Should we still observe the Sabbath today?

Well, biblically meeting with the body of believers is super important and you wont want to miss that.

But if we’re talking like just a day of rest then no and yes. We’re not under the law but under grace, which means you aren’t sinning to work on that day. But I think the principal is helpful, and it definitely shows that God values rest.

For me, I usually do laundry and clean a bit on Sunday after church, but it’s pretty restful since I don’t study as much (or at all) and sometimes just read or sleep instead.

If you mean the Sabbath as in Sunday, then I would say YES. It is very important to be going to a strong biblical church. It is way to learn, and be instructed in the gospel. Although if you mean the Sabbath as in Saturday, I tend to think that Saturday is in preparation for Sunday. You are doing all the household chores and preparing for a day of rest. I always tend to thing of the protestant on Saturday, and how they observed it. They had to make all of the food ahead of time, and on Sunday they did not do any thing besides go to church, read the bible, or rest. And the only toy the children were allowed to play with was a little arc with Noah and his animals. Hope this helps. Interesting question. Just curios, but are you reading your bible through in a year? I am, and I am about where you are.

Okay, it seems like you are not asking about going to church but about resting. For me, that one is difficult because my Sunday’s consist of church, eating with family and/or friends, going to Student Leadership Team meeting, youth group, and I finish off with small group! Although I’m keeping my day holy, I’m not resting much!

The thing is, we wouldn’t question any of the other commandments; “you shall not murder” – no question there! But now in the 21st century when it would be so much easier for us to not take the commandment literally, I think it still holds up, just like the other 9. Those are just my 2 cents! 😉

Okay, so cool question. I know a couple people who rest in certain ways on Sunday. For instance, I know that some take a break from electronic devices, TV, video games, etc. Although, some people just don’t do that in general, and that’s totally awesome. For some, electronics is all they do for work, and Sunday is a break from all that. TheRebelution takes a break on Sunday! My dad is the director of operations at a software company, and I know he HATES talking on the phone because of it. It can be a nice relief from all the screens and stress, so they take the opportunity. I’m sure it also helps when you’re trying not to forget what was spoken at church that day, and to help keep your mind clear.

(to whoever is reading this) Why do you keep Sunday as the Sabbath?

The Sabbath is the 7th day of the week (starting at sunset Friday, ending at sunset on Saturday). The Lord’s Day is the first day of the week, observed as Sunday in modern times. This distinction is never confused in the Bible. There are other Sabbaths other than the weekly one. The first day of the Feast of Unleavened bread is one that comes immediately to mind.
Jesus’ practice was to go to the synagogue on the Sabbath, and at some point, the early church moved to gathering on the Lord’s Day. In Acts, it is recorded that there were gatherings on the Lord’s Day, but no where does it say “replace the Sabbath with the Lord’s Day.”
Jesus did say if we loved Him, we’d keep His commandments. Most Christians have somehow decided that He didn’t mean keeping the Sabbath, even though they would never believe He decided it was now okay to commit adultery, yet both commandments appear in the same passage of Scripture.
There are various arguments about verses that can be construed to mean an end to Sabbath keeping, but none of them are explicit. When I see how seriously God took the topic, I think it is only reasonable to expect that, if He wanted us to stop, He would have said so explicitly.
This is not a salvation issue. We are saved by grace through faith, not by obedience to the Torah. I do think it demonstrates a weakness in church practice, where we do so many things without question, sometimes in conflict with what the Bible says.

I believe that we must follow all 10 commandments so we have to see what Exodus 20:8 says ““Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 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. 11 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.”
I believe the Sabbath is on Saturday. I also believe that we should not work on it or go shopping (making others work) as the Bible says above. I believe great resting options include family time, hiking, Bible study, Christian fellowship, nature time. It’s a great day to truly REST with God.

I will be honest and say that I do not observe the Sabbath. It isn’t because I don’t think it is important(the Ten Commandants are kind of a big deal for a reason), but more because my family has not ever observed the Sabbath strictly. It should also be noted that my family has a very difficult time to just rest (hi Brett. Yes, we’ve talked about this. :D). That being said, I look at the Sabbath and think, Hmm. A whole day of rest. Every week. That sounds amazing.

Yet my family is guilty of what so many others are, where we are so busy we have no time to rest. While I am usually home on Sunday afternoons, there was a period of time during last semester where I was not. Sunday did not ever feel restful, even if I didn’t work(perhaps noting how just because you are not working does not mean you’re resting…). To give you a picture, I would get up early, drive the half hour to church usually by myself so I could be at church at 8:50 to get the run-down on the sixth grade small group I lead, lead it, finish 1st service, sit in worship for 2nd service with my peer group, and occasionally have a meeting after church about serving(I’m also on the worship band). I would then go to my grandparents house(because driving back and forth to my house was a waste of time, not to mention gas money) and spend the afternoon there before going to small groups at night. I would then drive home.

I will be honest, I did not feel terribly rested after all of that. This semester I actually decided to cut my small groups, which is a long story, but the short of it is that I didn’t ever feel rested or prepared for my week when Monday rolled around, and I was already overcommitted, so I cut it.

My point in all of that is to say this: There are two ways of looking at this. The first is from the view that, of course, we should obey the ten commandments and obviously Jesus adhered to the Sabbath, so shouldn’t we? I don’t disagree. Jesus is clearly our ultimate example, and so clearly we SHOULD take time to rest and spend time with Him on the sabbath.

The other point of view is this: Romans says we are no longer under the law, that we are free from it. There is an entire passage in Galatians that talks about how we are free from the law, not to mention most of Romans and Hebrews. Is it, then, a huge problem if we do not adhere to the Sabbath? Are we still bound to that part of the Law?

I don’t know which view I agree with. I lean towards agreeing with the Sabbath, but I also take into account how difficult it is for people to follow it. This is no excuse, I know. Busyness never in any circumstance excuses ignoring Scripture. But have we looked at it both ways? Have we considered everything? Are we bound by the Law still, or is it an act of obedience in following Christ’s example? I don’t have any answers, but I hope, if you have by some miracle managed to read this far, you have at least had some food for thought.

God knows every situation; if it’s out of your hands, it’s comforting to know that it’s better to do good than to do evil on the Sabbath (Mark 3:4), whether it’s Saturday (the OG), or Sunday. I definitely think if you can take a break from routine, do it. It’s a way to honor God with the first -or last- of your week,
Most of all, whatever the circumstance, honor God. Love him and serve him, and love others.

Hey everyone!

I believe that the Sabbath is something God meant for us to observe always. No where in the Bible does it say that God told us not to keep it anymore.

As for cleaning and such, as long as you are striving to follow God and keeps His commandments, I’m sure He will make known to you a way to get your work done without breaking the Sabbath.

Don’t look at it as a burden! It’s a privilege! God actually gave us a day to rest and spend time with Him and each other. I can’t imagine not having that.

Something to consider: God said to rest on the 7th day, right? I keep the seventh-day Sabbath (Saturday) and would encourage you to study out the Bible for what day the Sabbath is and why we still keep it.

Here are a few verses that have helped me:
1) Exodus 20:8-11
2) Genesis 2:3
3) Matthew 5:17-19

Hope this helped!
~Kayla

While we’re trying to understand and obey God’s word, let me just mention that the Sabbath isn’t a central in scripture and it’s not worth causing a ton of division over.

Because this world is so crazy and fast-paced, I think it’s even more important to respect and protect the Sabbath day as a day of rest. There’s really no rest in this world, and I think that’s partly why God gave us the commandment to honor Sundays as days of worship and rest and down-time. 🙂
Now, “resting” doesn’t have to mean napping for 5 hours–although if you can nap for 5 hours, go you!!– I think rest means concentrating more on family and on God. Go to your Sunday worship services, read the Scriptures (or any other form of God’s word), write in your journal, listen to uplifting music, refrain from too much screen time, spend time with family. Just wholesome, recreational activities. I find that when I separate the Sabbath from the other days of the week, and leave my homework alone, leave other worldly things alone for just 24 hours, I’m often more refreshed than when I don’t.
There’s not exactly a strict rule on Sabbath day observance, just as long as you can feel the Spirit and are resting from your normal, day-to-day activities.

In my family, Sunday is a busy day with getting ready for church and driving to and from church. That doesn’t mean, however, that we don’t rest. For us, homework and chores are not an option on Sundays. Those things can be done on Saturday. We personally will sit in the afternoons and watch TV or nap. That is how we honor the Sabbath by resting. I don’t think that being on electronics is not resting, so long as you are using them for something other than work. Hope this answers your question!

it does answer my question thanks for explaining

The Sabbath is central just as “Thou shalt not kill is central”. It is the 4th of the 10 commandments after all…

I totally agree with you! Except I believe Saturday is the Sabbath. The Bible says “6 days thou shalt work, but the 7th day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God.”

I believe resting on the Sabbath is also critical for physical and mental health. During the French revolution there was a great reform and the government decided to make a 10 day week. (They were trying to disconnect EVERYTHING from God) It didn’t last because people were physically and mentally drained.

Yeah, but scripture isn’t *mainly* about things we should and shouldn’t do. It’s about God being glorified through saving sinners. (Romans, especially the first part of chapter 8 explains this.)

I just meant that we shouldn’t let ourselves get distracted from the bigger picture.

With proper scheduling yes.

Hi everyone,

When Paul is talking about stylistic differences in the church, my reading of scripture is that this is one example. It really depends on one’s heart: are you working for selfish gain, or to advance God’s kingdom? I cannot remember a Sunday I took “off”; God has given me an indescribably large zeal for serving Him in a particular way and there are simply not enough hours in the day to even do it all — so I make use of every minute that’s available as best I can.

Some verses to consider that provide the scriptural basis for my worldview:

(1) Colossians 2:16: “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, however, is found in Christ.”

Lesson: whether we formally celebrate the sabbath or not is irrelevant — our identity is in Jesus and obeying Him.

(2) John 5:16-17: “So the Jewish leaders began harassing Jesus for breaking the Sabbath rules. But Jesus replied, “My father never stops working, so why should I?”

Lesson: pretty self evident.

(3) Luke 6:1-3: “One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and his disciples began to pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernels. Some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” Jesus answered them, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry?”

Lesson: if what you’re doing is to honor God (and barring some convoluted story that’s inconsistent with scripture), then great. We should not allow man-made laws get in the way of genuine obedience.

(4) Hebrews 4:4-10: “As for those who didn’t believe, God said, ‘In my anger I made a vow: they will never enter my place of rest’ even though his place of rest has been ready since he made the world. We know it is ready because the Scriptures mention the seventh day, saying, “on the seventh day God rested from all his work. But in the other passage God said, ‘They will never enter my place of rest. So God’s rest is there for people to enter. But those who formerly heard the Good News failed to enter because they disobeyed God. So God set another time for entering his place of rest, and that time is today… So there is a special rest still waiting for the people of God. For all who enter into God’s rest will find rest from their labors, just as God rested after creating the world.”

Lesson: Jesus is our rest given the sacrifice He made.

The “studies” about the “health benefits” of resting are not nearly as unambiguous as some have characterized them as (and feel free to provide links if you’d like to share). Obviously we should get at least 7 hours of sleep per day and eat enough since we have physical constraints, but the remainder is really up to us and how much we put in God’s hands versus trying to have control on our own end. While I work all the time, there’s never a point where I feel stressed because in the Lord there is no stress.

That said, if for anyone here you feel that a day completely set aside is one of the ways you honor God, keep that up because God wants our hearts — not our sacrifices — so lets just be sure everything we do is an authentic worship to the one who deserves our praise, rather than a formula we follow.

The real question you are asking is “do we have to follow the WHOLE Bible or are we allowed to cherry pick it to make it easier to fit with our society and social norms?” If you believe the Bible is true and without error , then yes you MUST follow the Sabbath. It is a commandment, not a request or an option. You are not allowed to cherry pick just because it makes you uncomfortable or because it is “too hard.” This means you have to follow commandments no matter how strange they may sound. For example, if for whatever reason you are a male without a penis, you cannot go to church (Deuteronomy 23:1). Also, parents are commanded to not only punish, but to kill their disobedient sons (I guess daughters can disobey their parents and are off the hook.) (Deuteronomy 21:18-21).

Thanks for your reply. I understand what you are saying, but what about the Ten Commandments then? Are we supposed to still obey them? Also, what about the verse where Jesus says he did not come to abolish the law, but to uphold the law.

But you are cherry picking. You are ignoring the reference to scripture I made. Jesus himself quoted from Old Testsment laws during his teachings. This is an important debate. Either we follow the laws from the Old Testament or we do not. Should we follow the ten commandents? If so, how did you decide that we should obey the Ten Commandments but that we do not have to follow he other laws? If we are not tied to the Old Testament laws, does that mean it is now ok to murder, steal, and have graven images?

100% and just to emphasize, Paul the counterexample you gave is not valid since it is inconsistent with the two commandments Jesus reiterated. Jesus did not come to take away the law — you are right — but to fulfill it. We clearly do not sacrifice lamb the way the Israelites did before, and that’s because Jesus was our perfect lamb, so there is no need for such sacrifices. The Levitical Law was for the Israelites for a specific period of time; we are not bound by that law — give Paul’s letters a read.

Oh no, I meant Paul’s reply – yes 100% what you said

Thank you for your well thought out response Rachel, however, what you are offering is an interpretation of the Bible. The Bible doesn’t even mention the word Christian, so you cannot say that the Old Testament was only for Israelites and not for Christians. And you are still cherry picking. Either the old testsment is relevant to today or it is not. You do not get to decide which verses you like the most and say “those are the ones I will follow”. Also ask yourself, why did Jesus not explicitly say which laws to follow and which were irrelevant. Do not tell me he did, because he did not. That is why Jews and Christian’s disagree on trivial things like eating pork. Honestly, I could have done a better job being Jesus cause I could have written the Book myself to avoid all the silly interpretations. God is pretty dumb to leave this up to interpretation rather than simply explicitly laying down the law. The question of “should we follow he sabbath” should not even be a question because Jesus, in his 35 years on earth, should have told us what the answer was. It would have avoided church divisions. But I guess God was too dumb to make things clear to us. And do not say I am being disrespectful cause the Bible is MUCH more rude and vulgar then me. Since when is the story of millions of people and animals drowning considered appropriate for children? Open your eyes. Christianity is a myth. In 100 years I doubt religion will excist. Look at the data, Christianity is on the decline and it will continue to decline. People will look back on it in the sa,e way that we look back on Roman Mythology. I mean it is pretty crazy to believe in talking daunkies, talking plants, flying chariots, witches, gods impregnating virgins, world wide flood, condoned rape of women and children, slavery being ok, homosexuality being a sin, the heart having emotions, the earth being created before the sun, people turning to salt, talking snakes, I mean seriously. If you never heard of Christianity till you were 25, the things I just mentioned would seem so ridiculous.

Well, responding to this in detail would imply that it dignifies a response. I am sorry you feel this way and I just pray that God has a personal encounter with you so that you see the bounty of His love.

Also, the Bible does use the word Christian. look at 1 Peter 4:16 or Acts 26:28.

You are forgiven. Thank you for deleting your comment. I am sure you have already done this, but make sure you repent and ask God for forgiveness for what you previously wrote. He has already forgiven you on the cross, and when you turn from your sin, “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.” (Psalm 103:12) Thank you for the apology!

Hi Rachel,

You are certainly correct in stating that the Bible contains no explicit mandate or statement of transfer in Sabbath importance from Saturday to Sunday.

The two verses you have quoted I believe are self-evidently not suggesting Sunday observance. To address the first:

If the breaking of bread was what suggests that the day was holy, Acts 2:46 states that they were “daily…breaking bread”. As the breaking of bread commemorates our Lord’s crucifixion and was instituted on the evening that the day of the crucifixion began, when Jesus and all the apostles were present, it is evident that the day of the crucifixion present greater claim to the celebration of this ordinance than does the day of the resurrection. As our Lord designated no day for this ordinance and as the apostolic church is recorded to have celebrated it daily, it is evidently presumption to argue the change of the Sabbath from a single instance of its celebration on the first day of the week.

It is a remarkable fact that this, the only instance of a religious meeting on the first day of the week recorded in the New Testament, was a night meeting. This is proved by the fact that many lights were burning in the assembly and that Paul preached until midnight. From this follows the important consequence that this first day meeting was upon Saturday night; because the days of the week were reckoned from evening to evening (as seen in Genesis 1:5), and evenings begin at sunset.

Paul, therefore preached until midnight on Saturday night; for the disciples held a night meeting at the close of the Sabbath, as he was to depart in the morning. Then, being interrupted by the fall of the young man, he went down and healed him. After this, he went up and attended to the breaking of bread; and at the break of day, on Sunday morning he departed.

In regards to the second verse you mention, the words that eliminate the suggestion of a church gathering, is exactly, “let every one of you lay *by him*”. If this is not easily understood to be what it implies, the Greek, Latin, Spanish, German, Swedish, French, Portuguese, Italian and Dutch Bible translations all make it clear that this means “at home”, “in his own house” and “with one’s self”.

I see evidence of the Seventh-day Sabbath’s remaining importance by Jesus long-continued and powerful effort in behalf of the Sabbath, to vindicate it as a *merciful* institution and to rid it of Pharisaical traditions, by which it was perverted from its original purpose. The Sabbath is the Divinely-designated, weekly appointment with the Creator: encompassing rest from our physical labors and the spiritual rest in Christ’s work and atonement for us.

Wishing you all God’s blessings as you seek to do His will as expressed in His Holy Word,

Christella

Hey Faith! Obviously we disagree on this issue, and I don’t want to argue. I will just present you with a link to an article that is really helpful.
God Bless!

Oops! It looks like the link didn’t work. Here it is again. Sorry!

I would like to add something else to this. Your comment on the second verse that I mentioned does not seem to refute what I stated originally. I don’t see how you can disagree that the Bible states that they gathered to worship on the first day of the week.

I meant to say, Paul, that Christ came to fulfill the Law. He did not discard it.
The Sabbath should definitely be observed, but much more as a spiritual principle; not in observing a particular day. Mark 2:27 and 28 (NET) says “The Sabbath was made for people, not people for the Sabbath. For this reason the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” The Good News Bible might also be a very helpful rendition.
To answer the question about Jesus fulfilling the commandment to rest; His death and the reason for the huge price he paid could be best explained in the words of the writer of Hebrews. I always advice that the Bible should read in context and not ‘cherry-picked’. But please try to read the whole book. But if you cannot, please read Chapters 4,5 and 6. That’s Hebrews 4, 5 and 6.
But, I will attempt to give an abridged version:
Sin is forgiven only when blood is shed. And God, having sufficiently proved that sacrifices offered by men could not remit sin entirely, He Himself offered Christ up on His altar. He sent him to the earth to physically demonstrate this and also prove that man, as a man, can live without sin. Let me also mention that sin was the reason that the Law was given but it failed curb it in it’s entirety. We actually see men like David and Moses living above the Law in many instances. Every Law, as much as it strove to help man’s sin and hardheartedness, could not present a man blameless. Even after the High Priest offered his sacrifice, IT COULD NOT REMIT OUR SIN. Why? Because sin was inputted to us. Jesus Christ proved that man can live above sin and he also came to input righteousness to us. That was how and why He became the The High Priest of Our Profession(Salvation). Romans 5,6,7 and 8 could be very helpful too.

Let me also remark that He did not abolish rest, He became our rest.

This was brought up by my dad in Jaunary to our family. We now (on Sundays) don’t watch TV, read fictional books, (we still read either the Bible or other books, i.e. This Changes Everything) but we do take time to meditate on the sermon that morning and read our bible. It was very hard at first but it’s gotten much better. 🙂

Well, since God specifically says to rest on the seventh day, I’d say it’s pretty important. It’d be different if God didn’t give us a specific day, but He did.

Well, tbh I don’t know the original language and haven’t asked anyone who does, so I can’t say for sure. That was just my thought from reading the passage.

Right. I’m just not sure if it’s 7th day like, “every 7 days” or “on this specific day”. And I’m also a little conflicted adopt whether of not this still applies under the new covenant. I don’t really know.

Interesting comments. I pose a question. Should Christians still obstain from murder, adultery, baring false witness, convetting, worshipping other gods? Why is it that Christians question keeping the Sabbath day holy (7th day) but don’t question any other of the commandments? Jesus kept the Sabbath day by attending services in the temple, Jesus rested on the Sabbath in his death, the apostles kept the Sabbath, and we will keep the Sabbath holy in heaven.

My question is, should we only follow the ten commandments of the old testament or should we also follow the rest of the Torah? After all, Jesus said that he had not come to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it. Does this mean that Christians should’t eat bacon and that slavery should be legal? Or, if we should only keep the ten commandments, why? Simply because they’re the most important commandments does not mean that the other commandments don’t matter.

The 7th Day Adventists call anyone who doesn’t go to church on Saturday ‘un-Christian’. I think it’s very important to come together on A DAY, whether Saturday or Sunday, to participate in fellowship with other believers. It fills us with passion for God. So to answer your question, YES, it is important.

Jesus grew up and was raised as a Jew. Jew’s to this day keep Saturday as the Sabbath.

Amen!

Yeah, and it’s also not just important because it’s on the ten commandments. God made the Sabbath at creation as a sign of his wonderful and awesome power. It’s his ultimate symbol of power, because it takes a God to create complex, God-designed creations like plants, animals, sky, earth, sun, moon, stars, galaxies, universe(s) and, lastly, us!

People who keep the Sabbath, myself included, keep it because we believe that God specifically told us which day we should especially dedicate ourselves to worship him. I don’t mind, and I fully accept some of the insights you’re bouncing around, but in the point of view I share with others, we believe that a specific day of rest is required to let our lives fully shine for him. I’m not saying it’s VITALLY ESSENTIAL for our salvation, but is like a part of our toolbelt that Christians use to spread God’s truth, without giving the benefit of the doubt too much to non-Christians, because, as humans, we still don’t understand all the questions we have of God. So I’m going to explain why I believe that the Sabbath should have a specific day.

The Sabbath, as it says in Genesis 2, was “blessed” and “sanctified” by God, for in it he rested from all his creating. It’s his symbol, his seal, his special mark of power, because on that week, he created, to us, everything! In Exodus 20, God implores Israel to remember this day, the Sabbath, and keep it holy, and rest on it. Sabbath is not just a break from everything for God, it’s a sign of everything God did, God does, and what He WILL do. It’s also a sign of his relationship towards mankind. The Sabbath points us directly at God, and if we don’t keep looking at Him, we will end up at the foot of destruction.

It’s so important, God made it a permanent day in our week, the 7th day, so we could spend more and more time resting in him and learning more about him. That’s why God implemented such strong consequences to Israel if they disobeyed the moral laws! Israel was chosen to be the light in the known world, and if they didn’t shine their light right, and broke the Sabbath, that would be putting their relationship with God, and their light to the people at risk, regardless whether they broke the Sabbath or another moral law. So by this point, God clearly wants the Israelites to keep the moral laws, including Sabbath.

When Jesus came to earth, the Pharisees and Sadducees, like us, were hearers of the word, and not doers, and hypocritically added laws to the Sabbath, and other moral laws, which led Jesus to rebuke them. Look those laws up for yourself. The point is, he still kept the Sabbath, even though the Pharisees and Sadducees broke the Sabbath. And he was raised a Jew, so he still kept the Sabbath that Moses kept, and David kept, and what orthodox Jews keep all around the world. It never changed, though people did the wrong thing.

Side note: Paul was still having an issue with this, though not regarding The Sabbath, but the ceremonial “sabbaths” that Jews in those days kept (they even had yearly sabbaths!). Paul’s simply saying there in Colossians is that those days don’t matter to Gentiles, because they were shadows for the Jews and for the rest of the known world that the Messiah was going to come. Too bad they missed the point of it.

Now I hope this clears why people who share my perspective (namely, 7th Day Adventists) go to church on Sabbath. We go to church on Saturday because we believe that God firmly and clearly instructs us that Sabbath. God made the Sabbath and specified the 7th day, and it has appeared unchanged, even to Paul’s time. So who changed it? That’s a question for another time.

In the New Testament Jesus was asked about the commandments and he said of all the greatest 2 or to put God 1st and to love your neighbor so that would pretty much cover saying that slavery would not be acceptable. Now, as far as eating bacon I think that a lot of christians use The Bible verse that says what enters the man does not defile him pretty much saying that it’s not our works that make us righteous it is our faith. A lot has changed since the Old Testament the Old Testament is our schoolmaster . We live under a new beautiful covenant.

Jesus never broke the Sabbath. Unless you call healing on the Sabbath day breaking the sabbath. Jesus argued that that was not breaking the sabbath. He is LORD of the Sabbath and so decides what can and can’t be done.

“Then Jesus told them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Therefore, the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27, 28
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” Matthew 5:17

If the Sabbath commandment isn’t binding today, then neither is Thou shalt not kill or steal or commit adultery. Remember that Jesus came to save us FROM our sins, not in them. Matthew 1:21 “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

Hey Jonathan, as you study the Bible you’ll find that there are moral laws that are binding to all people (such as, “Do not covet, steal, bear false witness, commit adultery, kill, etc.) and ceremonial laws (remember the sabbath day to keep it holy; don’t wear clothing with different types of fabrics; sew a ribbon of blue on the bottom of your clothes; let your land rest [i.e., don’t plant anything] every seven years; don’t eat pork, rabbits, shellfish, camels, etc.).

God’s moral laws are written upon the heart of every person (Romans 2:14-15); the ceremonial laws were given to Israel as part of God’s special covenant with them.

Context is key to understanding the scriptures. You must understand that the ceremonial laws were given in a specific historical context to a specific people: the children of Israel. “Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.” (Exodus 31:14–17)

So, who was to keep the sabbath? The children of Israel. Keeping the sabbath was a covenant between God and which people? The children of Israel. Observing the sabbath day as a holy day was part of the ceremonial law given to Israel.

All those who have trusted in the death, burial, and resurrection as the complete and final payment for their sins are free from the demands of the law (See Romans 8:1-14 and Galatians 2:16-3:26). This, of course, does not mean we are free to sin (we still have to keep the moral law) but we are not under the ceremonial law of Moses.

The most important question is, are you trusting in Jesus Christ alone to be your Saviour? “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” (John 3:36)

I hope this helps.

~Pastor David