Anyways, Jim got the order of worship done early this week so I figured I'd look at Sunday's passage today. :) Genesis 2:1-3.
1Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.God has just finished making the world. it was all finished. It was the seventh day and God rested. This day he made holy because he had finished all this work and had rested on that day.
Hmmm... I read that and said to myself....so? What can I learn from this today? I already know this so what is new? Or am I just to be reminded of this? And how on earth is Jim going to preach for 20-25 minutes on this? I know...I'm probably being too honest here........
Hmmm.....
God finished his work.
God then rested.
Because he rested, that day was declared holy.
This is what these verses tell us.
Okay, The sabbath used to be Saturday, Sunday is the new sabbath. Changed I think because of Christ. oh my....did a search on that and found all sorts of reasoning for the change. The biggest being the Jews worship on the Saturday (old sabbath) and Christians wanted to show their difference from them and therefore worshiped on Sunday. Here are some of the sources I found. Religious Tolerance, Got questions, and Rev. Ken Collins.
In a nutshell I really have to ask, does it really matter? Work for 6 days, rest for one. Whether you start or end the week it doesn't really change anything. One has still worked for 6 and rested for one.
But as I thought about this I realized something... God's work was DONE! He was done...he rested. Clear and simple.
And it got me thinking.... as I prepare for worship and rest on Sunday... is my work done? Am I able to set aside my "I need to get to this that and the other thing" so that my focus can be where it needs to be? My focus needs to be on worshiping God and resting (because we are called to be like him) and not on "other stuff".
Each week God allots me so much time to get things done... I'd best use that time wisely hmm? :)
8 comments:
The reason that Sunday is the Christian Sabbath is that in Christ there is a new creation (2 Cor 5:17 where the pronoun 'he' is used although it literally reads something like, "If anyone is in Christ, new creation" The point being they are part of a new creation. They are no longer in Adam and his sin, but in Christ and his righteousness. Christ finished his work in his resurrection on the 8th day (Sunday), so since a sabbath rest remains for those in Christ (Hebrews 4:9) connected to this new creation in Christ, you see why the Christian sabbath is Sunday.
As to speaking for 30 minutes on this, not a problem when you look to how it point's to Christ. I actually could speak longer as I don't even mention the above.
I'm thankful that my husband doesn't think about our anniversary that way, though.
In God's Creation story the Sabbath was made, by Him, the sign between God and the those who love Him that He is their God and that they belong to Him. I am so humbly grateful that the Creator God of the universe set up the Sabbath 'rest' appointment with me - even little ol me - every seventh-day Sabbath.
But God's enemy saw if every seventh day the whole world celebrated God as their Creator, they would no longer 'honor' him, so he set up counterfeits to cause people to miss God's appointment with them, at least by one day, if not more.
Praise God, not only is God patient but He also keeps His promise of meeting with His earth family in a very special way every seventh day Sabbath. Praise Him.
Bringer of Peace
I have to admit bringer of peace that I'm not sure just what you are saying.
Are you saying that the sabbath can ONLY be on Saturday? Or that you have accepted that Sunday is the Sabbath in the Christian world?
Or were you referring to the fact that whether it's Saturday or Sunday in the practical sense it doesn't make a whole lot of difference to me?
Please accept my apology for sounding argumentive. It was not intended as such.
My growing relationship with the Creator God of the Universe has led me to recognize, as you also mentioned, that God created this world. When His work was finished, He rested, as the Genesis record states. He then established the seventh day of creation week as a 'time sign' of loyalty to Him to be honored by all His loyal subjects. When Jesus lived on this earth as my example, He kept the seventh day holy in His life and even rested on the seventh day Sabbath after He gave His life as a ransom for me.
I consider the highest honor to my wonderful Creator God for me to Remember the seventh day Sabbath to keep it holy as God spoke it in the Old and 'acted it out' in the New Testament.
Thanks so much for responding to my comment. I hope the above has helped you to understand what I 'meant' earlier.
Hi Bringer of peace... I didn't see you as being argumentative, I just wasn't sure what you meant. Thanks for clarifying.
I can see both sides of the issue, and since I tend to live in practicalities I wonder if it really matters. I tend to really see what Christ wrought for me in his obedience to God, and having Sunday as a new start with God... that works for me. :)
BUT I can equally identify with people who say that the Sabbath is Saturday and spend that day in worship. Some what different viewpoints, but as long as GOD is worshipped, and Christ's resurrection and salvation is preached, then the rest is NOT a salvation issue for me and therefore not worth a drawn out arguement.
Do you believe that Christ died for you? that the only way you will gain entrance into the eternal kingdom of God is by trusting solely in the work of Christ on the cross? If so...the rest is just "stuff". Important stuff, but stuff none-the-less. :)
I praise the Lord that He personally died for me (as well as for you). I am also praising Him for His faith that I will accept what He did for me. And even more thrilling has been that so long as I am united to Him by accepting His will for me He has been completing the work He began.
To me the Sabbath is God's sign that He who has begun a good work in you will finish it and my loyalty to Him.
Thanks for your thoughts as well.
Bringer of peace, you say Christ rested from his work in the tomb, but while in some sense that could be the case, I see no Biblical verses that say that in any way. However, just like the seventh day when God rested never has an end (notice that the account of it does not end with, "it was evening and it was morning the seventh day,) so also Jesus Christ's rest from his saving work began when, after he rose from the dead when he sat down at the right hand of the Father as we read in Heb 10:12, "But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God"
In his work he brings about a new creative act, making a new people in himself, so we find in 2 Corinthians 5:17 where we read, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." Literally this reads more like, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." It is this new creative act by the Word who became flesh to suffer and die to save his people, that makes his resting from that saving work on the day he rose the reason to church worships on the Lord's Day, that is, Sunday. In fact we find both in the Bible and in the early church writings, that Christians worshiped on the first day, and no where is that practice condemned in the New Testament. Thus, I think there is good reason to rest on the Lord's Day to celebrate the finished work of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who rose on that day finishing his work salvation.
Here is a much more detailed study of the Sabbath. Click Here!
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