The argument over whether to keep the Seventh-day Commandment wages on in modern christedom but be assured dear reader that there is a consistent Biblical answer to this much debated matter. It is my prayer that this Biblical exercise will bring you the reader to place your faith squarely upon God's authoritative Word for walking in obedience to God's will, not only in the matter of keeping His blessed and sanctified day holy, but also by a well ordered sanctified life in the Messiah.
Thus saith the Lord, "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.
Question number One: How do you keep it holy? Why by leaving it as God gave it, and not adding to it or detracting anything from it. As in all things God made, or has established, we know that it is good and very good, but the Sabbath Day is an institution that memorializes all that He has done by His mighty power. Let's look at the reason why the Lord, our God (Jesus Christ) gave us His Sabbath Commandment and how it helps us to understand how to keep it holy.
1. Remember. Now everyone knows how certain persons argue that God only gave the Sabbath to the Jews at Mt.Sinai, but the very first word is to remember. Remember that institution that dates back to the beginning, when God said, and it was! The Sabbath day has always been witness to our God being the Creator of the heavens and the earth. Even though the seed of the serpent didn't abide in God's ways, or His way of salvation from sin (i.e., Cain bringing his works to the altar), the Lord has always had a remnant that called upon the name of the Lord (i.e., Abel, Seth Enos, etc...), and they are called righteous because they were obedient to the divine will of God.
Question: Does a parent forget how or what they've instructed their children to do? Then why would God not want us to remember His instructions as well?
2. Keep it holy. God blessed the Seventh Day and hallowed it. To hallow means to sanctify, set apart, or make holy someone or something. As Christians, we are a holy people, a people called to be separate from the worldliness, and especially worldly and ungodly institutions that have the name Christian attached to them. You see, it isn't what you think is good and holy, but what God has said is good and holy. We think that God can bless anything that we pray over. But God has designated what is good and evil, holy and profane, clean and unclean, that we might fear Him, and do those things which He requires, not having any guilty conscience before Him.
Question: Did God ask Cain to bring the fruits of his labors as an offering, or had God already made it clear what to offer? Abel brought an offering that the Lord required and he was blessed. The Scripture declared Abel as righteous, because he did what was right in God's eyes, not what he thought was right in his own eyes as Cain did. This is the issue at hand with all that God has commanded His people, not only in offerings, not only in Sabbath keeping, but in everything He has told us to do.
3. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work. Remember from this day forward, that the Lord said, six days shalt thou labor. This means that the Lord wants our lives to be spent, not in indolence before television sets, but bearing fruit of some kind to His glory. We as Christians are a peculiar people, a purchased possession that we should bring honor and glory to Him. Just as God worked six days and then rested, we too as beings made in the image and likenesses of God are to reflect His character. Two things are upon the mind of Sabbath keeping Christians each week, our work for our earthly masters, and our devotion to our heavenly Master. Both are to the glory of God, and when the work week has ended Friday evening at sunset, we can rest in Christ giving Him thanks to have the ability the have worked to support our families, and that we have also been partakers of His Spirit throughout the week. During the work week, we as Sabbath keepers also do those things that are called charitable, such as raking elderly neighbor’s leaves, shoveling their snow, but also more spiritual things like Bible study, prayer meeting, visiting the members of our congregation who are sick. Pastoral Elder Timothy Lee Arnett
Are Former Gentiles (now Christians) to keep the Seventh Day Sabbath holy?-Part Two
Thus saith the Lord, "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.
1. The Seventh Day is the definite time appointed by God as His holy day. It was made holy after God had finished creating for six consecutive days.
2. He did leave any room for picking and choosing though, for He said, “But the Seventh Day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. The Sabbath was made for man's benefit, only if he used it as God had intended. Some have written that He gave it to man, and now man can do with it what he wills. No, no, for Jesus said, "not man for the Sabbath." That was the Pharisee's problem, for they had added regulations to the Sabbath intending to make it impossible to break it, but from the start of just one regulation, comes what God calls a profaning of His way.
The Lord spake in the same context in giving His Holy, Just, Good, and Spiritual Ten Commandments and said…
Exodus 20:25
“And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it”
The foregoing Scripture forever establishes that man is never to add to what the Lord God Himself has established.
King Solomon continues with this thought…
Ecclesiastes 3:14, 15
"I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him. That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past."
And so we see that God is perfect and what He has established from the beginning of creation is perfect. Only sin, the devil, and those who are carnally minded seek to do away with God's will and His way.
3. We must remember that the Sabbath was given to man by the Lord thy God. I personally have seen in the Messianic prophecies of Isaiah, that the Lord thy God, is none other than Jesus Christ Himself, in His pre-incarnate role.
Isaiah 48:17, 18
“Thus saith the Lord, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the Lord thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go. O that thou hadst hearkened to My Commandments! Then had thy peace been as a river and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea:”
Mark 12:30-37
"And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first Commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he: And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question. And Jesus answered and said, while he taught in the temple, how say the scribes that Christ is the Son of David? For David himself said by the Holy Ghost, the Lord said to my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool. David therefore himself calleth him Lord; and whence is he then his son? And the common people heard him gladly.
Jesus therefore is Lord and He is God. He is the Lord God that made all things from the beginning of our creation. When we obey the Law of the Creator and keep His Seventh-Day Sabbath Holy, we honor and extol the Father Who sent Jesus into the world to save sinners. We also honor Jesus as the Creator of heaven and earth. He is the Word made flesh. That Word that said, "Let there be light." Remember too friend that Jesus not only rested after creating our world in six days, He also rested after accomplishing our redemption upon the cross of Calvary. In both cases, Jesus our Messiah rested upon the Seventh-Day Sabbath.
Acts 2:26-36 " For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved: Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope: Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance. Men and brethren let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day. Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the Promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear. For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Until I make thy foes thy footstool. Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.
Clearly David and Peter recognized the Lord thy God, and the Holy One of Israel as God's Son. Even the doubting Thomas found faith to declare, this in
John 20:28,”And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God."
And so, when we see the title, the Lord thy God, we must see Jesus. Read also John 1:1-3, 14; Colossians 1:16, 17; Hebrews 1:1-3. Jesus is our Creator, and the Lord our God.
Pastoral Elder Timothy Lee Arnett
Are Former Gentiles (now Christians) to keep the Seventh Day Sabbath holy?-Part Three
Thus saith the Lord, "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.
1. During the holy hours of the Sabbath, we are told not to do any work. First let's see how God reckons the days, and then we'll see when the Sabbath begins and ends.
Genesis 1:5, 31 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. And God saw every thing that He had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
Comparing the following contexts will help us also see that this is how the beginning and ending of the Holy Sabbath is to be applied as well.
Genesis 2:1-3
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 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. Now as you’ll recall, the sixth day ended when the evening came.
Luke 23:54-56
And that day was the preparation, and the Sabbath drew on. And the women also, which came with him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulcher, and how his body was laid. And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment. And so you see, the Sabbath had been kept in the manner prescribed by Scripture, from sundown, to sundown, evening to evening.
2. During the Sabbath, our family, our farm animals (if we have a farm), even the people who serve us during the other six days (Sunday through Friday) are to rest from their labors. And the stranger, who has no connection to our faith, should never be compelled to do any manner of work for us. How this is applied in Scripture is by the following verses. It should be understood that we are not to go to our regular place of employment during the Sabbath, or do our yard work, or anything that would be conducive to taking our minds off of God, for this is His time, and our opportunity to be with Him for that period of heaven on earth.
Isaiah 58:13, 14
If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. What a blessing there is to be found in keeping the Sabbath!
However, some in the history of the Jews did not experience the blessing of the Sabbath, and turned their backs on God, His Temple, and true worship. Therefore, the Lord sent them into the 70 years captivity in Babylon. After the captivity, there was still a problem with Sabbath observance, and this helps us today to see what we should be doing and not doing. The following Scripture refers to the covenant they (the Jews made after the return from captivity).
Nehemiah 10:31.
And if the people of the land bring ware or any victuals on the Sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy it of them on the Sabbath, or on the holy day: and that we would leave the seventh year, and the exaction of every debt.
The following occurred twenty or so years after the people made this covenant.
Nehemiah 13:15-22
In those days saw I in Judah some treading wine presses on the Sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day: and I testified against them in the day wherein they sold victuals. There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the Sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem. Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the Sabbath day? Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? Yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the Sabbath. And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the Sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the Sabbath: and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the Sabbath day. So the merchants and sellers of all kind of ware lodged without Jerusalem once or twice. Then I testified against them, and said unto them, Why lodge ye about the wall? If ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the Sabbath. And I commanded the Levites that they should cleanse themselves, and that they should come and keep the gates, to sanctify the Sabbath day. Remember me, O my God, concerning this also, and spare me according to the greatness of thy mercy.
Are we keeping our gates on God's holy Sabbath Day? Pastoral Elder Timothy Lee Arnett
Are Former Gentiles (now Christians) to keep the Seventh Day Sabbath holy?-Part Four
Thus saith the Lord, "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.
1. For in six days the Lord made. This seems so hard for people to grasp, but let's look into the other Scriptures as to who the Lord is as well as how He made all these things in six literal evenings and mornings (24 hour days). Was it possible for all the earth and heaven to be made in six literal days?
Psalms 33:6-9
By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: He layeth up the depth in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spake and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast. Answer: Yes, as quickly as God could say it, it was done.
Question: Who is the Word of the Lord?
John 1:1-3, 14
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. Answer: The Lord, Jesus Christ.
Question: Did God make the entire universe in six days?
Genesis 1:14-19
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day. Answer: He could have, for nothing is impossible with God. However, we see within the boundaries of the fourth day of creation, a record of the Lord creating our earth and our heaven.
The Bible says that there are three heavens.
1. The first heaven is where the birds fly, and including our atmosphere (firmament).
2. The second heaven would include the galaxies, with their solar systems revolving around Stars or Suns.
3. The third and highest heaven is where God's throne is. It is said in Scripture to be in the sides of the north. Some believe that this is the constellation Orion. St. Paul referred to this as being paradise, and so we can also not look for some subterranean abode called Abraham's bosom for the paradise of God on or under the earth.
The Genesis account says, "He made the stars also." Therefore, Moses was giving instruction concerning the stars (which are suns in far off distant galaxies) that they too were the handiwork of God, but not necessarily at the same time as our solar system.
We know that man is not the only intelligent beings in the universe. Let’s consider two Scriptures that relate to two groups of intelligent beings who were present at the inauguration of our world.
Job 38:4-7
Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? Or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? Or who laid the corner stone thereof; when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
First let's ask, "Who were the sons of God?"
Luke 3:38 which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God.
As we can see, Adam was created by the Lord God, therefore he was by nature of creation a son of God. The worlds in the unlimited space of our universe teem with unfallen beings all bearing the title sons of God. However there are other beings that Almighty God has created who were made before the sons of God.
Isaiah 14:12-14
How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
The angelic host called CHERUBIM and SERAPHIM are the morning stars.
The sons of God are the representatives of the other worlds, which like Adam were the first borns, and are also unfallen in nature (never knowing sin and its effect in their world).
Job 1:6-8
Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them. And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, from going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?
The Bible records at this time, Adam was no longer head of Earth because the dominion had been wrested from him by Lucifer. When Adam submitted to the word of Lucifer above the Word of God, hewas overthrown by sin. Lucifer/Satan was now the representative spoken of in Job’s account. He is called the prince of this world, and his spirit is in the children of disobedience. It is Lucifer who came before the council of "sons of God" where Adam should have been represented. This shows us that there are indeed other worlds and other intelligent beings dwelling therein.
Well let's wrap up this study.
As I have already noted previously, the correct Biblical interpretation of the ratifying of the New Covenant was on Friday the sixth day of the week. The ratification of the Old Covenant required the spilled blood and life of a lamb without spot or blemish. Just the same was required by the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ in order to confirm the New Covenant. What this means, is that the life of Jesus Christ was the perfect representation of the will of God in bodily form. He kept His Father Commandments in verity.
2 Corinthians 4:6
For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 1:1-3
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his Person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when He had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
These verse declare Jesus to be,
1. The Prophet, spoken of by Moses, and referred to by Peter on the day of Pentecost.
2. The Heir, Inheritor of all things as the only begotten Son of God
3. The Creator, the Word of God made flesh, for which the Sabbath was originally blessed at the conclusion of His works following six days of making all things.
4. The express image of His person. The two words express image come from the Greek word for Character.
Strong's Number: 5481
Transliterated: charakter
Phonetic: khar-ak-tare'
Text: from the same as 5482; a graver (the tool or the person), i.e. (by implication) engraving (["character"], the figure stamped, i.e. an exact copy or [figuratively] representation): --express image.
Therefore Jesus, is God manifest in the flesh, or the Mystery of God presented in human form.
1 Timothy 3:16
And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
Jesus is our example, not St. Paul, Peter, Moses, or Elijah. When we look at His life we see how we ought to walk.
1 John 2:4-7
He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not His Commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth His Word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked. Brethren, I write no New Commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The Old Commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.
In the following Scripture we see that when Jesus customarily went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, he didn't go as a Jew, on behalf of the Jewish nation, but as the Son of man, as the second Adam, representing the entire race to God.
Luke 4:14-21
And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about. And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. And he 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.
This particular Sabbath Day, Jesus declared Himself to be, the long awaited Messiah to Israel. The Father Anointed Him, making Him Messiah, and the Father sent Him, making Him the Holy Apostle of our Faith.
Hebrews 3:1
Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus;
In the next Scripture we find how that the Apostle Paul was used by the Lord God too reveal to the non-Jews the truth that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, and Jesus chose to fulfill this revelation of Himself again upon His holy, blessed, and sanctified Seventh Day Sabbath.
Acts 13:40-52
Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets; Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you. And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath. Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. And the next Sabbath Day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming. Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, it was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region. But the Jews stirred up the devout and honourable women, and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts. But they shook off the dust of their feet against them, and came unto Iconium. And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost.
This event was in fulfillment of many Old Testament prophecies, for example:
Isaiah 49:6-9
And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and He shall choose thee. Thus saith the Lord, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages; That thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places.
Clearly, Jesus desired His gospel to go out to all nations, to lighten them that sit in darkness, and thank God, that His light has shone upon us former Gentiles (strangers).
Isaiah 61:1-3
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.
This is the context Jesus quoted, making Him the Messiah. Please note the reference to the opening of the prison. The deliverance to the captives, and liberty to them that are bruised was to be preached to the Gentiles after the disciples had first preached to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria (formerly Israel the northern kingdom), and then to the uttermost parts of the earth.
Acts 1:8.
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
These Messianic verses clearly point to the fact that Jesus did not come to change His Commandments, to benefit the Gentiles, but that He would rule them the same way as He did the Jews, as their God, and they as His people, obedient to His law. The following is the amazing messianic prophecy that directly ties Jesus and His role as Messiah to His holy, blessed, and sanctified Seventh Day Sabbath.
Isaiah 56:1-7
Thus saith the Lord, Keep ye judgment, and do justice: for My salvation is near to come, and My righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil. Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the Lord, speak, saying, The Lord hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree. For thus saith the Lord unto the eunuchs that keep my Sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant; Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off. Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants, every one that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of My covenant; Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.
This fulfillment was introduced in Nazareth, by the Messiah, was preached in the temple in Jerusalem.
Matthew 21:12-14
And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them.
Mark 11:37
And he taught, saying unto them, is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? But ye have made it a den of thieves.
Matthew 23:33-39
Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
Betimes, the Lord spoke unto them and declared that temple in Jerusalem to be the house of prayer for all nations. But they had judged themselves unworthy to be the holders of the oracles of God. Isaiah 56:7, is the only verse in the entire Scripture, that Jesus could have quoted this from when He said…
"It is written, My House Shall Be Called A House Of Prayer for All Nations (Gentiles)"
And Jesus declared these things from the context of Isaiah’s Messianic prophecy in Isaiah 56, showing Him to be the Holy one of Israel, the Lord our God, and our Redeemer.
So you see, the Lord never intended the Sabbath to be done away when the Gospel went to the Gentiles. This is the work of our adversary, the devil to keep men in darkness and sin. Please tell me you see the light. Pastoral Elder Timothy Lee Arnett
Did the change in calenders effect the Sabbath day?The weekly cycle has never changed. In brief, the week has come down from Creation unchanged. The Sabbath, given at the beginning of our world and written on rock 2,500 years later, was kept by the people of God down through the ages. God has had a line of faithful followers in every era of earth’s history. They have never been blotted out. When, in the time of Noah, there were only eight left—God stepped in and by a flood of waters saved them and destroyed the wicked. If time had been lost by the time of Jesus, He would have set it right. His keeping of the Bible Sabbath set a standard for His followers. The seventh day of Jesus is to be our day, for He is Lord of it (Mark 2:28).
At the time that Christ was on earth, the calendar being used was called the "Julian Calendar." This is the calendar under which Jesus kept the Bible Sabbath. His followers kept it after His death (Luke 23:56), and later in their missionary work (Acts 13:14-16, 40-46, 16:12-1 5, 17:1-4.
We know, from historical records, that the majority of Christians kept the true Sabbath for the first five centuries after the time of Christ. After that a persecuted minority continued to keep it during the centuries which followed. All during this time, the Julian Calendar continued in effect—and multiplied millions of historical and business records over those years witness to the fact. Then, in 1582, an error in the length of the year was corrected. The Julian Calendar was 365.25 solar days long, but the length of the year is actually slightly different—365.242195 days in length. Because of this discrepancy, as the centuries passed, the seasons shifted. This shift amount to ten days by A.D. 1582, and so the "Gregorian Calendar" was initiated to remedy the problem. It corrected the ten-day error and also began our leap-year cycle. Here is the calendar when the change came:
OCTOBER 1582
— 1 2 3 4 15 16
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30
31 — — — — — —
Carefully observe that the week was not changed! Only the length of that month and year. The week had always been seven days in length. That weekly cycle did not change.
Spain, Portugal, and Italy adopted the new calendar at once. France waited until December of that year. Half of Germany adopted it in 1583; the other half waited until 1700. About that time the Netherlands, Sweden, and Denmark adopted the new calendar also. England did not accept it until 1752. Yet all through those years, when it was Saturday in Spain it was Saturday in England. The NUMBERS or DATES of the month were different, but the DAYS of the week remained the same.
Astronomers tell us that there has never been any change in the weekly cycle. Historians tell us the same thing. The most learned reference books and encyclopedias in the world agree with this. The week has never changed. The unchangable nature of the Sabbath is even proven by the languages of mankind. Dr. William Mead Jones of London, England, analyzed 160 ancient and modern languages—and found that 108 of them call the seventh day of the week the "Sabbath." This is three out of five of the known languages of mankind!
But do not forget the Jew: Nearly every ancient race of mankind has been obliterated through warfare and intermarriage, except the Hebrew race. God has preserved them alive as a living testimony of the truth of the Bible and the Bible Sabbath,—the seventh-day Sabbath. For ages the Jewish race has kept the Bible Sabbath. And what day is the Bible Sabbath? Ask any Jew. He will tell you it is Saturday—the seventh day of the week.
-Elder Timothy Lee Arnett (Willoughby Hills Free Seventh-day Addventist)
Some quotes of interest
"If men refused to observe weeks, and the line of time was forgotten, the day of the week could be recovered by observing when transits of planets, or eclipses of the sun and moon, occurred. These great sentinels of the sky keep seven days with scientific accuracy, thundering out the seven days inscribed on the inspired page." -Dr. J.B. Dimbleby, premier chronologist to The British Chronological and Astronomical Association, in All Past Time, page10.
"I can only state that in connection with the proposed simplification of the calendar, we have had occasion to investigate the results of the works of specialists in chronology and we have never found one of them that has ever had the slightest doubt about the continuity of the weekly cycle, since long before the christian era. There has been no change in our calendar in past centuries, that has affected in any way the cycle of the week. -"The U.S. Naval Observatory, March 12, 1932
"The week of seven days has been in use since the days of Moses, and we have no reason for supposing that any irregularities have existed in succession of weeks and their days from that time to the present." -D.W. Cross, Your Amazing Calendar, pp. 6, 7.
"No time has been lost." -Dr. G.E. Hale, noted astronomer for whom the great "Palomar telescope" has been named.
One Hundred and One Bible Facts on the Sabbath & Sunday Question
Why keep the Sabbath day? What is the object of the Sabbath? Who made it? When was it made, and for whom? Which day is the true Sabbath? Many keep the first day of the week, or Sunday. What Bible authority have they for this? Some keep the seventh day, or Saturday. What Scripture have they for that?