Isaiah 58:13 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.
Oh Friends, this is a somewhat touchy subject, in the sense that different religions celebrate the Sabbath on different days. However, I don’t think the particular day matters as much as actually observing a day of the Lord; a holy day, in which we stop doing our own things and honour Him. Sadly, it’s one of the many areas of dissension between Christians. Most believers though seem to celebrate the Sabbath between Friday and Sunday evenings. So whatever day your religion dictates, just make sure you do your godly duty on that day. Now some people don’t consider the Sabbath important, but more an outdated regimen, best left in the annals of antiquity. But Friends that thinking is so wrong, for the Lord placed great emphasis on it throughout His Word, and it’s one of the reasons why we’re suffering today, for not keeping the Sabbath leads to ungodliness. At the very beginning, the Lord gave it to the Israelites as a sign, when He said to Moses: ‘Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you…Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall be put to death…the children of Israel shall observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.’ (Ex.31:13,15-17) Oh that says it all right there Friends. We’re supposed to work six days, then honour the Lord our God on the seventh. Now the part about putting to death anyone who did not obey might have been possible in a small agrarian society thousands of years ago, but in our modern manufacturing system, it’s virtually impossible to shut down everything for twenty four hours then start it back up again. Some things just need to run 24/7. And our God understands that. But that’s no excuse for the mockery some of us make of the Sabbath, and in no way does it detract from our responsibility to celebrate it. In a godly society, ways and means will be found for most people to celebrate it. But since our society has moved away from godliness, it certainly causes a problem. I guess in that sense it might be a good thing that we all don’t celebrate it on the same day, meaning that the shut down time will be spread over say three days rather than one, hopefully enabling more people to fellowship, giving God much deserved thanks and praise. And if we continue this logic, then in a godly society, like ours (smile) the Lord’s name will be constantly praised, honoured and glorified from Friday to Sunday evenings in His houses of worship. So more people will be celebrating the Lord’s Sabbath, giving Him above average praise over a period of three days, not just one. ‘Glory Hallelujah!’ Oh Friends, I hope this is not all wishful thinking on my part, because the Sabbath is a serious occasion and should be adhered to as closely as possible. It’s so important that Moses reiterated it to his people in Exodus 35:2-3. Isaiah reminds them of its importance too in Chapter 56:1-7. He even included the sons of strangers, foreigners and eunuchs. ‘Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer…for mine house shall be called a house of prayer for all people.’ (Isa.56:7) Jeremiah warned them too about keeping the Sabbath; (Jer.17:21-27) and detailing the punishment for not doing it: ‘then I will kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.’ (Jer.17:27) And we all know that our God doesn’t make idle promises, so we should take His day as seriously as He does, and no doubt we’re feeling some of His wrath now. It doesn’t mean we can’t have fun or enjoy ourselves, but the main focus on whatever day we choose to celebrate the Sabbath, should be the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Our thoughts should be on the Most Wonderful Being in the Universe as we congregate to celebrate His Holy Majesty. Joyful thanks and praise should usher forth from our hearts and mouths to the One who so LOVINGLY moulded us from a handful of dirt, then tenderly breathed life into our bodies, and has been guiding, guarding and providing for us ever since. On that basis, is it too much to ask that His supreme handiwork set aside one day in seven to honour Him? Certainly not my people! And because our God believes in righteousness and justice, wherein He punishes for disobedience, He also offers rewards for faithfully observing His day. ‘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.’ (Isa.58:14) And since He faithfully keeps His promises, if we obey, we’ll surely have cause to celebrate. Ah mih people, it’s not an easy route we’ve chosen, but it’s the best there is. Henceforth, let’s place more emphasis on the Sabbath, not as a day of rigid prayer, but one of joyful worship, fellowship and praise. That way we can get more people into the houses of worship each week and start turning this evil juggernaut back around to a godly, righteous society. Remember, time is of the essence, so please get a move on NOW! Much LOVE!…machines need occasional servicing…and so do humans…but more often…weekly…
Oh Friends, this is a somewhat touchy subject, in the sense that different religions celebrate the Sabbath on different days. However, I don’t think the particular day matters as much as actually observing a day of the Lord; a holy day, in which we stop doing our own things and honour Him. Sadly, it’s one of the many areas of dissension between Christians. Most believers though seem to celebrate the Sabbath between Friday and Sunday evenings. So whatever day your religion dictates, just make sure you do your godly duty on that day. Now some people don’t consider the Sabbath important, but more an outdated regimen, best left in the annals of antiquity. But Friends that thinking is so wrong, for the Lord placed great emphasis on it throughout His Word, and it’s one of the reasons why we’re suffering today, for not keeping the Sabbath leads to ungodliness. At the very beginning, the Lord gave it to the Israelites as a sign, when He said to Moses: ‘Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you…Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall be put to death…the children of Israel shall observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.’ (Ex.31:13,15-17) Oh that says it all right there Friends. We’re supposed to work six days, then honour the Lord our God on the seventh. Now the part about putting to death anyone who did not obey might have been possible in a small agrarian society thousands of years ago, but in our modern manufacturing system, it’s virtually impossible to shut down everything for twenty four hours then start it back up again. Some things just need to run 24/7. And our God understands that. But that’s no excuse for the mockery some of us make of the Sabbath, and in no way does it detract from our responsibility to celebrate it. In a godly society, ways and means will be found for most people to celebrate it. But since our society has moved away from godliness, it certainly causes a problem. I guess in that sense it might be a good thing that we all don’t celebrate it on the same day, meaning that the shut down time will be spread over say three days rather than one, hopefully enabling more people to fellowship, giving God much deserved thanks and praise. And if we continue this logic, then in a godly society, like ours (smile) the Lord’s name will be constantly praised, honoured and glorified from Friday to Sunday evenings in His houses of worship. So more people will be celebrating the Lord’s Sabbath, giving Him above average praise over a period of three days, not just one. ‘Glory Hallelujah!’ Oh Friends, I hope this is not all wishful thinking on my part, because the Sabbath is a serious occasion and should be adhered to as closely as possible. It’s so important that Moses reiterated it to his people in Exodus 35:2-3. Isaiah reminds them of its importance too in Chapter 56:1-7. He even included the sons of strangers, foreigners and eunuchs. ‘Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer…for mine house shall be called a house of prayer for all people.’ (Isa.56:7) Jeremiah warned them too about keeping the Sabbath; (Jer.17:21-27) and detailing the punishment for not doing it: ‘then I will kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.’ (Jer.17:27) And we all know that our God doesn’t make idle promises, so we should take His day as seriously as He does, and no doubt we’re feeling some of His wrath now. It doesn’t mean we can’t have fun or enjoy ourselves, but the main focus on whatever day we choose to celebrate the Sabbath, should be the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Our thoughts should be on the Most Wonderful Being in the Universe as we congregate to celebrate His Holy Majesty. Joyful thanks and praise should usher forth from our hearts and mouths to the One who so LOVINGLY moulded us from a handful of dirt, then tenderly breathed life into our bodies, and has been guiding, guarding and providing for us ever since. On that basis, is it too much to ask that His supreme handiwork set aside one day in seven to honour Him? Certainly not my people! And because our God believes in righteousness and justice, wherein He punishes for disobedience, He also offers rewards for faithfully observing His day. ‘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.’ (Isa.58:14) And since He faithfully keeps His promises, if we obey, we’ll surely have cause to celebrate. Ah mih people, it’s not an easy route we’ve chosen, but it’s the best there is. Henceforth, let’s place more emphasis on the Sabbath, not as a day of rigid prayer, but one of joyful worship, fellowship and praise. That way we can get more people into the houses of worship each week and start turning this evil juggernaut back around to a godly, righteous society. Remember, time is of the essence, so please get a move on NOW! Much LOVE!…machines need occasional servicing…and so do humans…but more often…weekly…
SCRIP-BITS 