What is the Purpose of the Sabbath?

[Romans922]

Many people give different purposes? So what are they?

The goal is to get to the bottom of what does it mean to Rest. And one can only understand what it means to rest, if one knows what the Purposes of the Sabbath, the Lord's Day, are. That way a person can ask, 'Is what I am doing serving to accomplish the purpose of the Lord's Day?'

Pipa gives three purposes of God's rest at Creation on the seventh day: 1) He ceased from His work of creation; 2) He refreshed Himself by the contemplation of that finished work of creation; and 3) He pledged the rest of eternal life.


What do you guys say?

 

[jwithnell]

The preface for the 10-commandments is telling, particularly for the 4th -- that our God brought us out of slavery. We will either live under the bonds of sin, the world, others expectations, etc., or we will live as slaves to the God who designed us and made us in His own image. It seems that the more freedoms we enjoy as a culture, the more opportunity we have to truly set aside one day in seven to glorify God. Many in the first-century church would not have had this opportunity, certainly not on the first day of the week.

Plus, I think we should think in terms of the blessings of the 4th commandment we receive now as well as in the future. We have this opportunity now for fellowship with God and with other believers, but it is tainted by our own sin and the possible restrictions of our culture. (Even in the US, I've heard of companies that have required employees to sign agreements that they will work weekends if scheduled.) We also look forward to our eternal rest where we will be able to glorify Christ eternally ...

 

[Scott1]

I think the two places that give us the Fourth Commandment, Exodus and Deuteronomy, give us a general answer.

Exodus is based on (new) creation. Deuteronomy is based on redemption. So, at its heart, the purpose reflects on creation and redemption.

 

[Confessor]

In The Christ of the Covenants, Robertson makes the point that in the Old Covenant, the Sabbath was on the seventh day to represent looking forward to redemption (work looking forward to rest), while in the New Covenant the Sabbath was on the first day to represent an already-fulfilled redemption.

 

[VirginiaHuguenot]

The purpose of the Sabbath is not rest primarily, it is worship; we rest from our lawful labors so that we might set apart the day as holy, consecrated unto him, for worship, in obedience to his commandment.

 

[Rev. Todd Ruddell]

I believe we miss the point when we say that the Sabbath means "rest" in the modern understanding of that word. It really ought to be understood as "respite"--that is, an interruption to the regular activities of the other days of the week, for other activities of a religious or holy nature. There are many who believe that the Sabbath day is "their day" to "rest", and then go on to do what the Larger Catechism forbids as "profaning the day by idleness" (LC 119). Our Lord, however, "challenges as special propriety on that day" (LC 120) that is, He claims it as His own, and tells us not to trample on what is His by "speaking our own words, doing our own ways, and finding our own pleasure". (Isaiah 58.13ff)

When Christ declared that the Sabbath was made for man, He taught us that our spiritual health depended on having one whole day in seven for our instruction in His Word, for praise, prayer, partaking of the sacraments, for Godly, spiritual edification and conversation, etc. These things are God's gifts "for" us--that is, for the health of our souls. When we call it a day of "rest" and treat it as "our day to rest" we impoverish ourselves of the spiritual health and well being the Lord has for us in the Sabbath Day.

 

[Grace Alone]

Our pastor was preaching on Joshua 1:10-18 today and the title of the sermon was "Rest: Then, Now, and Forever". He talked about the Sabbath of the OT and the rest in the Promised Land. Then he went on to the rest we have in the completed work of Christ. And we look forward to the ultimate Sabbath rest: Heaven.

What I really grasped from the sermon is that looking for a list of do's and don'ts for the Lord's Day is not the right approach (although I always wanted a list so I could be sure I was following them!). He favors the view that we set aside that day to worship and focus on the Lord and our future rest. I think proper observance of the Lord's Day is 100% heart attitude. Just making a list of all the things you won't do on that day is more like the approach of the Pharisees. But if we set our hearts and mind on our Lord, then we should have no greater desire than to set aside a day where He is the primary focus of our affections.

 

[JBaldwin]

Our pastor was preaching on Joshua 1:10-18 today and the title of the sermon was "Rest: Then, Now, and Forever". He talked about the Sabbath of the OT and the rest in the Promised Land. Then he went on to the rest we have in the completed work of Christ. And we look forward to the ultimate Sabbath rest: Heaven.

What I really grasped from the sermon is that looking for a list of do's and don'ts for the Lord's Day is not the right approach (although I always wanted a list so I could be sure I was following them!). He favors the view that we set aside that day to worship and focus on the Lord and our future rest. I think proper observance of the Lord's Day is 100% heart attitude. Just making a list of all the things you won't do on that day is more like the approach of the Pharisees. But if we set our hearts and mind on our Lord, then we should have no greater desire than to set aside a day where He is the primary focus of our affections.

These were some of the my thoughts as well, Janis. We are going through Genesis right now, and today we covered the first part of Genesis 3. One of the points the pastor made is that the serpent convinced Eve that God is not good. This false idea is at the base of all our sin. We don't believe God is good, we know we have to obey Him, so our obedience becomes a weary list of do's and don'ts rather than a heart attitude (as you put so well).

Sabbath is a day where we can focus on the goodness of our God (and all the other wonderful aspects of His nature). Or put another way, it is a day where we can enjoy and glorify God and contemplate what it will be like to enjoy and glorify Him forever.

 

[Ex Nihilo]

Our pastor was preaching on Joshua 1:10-18 today and the title of the sermon was "Rest: Then, Now, and Forever". He talked about the Sabbath of the OT and the rest in the Promised Land. Then he went on to the rest we have in the completed work of Christ. And we look forward to the ultimate Sabbath rest: Heaven.

What I really grasped from the sermon is that looking for a list of do's and don'ts for the Lord's Day is not the right approach (although I always wanted a list so I could be sure I was following them!). He favors the view that we set aside that day to worship and focus on the Lord and our future rest. I think proper observance of the Lord's Day is 100% heart attitude. Just making a list of all the things you won't do on that day is more like the approach of the Pharisees. But if we set our hearts and mind on our Lord, then we should have no greater desire than to set aside a day where He is the primary focus of our affections.

I agree, but I think that reflecting on what is and is not acceptable helps to test the attitude of the heart.

 

[Poimen]

Heidelberg Catechism, Q&A 103

What does God require in the fourth Commandment?

In the first place, God wills that the ministry of the Gospel and schools be maintained, and that I, especially on the day of rest, diligently attend church to learn the Word of God, to use the holy sacraments, to call publicly upon the Lord, and to give Christian alms. In the second place, that all the days of my life I rest from my evil works, allow the Lord to work in me by His Spirit, and thus begin in this life the everlasting sabbath.

 

[Grace Alone]

Yes, that is true about reflecting on what is acceptable. He used the example of watching a race on TV and asking ourselves the question, are we reflecting on the Lord as we do that? If our minds wander to the secular or worldly things, then we are probably not keeping our focus where it belongs. Not to say I have achieved this, but I have the desire to do so.

 

[JBaldwin]

Our pastor was preaching on Joshua 1:10-18 today and the title of the sermon was "Rest: Then, Now, and Forever". He talked about the Sabbath of the OT and the rest in the Promised Land. Then he went on to the rest we have in the completed work of Christ. And we look forward to the ultimate Sabbath rest: Heaven.

What I really grasped from the sermon is that looking for a list of do's and don'ts for the Lord's Day is not the right approach (although I always wanted a list so I could be sure I was following them!). He favors the view that we set aside that day to worship and focus on the Lord and our future rest. I think proper observance of the Lord's Day is 100% heart attitude. Just making a list of all the things you won't do on that day is more like the approach of the Pharisees. But if we set our hearts and mind on our Lord, then we should have no greater desire than to set aside a day where He is the primary focus of our affections.

I agree, but I think that reflecting on what is and is not acceptable helps to test the attitude of the heart.

Isn't that why we study the Word of God? I don't think however that checklists are good when it comes to Christian living. Here's why.

The law was given to teach us, that is, to train us as to what pleases and does not please the Lord. God gave us His Spirit living within us to be our Teacher so that we no longer need the lists of dos and don'ts. The answer then is to walk in the Spirit, and we will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh.

If we are focusing on the Lord, the obedience (even when it comes to the Sabbath) will become a natural outcome of our love for the Lord. The Spirit of God guides us into what is true. Does it mean we throw out the Scriptures? No, but it means that we turn our focus on the Lord, and oddly enough, we find we are obeying the rules without even thinking about it, because it's what we really want to do.

 

[Ex Nihilo]

If we are focusing on the Lord, the obedience (even when it comes to the Sabbath) will become a natural outcome of our love for the Lord. The Spirit of God guides us into what is true. Does it mean we throw out the Scriptures? No, but it means that we turn our focus on the Lord, and oddly enough, we find we are obeying the rules without even thinking about it, because it's what we really want to do.

I think this is true (if imperfectly) for mature Christians, but less mature believers and those who are just beginning to observe the Sabbath can benefit from some guidelines. I agree with you that legalistic checklists that try to account for every possibility are not helpful and take the focus away from the real purpose of the day, which is to reflect on new creation and our freedom from slavery. I am just thinking that some general principles (do not work, devote the day to God -- perhaps a teacher could give practical examples of how to do this?) are very useful. But you are right that a Christian who is meditating on the Word will find this guidance.

 

[Grace Alone]

I will say that as I heard those words spoken this morning, I knew there were people in this relatively new church who had never heard it before. The pastor interjected that he knew there were all kinds of questions going through our minds, but he wanted to focus on the big picture (not his words, but mine). So yes, people will need guidance to see that this really looks like. However the godly example of the leader families would be a good start.