If there are these different ‘Sabbaths’, what then is the purpose of the Sabbath? Is it just to distinguish one day, week, or year from another, or is there something deeper?
THE PURPOSE OF THE SABBATH
There are seasons of rest, where God expects us to rest, and seasons of work, where He expects us to be active and do many other things. Sabbaths are seasons of rest. These differences in seasons come from God, and we are meant to recognize and identify them.
The sabbaths are the Lord’s appointed times—holy assemblies that must be proclaimed at the appointed times under the law (Leviticus 23:4). But why were they given? Let us consider the Scriptures.
READ ALSO: WHO’S THE JUDGE?
A Shadow of Things to Come:
The law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities… (Heb 10:1)
“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. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore, whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (Matt 5:17-19)
READ ALSO: WHICH GOSPEL?
A Sabbath Yet Remaining:
So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. (Heb 4:9-11)
READ ALSO: CHURCH DISCIPLINE (PART 1)
What about Days and Dates?
Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. (Col 2:16-17)
A shadow points to something that has substance, and God uses these symbols to communicate his heart and intentions. But we must not allow an illustrative practice to dictate our every choice in the physical. That would be like continuing to kill lambs in spite of the death of the Lord Jesus, or going to cross the Red Sea to fulfil the prophecy of baptism. These are pictures of what was or is being fulfilled spiritually. Use them to communicate, but do not equate them with the reality of daily life, and do not enslave people to God’s illustrations.
READ NEXT: SABBATH: SATURDAYS OR SUNDAYS? (PART 4)
Bottom Line
The observance of the Sabbaths under the law was a prophecy which the Lord Jesus came to fulfill (Matthew 11:13). In the next part, we will consider the fulfillment(s) of the Sabbath.
