Nailed to the cross

SSabbath Observance Was Abolished at the Cross. Really?
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Today I'd like to explore an argument often made by Sunday keepers
who are reluctant to start observing the Sabbath. They often proclaim that
Sabbath observance was abolished at the cross together with the other nine
commandments. They were all nailed to the cross.
I find this a very intriguing argument because these same people would
readily agree that the commandment "Thou Shalt Not Kill" is still in effect.
Also "Thou Shalt not Covet Thy Neighbor's Wife," "Thou Shalt Not Steal,"
etc. So they are quick to see and accept the validity of the other nine
commandments, but refuse to accept the validity of the fourth commandment.
This becomes even more intriguing when we notice that the fourth commandment
is the only one to which God added the word "REMEMBER" as an introduction.
The other commandments do not begin in this fashion. "Remember thou shalt
not steal," "remember thou shall have no other Gods before me." No. It is only
the fourth commandment that carries that particular emphasis of the word
"remember." Why? I am not a prophet and therefore I don't enjoy especial access
to God to ask any of these questions. My speculation, however, is that God added
this word, 'remember' because he is all knowing and, even way back then at the
time of the writing of the Ten Commandments, God was able to see that a time
was coming when His children would be pressured to drift away from the Sabbath.
In His infinite wisdom God added the warning 'REMEMBER' for our benefit.

Now, if you are a Sunday keeper, I'd like to hear from you. What reason
do you have for keeping Sunday instead of Saturday? Do you think Sabbath
observance was abolished at the cross? Please share with us your reasons.

The moderator

Blogger Pictures

Today we will take a look at another interesting Biblical passage where God seems to emphasize the importance of the Sabbath. Isaiah 58: 13-14 says:

If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath,
from doing your pleasure on my holy day,
and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day
of the Lord honorable , and shall honor Him,
not doing your own ways, nor finding your
own pleasure, nor speaking your own words,
then you shall delight yourself in the Lord;
and I will cause you to ride on the high hills
of the earth, and feed you with the heritage
of Jacob your father. The mouth of the Lord
has spoken.

This passage strikes me as extraordinary for two reasons; (1) because the Lord is taking only one commandment out of the list of ten, and He is stressing to us how important it is. (2) The Lord is attaching a promise to those who keep this particular commandment. And it is not just any small promise. It is an awesome promise. He tells us that he "will cause us to ride on the high hills of the earth" and He will "feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father." What a beautiful promise that is!! I don't know about you, but I would love to ride on the high hills of the earth and to partake of the heritage of Jacob.

Well, now the question for all of us is this: Why do we choose to forfeit this promise????
Why do so many people choose not to observe the Sabbath? Does the Bible offer any similar blessings to those who observe Sunday instead of Sabbath?

If you observe Sunday instead of Saturday, I invite you to share your reasons for doing so.
Is it because of tradition? Is it based on a passage from Scriptures?

God bless you,

The moderator

Exodus 20: 8 -11

I once heard a pastor preaching in a Sunday-keeping church. He was making light of the Sabbath and of the fourth commandment. This is what he said:
"One of my friends asked me 'why don't you worship on the Sabbath?' I said 'I do worship on the Sabbath. And I also worship on Sunday. And I worship on Monday. And I worship on Tuesday. And... " so on and so forth. The congregation was very amused by his clever answer. But it led me to think that the fourth commandment is about much more than just worshipping. Let's take a look at it as it is found in the book of Exodus, Chapter 20: 8 -11.
Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.
Six days you shall labor and do all your work,
but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord yor God.
In it you shall do no work: you nor your son, nor your daughter,
nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle,
nor your stranger who is within your gates.
For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth,
the sea and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day.
Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.

The text quoted above is from the New King James version. At least in this version the word worship is not even mentioned at all in connection with the Sabbath day. I don't know exactly how and when it occurred, but the Sabbath day came to be connected with going to the temple (later the church) and holding worship services. As I read it in this passage of Exodus, the Sabbath day is all about rest. It is about keeping the day holy and not polluting it with our daily activities.
Then I think about the pastor who was making light of it and I realize how mistaken he was. It seems obvious to me that that poor pastor had not read this commandment closely. He ignored God's first instruction to keep the day holy. Then he also ignored God's intructions for the pastor personally to abstain from work. Plus he ignored God's instructions to make sure that his son, daughter, his assisstant and his secretary also abstain from work. The pastor chose to focus his attention only on "worship," which is not even part of God's intructions for the Sabbath day (at least not on this particular version quoted above).
This pastor is not alone. There are millions of others who have paid very little attention to this commandment. What makes this all the more intriguing is the curious detail that the fourth commandment is the only one of all Ten Commandments that begins with the instruction: "REMEMBER." Yes! The one that we were instructed to remember is the one that most people have forgotten. Isn't that interesting?

I invite you to share with me your thoughts on this matter.
Do you keep the Sabbath? Why? or Why not?

God Bless You,

The moderator.

Outside the old market in the city of Sanliurfa.

Hello, everyone!

Welcome to "The Fourth Commandment" blog.
The purpose of this page is to provide a forum for people who want to explore and discuss the topic of the day of rest.
In Muslims countries the shops close very early on Friday and some don't even open at all. Christians of many denominations observe Sunday as the day of rest. Then other groups such as the Jews, the Baptist Sabatarians, and the Seventh Day Adventists observe their day of worship from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. Therefore the question we need to explore is who is right? Are they all right? To answer this question I'd like to invite the participation of visitors to this blog.

For visitors who believe Friday is the correct day of rest and worship, I'd like to hear from you. Please tell us why. Is there any scriptural basis for observing Friday? Is it based on tradition?
For Christians who believe Sunday is the Sabbath day, please tell us why.
Then for those who observe Saturday as the day of rest and worship, I'd also like to hear from you. Please share with us the scriptures and any other arguments you have found for worshipping on Saturday.
Have you received any blessings for observing and worshipping on the day you do? Please share your testimony with us.
Tell us how you have been blessed since you started worshipping on your day.
I look forward to a lively and enlightening discussion.

The Moderator