical family growing pains, and this still happens today. Yet, we are still “under His wings”.
The title Sabbath Rest is found in
Hymn 381 – Holy Sabbath Day of Rest. We are reminded
Don’t Forget the Sabbath in Hymn 388. The theme of Sabbath is continued in
Hymn 390 – We Love Thy Sabbath, Lord.
During the week of study we find the
Crowning Jewel of Creation – Hymn 385 is the Sabbath Day.
Sabbath and Creation on Sunday, is in
Hymn 386 – The Sacred Anthem. We are able to ask our God to ‘Brighten Thou my Sabbath morning’ in
Hymn 389 – Light of Light, Enlighten Me. It is then that we may enjoy the Sabbath as in
Hymn 390 – We Love Thy Sabbath, Lord.
We give
Praise to the Lord – Hymn 1, the Almighty, the King of Creation. This theme is also in
Hymn 147 – Christ Upon the Mountain Peak (verse 4)
In preparation for the Sabbath Day we sing
Hymn 392 – Dear Lord We Come At Set of Sun and then worship the
Lord of the Sabbath – Hymn 393. We are then
Far From All Care – Hymn 394 and can enjoy the wonders of the Sabbath Day. We again praise the
Lord of Creation – Hymn 320.
Freedom from our earthly bondage is found in
Hymn 292 – Jesus, I Come. We are able to ask
Gracious Father, Guard Thy Children – Hymn 621 (verse 3).
We are thankful to be
Safely Through Another Week – Hymn 384 to worship on the Sabbath Day.
Blessings for a wonderful week ahead.
To learn unknown hymns, you will find the accompaniment music for each one at: https://sdahymnals.com/Hymnal/
Another great resource is for when there is a hymn you wish to sing, but can’t find it in your hymnal. Go to https://www.sdahymnal.org and in the search bar type a special word in that is in the hymn. I am sure you will be amazed at the help you will be given.
2 Timothy 2:15 KJV – “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
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