The Sabbath goes beyond being a mere allotment of time; it is a promise of a rich and meaningful relationship with God. It is a day we set aside everything in our lives except God and take time to strengthen our relationship with Him.
Part II: Commentary
The Sabbath can be understood only if we consider its genesis. The term “rest” in Genesis 2:3 derives from the Hebrew verbal form shabath (to repose, to celebrate, to cease, to desist from labor, to put to an end, to rest, to be completed, to keep Sabbath, to observe). Interestingly, this verb is linked to observing the weekly shabbat (sabbath, sabbath of sabbatic observance). Read Leviticus 25:2. See Francis Brown, The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon, pp. 991, 992.
Origins
From the start, sin-based commands were not needed for Adam and Eve in Genesis 2, because there was no sin. On the other hand: “The law of God existed before the creation of man or else Adam could not have sinned.”—Ellen G. White, Signs of the Times, March 14, 1878.
Meanwhile, the authoritative example of Adam’s Father keeping the Sabbath was more than a commandment. From Eden’s perspective, a created son follows the example of a Creator-Father. Hence, centuries before the Jews came to be, the Creation Sabbath became an unrivaled memorial in time, validating Christ as cosmic Creator and Sovereign (see Matt. 12:8, Mark 2:28, John 8:58).
Therefore, Shabbath (Sabbath) fulfills a cosmological, rather than just a theological, function. It serves to explain how Yahweh felt about His creation. In essence, Yahweh imprinted a divine seal on this day as an immutable testament of His majestic role as cosmic Framer. Hence, when Yahweh rested on the seventh day, He held it in divine reserve for the cosmos.
“Sabbath is the pause that refreshes. The pattern is six days and one day. Six days of work and one day of rest. . . . Yahweh the cosmic symphony conductor orders His composition on 6/7 time. One, two, three, four, five, six, rest!”—Charles E. Bradford, Sabbath Roots: The African Connection, p. 58. “The Sabbath of the fourth commandment was instituted in Eden.”—Ellen G. White, Spiritual Gifts, vol. 3, p. 295.
Sabbath Before Sinai
“Missiologists recognize a Hebraic consciousness among the African peoples. . . . W. W. Oliphant, an African church leader in the early years of the twentieth century, says that the ‘Sabbath in Ethiopia [has] been kept from the days of Nimrod, about 2140 b.c. (read Gen. 10:8, 9), that is 700 years before the birth of Moses. . . . Africans or Ethiopians had been Sabbath observers from the days of Nimrod, the son of Cush.’ ”—Charles E. Bradford, Sabbath Roots: The African Connection, p. 26.
Covenant Sign
“The Sabbath is a covenant sign ‘between me and you throughout your generations’ (Exodus 31:13; compare Ezekiel 20:12). . . . The person who keeps the Sabbath in the right spirit thereby signifies that he or she stands in a saved relationship with God.
“The Sabbath as a sign imparts to the believer first of all the knowledge that the Lord is his covenant God. It also indicates that the Lord ‘sanctifies’ His people (Leviticus 20:8; 21:8; 22:32; Ezekiel 37:28). . . .
“The Sabbath functions in yet another sense as a sign. It serves as a mark of separation, indicating to people of other religions or to people who do not keep the Sabbath that a unique relationship exists between God and His Sabbath-keeping people.”—Gerhard F. Hasel and Michael G. Hasel, The Promise: God’s Everlasting Covenant, pp. 86–88. (Read Exodus 32 and Deut. 5:15.)
Sign of Sanctification
The Creation Sabbath is indeed God’s sanctuary enshrined in time. In other words: “Yahweh, having put His best into His creation, declares it very good. Then, consummate artist that He is, God takes the fabric of time and makes something special out of it, the Sabbath, a cathedral in time, sculpted from hours and minutes and spun out of the stuff of eternity. A gift from His own heart.
“It should be observed that God does not make the Sabbath and bring humanity to it. He creates Adam and Eve and brings the Sabbath to them.”—Charles E. Bradford, Sabbath Roots: The African Connection, p. 51. (See Ezek. 20:12, 20.)
Remembering the Sabbath
“Israel knew her neighbors only too well for the comfort of the prophets. . . . We cannot escape the fact that around the fireside the elders recounted the days of Creation and most certainly the day to which all others pointed, the Sabbath. The ‘big story’ was fixed in the collective psyche of primeval peoples. Knowledge of Sabbath could be forgotten only in rebellion against the God who created all things. “This is why the Sabbath command begins with ‘remember.’ Sabbath always harkens back to the Creation event (Ex. 20:8–10).
“If Yahweh commands us today to remember the Sabbath, there must have been a time when He first commanded its observance. Indeed, this is the message of Israel’s experience with the manna, which Yahweh sent on six days but withheld on the seventh. In this instance He does not repeat the command because, even before Mount Sinai, they knew. . . . The fact that the word ‘remember’ is attached to the command indicates that it has been given before and does not need to be constantly reiterated.”—Charles E. Bradford, Sabbath Roots: The African Connection, pp. 79, 80.
The word “remember” was included because we need “to say ‘yes’ to the Lord of the Sabbath by making [ourselves] available to Him. It means to acknowledge God’s doing rather than trusting [our] own achievements. It means to stop worrying about [our] own wants and start thinking about the needs of others. . . . It means forgetting self and selfish interests in order like Mary to honor Christ as the special guest.”—Samuele Bacchiocchi, Divine Rest for Human Restlessness: A Theological Study of the Good News of the Sabbath for Today (Berrien Springs, MI: Published by Author, 1988), p. 99.
Part III: Life Application
God’s law says that the Sabbath is to be kept holy and that on it we are to do no work. The Hebrews took this command rather seriously. The Pharisees and other teachers of the law emphasized that to “carry a burden” was considered work. To avoid misunderstandings, they were very specific about what a burden was. A burden was food equal in weight to a dried fig, enough wine for mixing in a goblet, milk enough for one swallow, honey enough to put upon a wound, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
1. With such strict restrictions, one can imagine the many hours people spent arguing about what a neighbor should or should not have done on the Sabbath. In what ways are we stuck in similar legalistic ruts? What are the dangers of being legalistic? Does this mean we should dismiss church standards that are not completely biblical? Explain.
2. It has been said that teaching is false if it produces a religion that consists solely or mainly of the observance of externals. How is it easy to confuse spirituality—one’s relationship with Christ—with religious practices? What are the dangers of doing so? How might there be a danger of the Seventh-day Adventist Church falling into such a trap?
3. In ancient times, the Jews’ observance of the Sabbath gained them a reputation for laziness. Based on your Sabbath observance, do you think people view you as law-abiding or God-loving? What is the difference between these two characteristics? Do your Sabbath-keeping practices center on what you can and cannot do? Or do they center on strengthening your relationship with your Savior? Discuss.
4. The new covenant is an agreement between God and you that is based on an intimate relationship. The Sabbath is quality time you spend with God. Obviously, then, Sabbath keeping is important to one’s covenant relationship. How can we restore the sanctity and joy of the Sabbath to both individual and corporate lifestyles?
5. Most religious people, if they think about it, will admit to the desirability of devoting one day a week to God. Indeed, some will say that they devote every day to God. What, however, is the evidence that God is concerned that we honor not just any day but the day He has sanctified and specifically set aside for that purpose?
6. In our world people devote a huge amount of time and money to amusing themselves and doing a variety of things that presumably help them to “unwind.” How can the rest that we are supposed to enjoy on the Sabbath be distinguished from largely self-centered entertainment and amusement?
7. God, as we understand Him, would probably not need to rest because He was tired in our sense of the word. Yet, Genesis tells us that God rested on the seventh day. Why might God have needed to stand back from His work and “rest”?
8. We are told in the Bible (Exod. 31:13, for example) that the Sabbath is to be a sign of Israel’s—and, we can infer, our— commitment to God. Is it possible that we could observe it in such a way that it would convey a message that is the opposite of what is intended? How so? How can we be sure that our Sabbath keeping represents God’s ideals?
9. How does the Sabbath communicate the utter uniqueness of God as compared to other gods or things that people might regard with worship or special esteem?
10. Using the Sabbath as a barometer, check to see if you base your religious beliefs on rituals or a relationship with Jesus. How did Jesus’ Sabbath activities reflect His relationship with His Father? What specific changes do you think you need to make in your Sabbath-keeping practices?
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Study Focus: Exodus 31:16
Part I: Overview
The Sabbath goes beyond being a mere allotment of time; it is a promise of a rich and meaningful relationship with God. It is a day we set aside everything in our lives except God and take time to strengthen our relationship with Him.
Part II: Commentary
The Sabbath can be understood only if we consider its genesis. The term “rest” in Genesis 2:3 derives from the Hebrew verbal form shabath (to repose, to celebrate, to cease, to desist from labor, to put to an end, to rest, to be completed, to keep Sabbath, to observe). Interestingly, this verb is linked to observing the weekly shabbat (sabbath, sabbath of sabbatic observance). Read Leviticus 25:2. See Francis Brown, The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon, pp. 991, 992.
Origins
From the start, sin-based commands were not needed for Adam and Eve in Genesis 2, because there was no sin. On the other hand: “The law of God existed before the creation of man or else Adam could not have sinned.”—Ellen G. White, Signs of the Times, March 14, 1878.
Meanwhile, the authoritative example of Adam’s Father keeping the Sabbath was more than a commandment. From Eden’s perspective, a created son follows the example of a Creator-Father. Hence, centuries before the Jews came to be, the Creation Sabbath became an unrivaled memorial in time, validating Christ as cosmic Creator and Sovereign (see Matt. 12:8, Mark 2:28, John 8:58).
Therefore, Shabbath (Sabbath) fulfills a cosmological, rather than just a theological, function. It serves to explain how Yahweh felt about His creation. In essence, Yahweh imprinted a divine seal on this day as an immutable testament of His majestic role as cosmic Framer. Hence, when Yahweh rested on the seventh day, He held it in divine reserve for the cosmos.
“Sabbath is the pause that refreshes. The pattern is six days and one day. Six days of work and one day of rest. . . . Yahweh the cosmic symphony conductor orders His composition on 6/7 time. One, two, three, four, five, six, rest!”—Charles E. Bradford, Sabbath Roots: The African Connection, p. 58. “The Sabbath of the fourth commandment was instituted in Eden.”—Ellen G. White, Spiritual Gifts, vol. 3, p. 295.
Sabbath Before Sinai
“Missiologists recognize a Hebraic consciousness among the African peoples. . . . W. W. Oliphant, an African church leader in the early years of the twentieth century, says that the ‘Sabbath in Ethiopia [has] been kept from the days of Nimrod, about 2140 b.c. (read Gen. 10:8, 9), that is 700 years before the birth of Moses. . . . Africans or Ethiopians had been Sabbath observers from the days of Nimrod, the son of Cush.’ ”—Charles E. Bradford, Sabbath Roots: The African Connection, p. 26.
Covenant Sign
“The Sabbath is a covenant sign ‘between me and you throughout your generations’ (Exodus 31:13; compare Ezekiel 20:12). . . . The person who keeps the Sabbath in the right spirit thereby signifies that he or she stands in a saved relationship with God.
“The Sabbath as a sign imparts to the believer first of all the knowledge that the Lord is his covenant God. It also indicates that the Lord ‘sanctifies’ His people (Leviticus 20:8; 21:8; 22:32; Ezekiel 37:28). . . .
“The Sabbath functions in yet another sense as a sign. It serves as a mark of separation, indicating to people of other religions or to people who do not keep the Sabbath that a unique relationship exists between God and His Sabbath-keeping people.”—Gerhard F. Hasel and Michael G. Hasel, The Promise: God’s Everlasting Covenant, pp. 86–88. (Read Exodus 32 and Deut. 5:15.)
Sign of Sanctification
The Creation Sabbath is indeed God’s sanctuary enshrined in time. In other words: “Yahweh, having put His best into His creation, declares it very good. Then, consummate artist that He is, God takes the fabric of time and makes something special out of it, the Sabbath, a cathedral in time, sculpted from hours and minutes and spun out of the stuff of eternity. A gift from His own heart.
“It should be observed that God does not make the Sabbath and bring humanity to it. He creates Adam and Eve and brings the Sabbath to them.”—Charles E. Bradford, Sabbath Roots: The African Connection, p. 51. (See Ezek. 20:12, 20.)
Remembering the Sabbath
“Israel knew her neighbors only too well for the comfort of the prophets. . . . We cannot escape the fact that around the fireside the elders recounted the days of Creation and most certainly the day to which all others pointed, the Sabbath. The ‘big story’ was fixed in the collective psyche of primeval peoples. Knowledge of Sabbath could be forgotten only in rebellion against the God who created all things. “This is why the Sabbath command begins with ‘remember.’ Sabbath always harkens back to the Creation event (Ex. 20:8–10).
“If Yahweh commands us today to remember the Sabbath, there must have been a time when He first commanded its observance. Indeed, this is the message of Israel’s experience with the manna, which Yahweh sent on six days but withheld on the seventh. In this instance He does not repeat the command because, even before Mount Sinai, they knew. . . . The fact that the word ‘remember’ is attached to the command indicates that it has been given before and does not need to be constantly reiterated.”—Charles E. Bradford, Sabbath Roots: The African Connection, pp. 79, 80.
The word “remember” was included because we need “to say ‘yes’ to the Lord of the Sabbath by making [ourselves] available to Him. It means to acknowledge God’s doing rather than trusting [our] own achievements. It means to stop worrying about [our] own wants and start thinking about the needs of others. . . . It means forgetting self and selfish interests in order like Mary to honor Christ as the special guest.”—Samuele Bacchiocchi, Divine Rest for Human Restlessness: A Theological Study of the Good News of the Sabbath for Today (Berrien Springs, MI: Published by Author, 1988), p. 99.
Part III: Life Application
God’s law says that the Sabbath is to be kept holy and that on it we are to do no work. The Hebrews took this command rather seriously. The Pharisees and other teachers of the law emphasized that to “carry a burden” was considered work. To avoid misunderstandings, they were very specific about what a burden was. A burden was food equal in weight to a dried fig, enough wine for mixing in a goblet, milk enough for one swallow, honey enough to put upon a wound, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
1. With such strict restrictions, one can imagine the many hours people spent arguing about what a neighbor should or should not have done on the Sabbath. In what ways are we stuck in similar legalistic ruts? What are the dangers of being legalistic? Does this mean we should dismiss church standards that are not completely biblical? Explain.2. It has been said that teaching is false if it produces a religion that consists solely or mainly of the observance of externals. How is it easy to confuse spirituality—one’s relationship with Christ—with religious practices? What are the dangers of doing so? How might there be a danger of the Seventh-day Adventist Church falling into such a trap?3. In ancient times, the Jews’ observance of the Sabbath gained them a reputation for laziness. Based on your Sabbath observance, do you think people view you as law-abiding or God-loving? What is the difference between these two characteristics? Do your Sabbath-keeping practices center on what you can and cannot do? Or do they center on strengthening your relationship with your Savior? Discuss.4. The new covenant is an agreement between God and you that is based on an intimate relationship. The Sabbath is quality time you spend with God. Obviously, then, Sabbath keeping is important to one’s covenant relationship. How can we restore the sanctity and joy of the Sabbath to both individual and corporate lifestyles?5. Most religious people, if they think about it, will admit to the desirability of devoting one day a week to God. Indeed, some will say that they devote every day to God. What, however, is the evidence that God is concerned that we honor not just any day but the day He has sanctified and specifically set aside for that purpose?6. In our world people devote a huge amount of time and money to amusing themselves and doing a variety of things that presumably help them to “unwind.” How can the rest that we are supposed to enjoy on the Sabbath be distinguished from largely self-centered entertainment and amusement?7. God, as we understand Him, would probably not need to rest because He was tired in our sense of the word. Yet, Genesis tells us that God rested on the seventh day. Why might God have needed to stand back from His work and “rest”?8. We are told in the Bible (Exod. 31:13, for example) that the Sabbath is to be a sign of Israel’s—and, we can infer, our— commitment to God. Is it possible that we could observe it in such a way that it would convey a message that is the opposite of what is intended? How so? How can we be sure that our Sabbath keeping represents God’s ideals?9. How does the Sabbath communicate the utter uniqueness of God as compared to other gods or things that people might regard with worship or special esteem?10. Using the Sabbath as a barometer, check to see if you base your religious beliefs on rituals or a relationship with Jesus. How did Jesus’ Sabbath activities reflect His relationship with His Father? What specific changes do you think you need to make in your Sabbath-keeping practices?