A Pirate Christian's Guide to the Old Testament: The Sabbath

Welcome to another installment of Fighting for the Faith. My name is Chris Roseborough. I am your servant in Jesus Christ. This is the channel that compares what people are saying in the name of God to the Word of God.

We're gonna chalk up this installment of Fighting for the Faith in our series, A Pirate Christian's Guide to Understanding the Old Testament. And we're gonna address a question that has come up frequently in the questions in our live streams on our premieres, and one that I promised I would do an entire episode on, and so that is that we're fulfilling our word here.

We're gonna be talking about the Sabbath. Are Christians required to keep the Sabbath? You'll note that the requirement of the Sabbath comes up in the Ten Commandments. And so there's a lot of confusion out there, especially due to the fact that there's a resurgence of Judaizing with invisible Christianity by people who call themselves part of the Hebrew Roots Movement.

You know, they say, they talk about, oh, we're returning Christianity to its Hebrew roots. But here's the thing. Scripture is very clear, if you'll listen to it, about what our relationship is to the Sabbath, to the festivals, to the new moon things, as well as circumcision.

And where the Judaizers, the modern-day Judaizers in the Hebrew Roots Movement go wrong is in not paying attention to what Scripture says regarding our relationship as Christians to the Mosaic Covenant and its festivals and feast days, including the Sabbath, but they also ignore the fact that Hebrews 4 tells us explicitly what the Sabbath was about.

So all of that being said, if you want to grab a Bible, you can. If not, you can follow along. I'm gonna seem like I'm gonna ramble here for a little bit, and let me get my desktop up, and let's pull that up.

And what we're gonna do is we're going to first take a look at the Mosaic Covenant requirements for keeping the Sabbath. And I'm gonna make this claim. Nobody today is keeping the Sabbath. Nobody. Not the Seventh-day Adventists, not the Hebrew Roots people, nobody.

Now, in the midst of that, I'm also gonna say something really kind of scandalous, and that is that I keep the Sabbath perfectly. You just said nobody's keeping it. I know, but you're gonna understand what I mean by that when we're all done.

All of that being said, the question I have on the table here is, are you a Sabbath keeper or a Sabbath breaker? Now, I need to make a point, and that is that there are some who basically argue that the requirements regarding the Sabbath have to do with the day that we have church, and where they base that on is a commandment in the Mosaic Covenant in the book of Leviticus chapter 23.

And so we're gonna note here, here's what it says, Yahweh spoke to Moses saying, speak to the people of Israel, say to them, these are the appointed feasts of Yahweh that you shall proclaim as holy convocations.

So these are gatherings when people are to worship, and they are my appointed feasts. Now, the Sabbath comes up first, and I'm gonna point out other commandments, make it clear, that it's the Levites who have to teach Israel.

So my question immediately is, if you think that this is a requirement to worship on a particular day, my question to you is, is your pastor a Levite? Because the Levites are the ones tasked with teaching Israel, just saying.

But so Leviticus 23 .3 says, six days shall work be done, but on the seventh is a Sabbath of solemn rest, and we're gonna come to this concept here. Solemn rest. A holy convocation, you shall do no work, it's a Sabbath to Yahweh in all of your dwelling places.

So they say, see here, this was the day when God called a holy convocation, it was on Saturday, so if you worship on Sunday, you're sinning. Only if you think we're bound by the rules of the Mosaic Covenant, but Colossians 2 makes it clear that we're not, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

So let me come back to my article, and by the way, we're gonna put a link to this article from May 14th, 2014, down in the description, and then we're gonna just ask the question, are you a Sabbath keeper or a Sabbath breaker?

And somebody says, well I'm in the Hebrew Roots Movement, I'm a Sabbath keeper, I keep the Sabbath, and you Roseboro are teaching people to disobey the Sabbath, you're evil. No, no, no, wait a second here.

You're not a Sabbath keeper unless you keep all the requirements that Torah lays down for the Sabbath, and all of them, not some of them. You don't get to hometown buffet this and sit there and say, well I keep the Sabbath because I worship on Saturday.

Mmm, so much more than that. So in this article, I make the point, the Torah and the Torah only defines what it means to keep or to break the Sabbath, and here's what it teaches. Sabbath must be observed from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday, period.

Alright, so from evening to evening shall you keep your Sabbath. So my question for you is, those of you who are in the Hebrew Roots Movement and you're in Anchorage, Alaska, and the sun goes down on a Friday night in the winter, and you're not gonna see the sun for a while, are you sure to call into your boss and say, sorry, can't do any work?

It's a Sabbath. How long is the Sabbath? Well, when the sun comes back up, I can finally do it again. No. So you're gonna note here, the rule is, it's from sunset to sunset, period. That's your time, and no work can be done on the Sabbath.

It is wholly a day of rest. No work, no cooking, no laundry, no work can be done. Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a day of solemn, and notice the word, rest. We'll talk about that in a minute.

Rest wholly to the Lord. Now, if you turn your furnace on during the winter on the Sabbath, if you turn your furnace on in the winter during this, on the Sabbath, you're a Sabbath-breaker. So you shall kindle no fire, no fire, in all your dwelling places on the Sabbath day.

But I live in North Dakota, man. It gets really cold here starting in October. So, yeah, yeah. So if your furnace kicks on anytime from Friday at sunset to Saturday at sunset, you're a Sabbath-breaker.

No way around it. Now, you maybe need to go out and buy one of those Sabbath-compliant furnaces, which makes sure that the fire is always on. Yeah, otherwise, well, if you don't do that, then you're a Sabbath-breaker.

And then, you know, what if you turn your stove on on a Saturday, huh? Yeah, because you want to boil some water for, you know, for some tea. What then? Well, you're a Sabbath-breaker. If you don't have a Sabbath-compliant stove.

So all you Sabbath-keepers out there, this is more than just making sure that you worship on Saturday. So if you bake or boil food on the Sabbath, you're a Sabbath-breaker. And Exodus 16 says, on the sixth day, they gathered twice as much bread, two omers each, and all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses.

He said to them, this is what Yahweh has commanded. Tomorrow's a solemn day of, watch the word, rest. That's the important word, by the way. Holy Sabbath to Yahweh. Bake what you will bake, boil what you will boil, and all that's left over lay aside to be kept until the morning.

No cooking on the Sabbath. By the way, if you travel far from your home on a Sabbath, you're a Sabbath-breaker. So my question for you, Sabbath-keepers out there, how far away is your church or your meeting hall, where your congregation is?

Is it outside the approved limit as far as how far you can travel on a Saturday? Yeah, I just got to ask, because Scripture says in Exodus 16, remain each of you in his place, let no one go outside of his place on the seventh day.

Yeah, and then also, you don't keep the Sabbath unless you enforce it with the death penalty. This is true. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath, they shall be put to death. So my question for you, you Sabbath-keepers out there, are you killing, righteously killing all the Sabbath-breakers in your congregation?

Yeah, because if you're not, you're just hometown buffeting the regulations regarding...this is just lip service to the Sabbath. If you're not actually stoning to death those who are breaking the Sabbath among your congregation, you're not Sabbath-keepers at all.

You're just hometown buffeting and picking and choosing which commandments regarding the Sabbath you are going to keep. And this is also reinforced in Numbers 15. There was some guy who gathered sticks on the Sabbath.

Yeah, so while the people of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath. And those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation.

They put him in custody because it had not been clear what should be done to him. So Yahweh said to Moses, the man shall be put to death, and all the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp.

Yeah, so if you're not killing your Sabbath-breakers among you, yeah, you're not really Sabbath-keepers. You don't really mean it. And then also, how many sacrifices are you offering? Are you offering the proper sacrifices on the Sabbath?

Because if you're not, you're not really a Sabbath-keeper. Numbers 28, 9, and 10 says, on the Sabbath day, two male lambs a year old without blemish, two tenths of an ephah, a fine flour for a grain offering mixed with oil and its drink offering.

This is the burnt offering every Sabbath besides the regular burnt offering and its drink offering. So if you're not sacrificing two male lambs every Sabbath, you're a Sabbath-breaker. Don't tell me that you're keeping the Sabbath.

You're not. You're not obeying what Torah says regarding the Sabbath. In fact, that's kind of the point. So based on how the Torah, not me, how the Torah defines what it means to keep the Sabbath, who can say that they're keeping the Sabbath today?

Not even the Jews in Israel can say that. Not a single one of them. So what do we make of that then? What are we to do? And by the way, like I said, I'll put a link to this in the description down below.

Answer. Let the Bible tell you what, as Christians, we are to do with the Sabbath. So we're gonna take a look at Colossians chapter 2, specifically verses 16 and 17, but I want to show you the context here so you can see what's going on, plus it gives me an opportunity to preach the gospel again, which is always fun.

Alright, so here's what Paul says to the Christians at the Church of Colossae in Colossians chapter 2. See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.

For in Christ the whole fullness of the deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him who is the head of all rule and authority. In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands.

Now note what Paul's saying there. He's saying that every Christian, whether Jew or Gentile, has been circumcised, not in the flesh, but their heart has been circumcised by the hand of Christ, where? In the waters of baptism.

That's what he's saying here. So you're gonna note, the Old Testament type and shadow of circumcision gives way to the substance in the new covenant, which is what? Baptism. Circumcision of the old, baptism in the new.

That's how this works. This is what he's saying. So in him you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by the putting off of the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism.

There it is. So baptism is the new covenant's circumcision. Christ himself is doing the work. So in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead, and you who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God has made you alive together with him, with Christ, having forgiven us all of our trespasses.

All of our trespasses, all of our sins are forgiven in Christ. How did he do this? By canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.

See, we are saved by grace, through faith. So he has then thus disarmed the rulers and authorities, put them to open shame by triumphing over them in him. Now the most important part, because the New Testament explicitly tells us what's going on in the Mosaic Covenant regarding festivals like the Passover, the New Moon celebrations, as well as the Sabbath, and watch what the Holy Spirit tells us through the Apostle Paul.

Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink with regard to a festival, or a new moon, or a Sabbath. So note, the Sabbath is in the list. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.

The Sabbath is a shadow. The substance belongs to Christ. In the Greek, it says haestenskia, these are a shadow, tom melon, of the things coming, but teda, the body is Christ's. So the Sabbath is a shadow, the body casting the shadow is Jesus.

So the Sabbath itself, the Passover, the New Moons, all of them, they are a type and shadow, the substance, the body belongs to Christ. So that means in the Ten Commandments, there is a commandment that is a shadow.

And by the way, you got to keep this commandment perfectly if you're gonna be saved. Like I said, I keep the Sabbath perfectly. You say, how you doing it, Rose, bro? You just said nobody's keeping it.

Answer, Hebrews 4 tells us how to put this all together, okay? So think back. Book of Genesis chapter 1, God creates the heavens and the earth, does it in six days, speaks it all into existence. On the seventh day, God did what?

He rested, right? And have you ever read through Genesis and go, I wonder what day of the week it was when Adam and Eve fell? Answer, it was in the Sabbath. They fell the same day? The Sabbath was the state of humanity in the universe, in the earth, in the new creation, in the old, well actually in the original creation, all right?

It was the day of the unending Sabbath. And man doesn't have to work until after man falls. Then he has to produce food by the sweat of his brow, by toiling and things like that. The toil and the work that we find ourselves in, this is part of the curse.

And what is promised is in eternal life, it's called rest, eternal rest, God's rest. So there's a Sabbath coming and we can enter into that rest now by grace through faith. So watch what Hebrews does with the Sabbath because it takes the shadow and then properly tells us how to understand that shadow now in the New Testament.

So therefore, while the promise of entering his rest, God's rest, still stands, let us fear lest any of us should seem to have failed to reach it. Reach what? God's rest. For good news came to us, justice to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them because they were not united by faith with those who listened.

For we who have believed have entered that rest, as he has said, as I swore in my wrath, they shall never enter my rest. You see, Christians who are saved by grace, through faith, apart from works, have entered into God's rest, the new eternal Sabbath.

Although his works were finished from the foundation of the world, for he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way, and God rested on the seventh day from all of his works. And again, in this passage, he said, they shall not enter my rest.

So note here, Hebrews 4, 5 clearly takes the imagery of the Sabbath day and then connects it to the eternal rest that is salvation. And they shall never enter my rest, since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received good news failed to enter because of disobedience.

Again, he appoints a certain day, today, saying through David, so long afterwards in the words already quoted, today if you hear his voice do not harden your heart. For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on.

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. So remember the Sabbath day, keep it holy. Oh, this is most certainly an important commandment, but that Old Testament command in the Ten Commandments was a shadow pointing to what?

The eternal rest that comes by salvation, by grace, through faith, apart from works, and by not working for your salvation, you enter in to the eternal rest of Christ. That's the idea. The Sabbath of the Old Testament is the type in shadow, the fulfillment is the eternal rest, eternal rest, salvation given as a gift without works.

If you work for it, you don't get it. You get the idea. So that's what this all means, and there's a proper understanding biblically of understanding what is a Christian's relationship to the Sabbath?

Oh, you got to keep it perfectly, and I keep the Sabbath perfectly. Why? Because I refuse to work, even lift a single finger from my salvation, burn a single calorie for it, and by doing so, entrusting that it's given to me by grace through faith apart from works, I have it, and I've entered into it, and all who have entered into God's rest have do so apart from works.

That's the idea. All right, now I promised you that we're gonna make a couple of other things available. In the I've put a link to a church father, Eusebius, and I've named this document Torah Fulfilled, Why Christians Don't Keep the Sabbath and Other Mosaic Laws.

This is me reproducing a document from the church fathers called the Demonstratio Evangelica from Eusebius, the son of Pamphilius, and this talks then about these ideas of types and shadows, and you can see how the Christians understood the Sabbath, circumcision, and other things like that.

And I'll go a little farther back than that, and I'll also put in a link here to the epistle of Barnabas, who was a Jew. He used to travel with the Apostle Paul. You familiar with this guy? And this is his epistle written late in the first century, where he also talks about these same themes, and why Christians are not bound by the commandments of the Mosaic Covenant, especially Sabbath keeping, circumcision, and things like that.

So hopefully you found that helpful. So if you found all this helpful, all the information on how you can support us is down below in the description, and let me show you this here. I'm going to do this.

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So, until next time then, may God richly bless you in the grace and mercy won by Jesus Christ and His vicarious death on the cross, for all of your sins. Amen.