This is the first chapter of Dale Ratzlaff’s book, Sabbath In Christ. For the next 27 weeks we will be posting a chapter each Friday from this important book until the whole book is available online. Some have stated that this is the most easily understood book on the subject of the Sabbath in the context of the new covenant.
Time and again throughout the history of the Christian church, controversy has arisen over the importance of the Sabbath. Belief concerning the Sabbath varies considerably. There are almost as many interpretations of the Sabbath as there are shades of gray.
Although it is a great oversimplification, Sabbath belief can be divided into three main categories. First, there are those who believe Sunday is the Sabbath of the New Testament. They often refer to it as the Lord’s Day and see it as a special day set aside for religious service. Those in this group feel free to use “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Ex. 20:8), in admonishing Christians to observe the Sabbath, or the Lord’s Day. Opinion regarding appropriate Sabbath behavior varies widely within this group. Some will not engage in regular employment on Sunday and try to keep at least some of the biblical rules for Sabbath observance.1 We will refer to this group as holding the Transfer/Modification motif. Transfer, in that the Seventh-day Sabbath has been transferred to Sunday; Modification, in that the rules for Sabbath keeping have been modified.
The second motif of Sabbath understanding we will call Reformation/Continuation. Reformation, in the sense of needing to restore the Seventh-day Sabbath of the Fourth Commandment; Continuation, in that the Seventh-day Sabbath is to continue into the new covenant, and even the world made new. In this group are those who believe Saturday is the true, biblical Sabbath and who continue to worship on the seventh day. There is also a wide variety of understanding within this group. Some hold the seventh day as the preferred day of worship but see no reason to try to persuade other Christian groups to observe the seventh day.2 On the other end of the spectrum are those who worship on the seventh day and teach the seventh-day Sabbath will be God’s final test of loyalty for all Christians living in the last days before the second coming of Christ.3 They believe those who worship on Sunday will, in the final days, receive the mark of the beast4 and the resulting wrath of God described in these words,
If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or upon his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb (Rev. 14:9,10).
A third motif of Sabbath understanding we will call Fulfillment/ Transformation. Fulfillment, in that the Seventh-day Sabbath rest of the Old Testament has met its fulfillment in Christ; Transformation, in that the weekly Sabbath rest of the Fourth Commandment has been transformed into the rest of grace offered in the new covenant gospel of Christ. This motif we will refer to as “Sabbath in Christ.” Those who hold this third view are Christians who believe the Sabbath as a special day no longer exists. They believe it is important to have a time of Christian worship but the day on which it takes place is unimportant. Usually, however, these people worship on Sunday and usually call it the Lord’s Day, but do not hold it necessarily as a sacred day to be reverenced as do Sabbath keepers. They see the old covenant Sabbath, as all the other old covenant ceremonies, as a shadow of Christ who brings the true rest for the soul.
We can immediately see the need for an accurate, biblical understanding of this subject. If Sabbath observance is going to be the final test in the last days before the coming of Christ, then we ought to make sure we carefully observe the Sabbath. Certainly none of us wants to experience the wrath of God. If we are going to observe the Sabbath then we ought to find out for sure upon which day it is to be kept. However, if the day of Sabbath observanceor the observance itselfis unimportant, then we ought to have sound, biblical evidence to support our position. Then, if there is evidence for this view, we need to focus our attention on the gospel of Christ.
Why not do a thorough study of the Sabbath?
It is never wrong to study the foundation of our faith. Faith must be based upon a foundation of evidence; otherwise faith is folly. If the foundation is trustworthy, a thorough examination of it will only increase our faith. However, if, after a thorough examination of the biblical evidence, it is found that the timbers of our faith foundation are resting on nothing but damp earth and sand, then something ought to be done about it quickly, before the floods of the last days destroy our spiritual home.
Why not keep the fourth commandment?
While we would not insist that the mainstream of Christianity is always right in all facets of its theology, nevertheless the fact that so many sincere Christians throughout history have not observed the seventh-day Sabbath ought to cause us to examine their biblical reasons for not doing so. On the other hand, most Christians accept, believe in, and teach that the Ten Commandments are binding upon the Christian, yet they do not observe the fourth. Why?
Is the Sabbath moral or ritual?
The reformation/continuation school of thought argues that the Sabbath is a moral law and therefore it should be given the same weight as all moral laws. They point out that the Sabbath com- mandment is in the heart of the Ten Commandments and deserves equal, if not paramount, importance. Those who hold the “Sabbath in Christ” view believe that the Sabbath is a ritual law pointing forward to Christ. If this view is correct then why does the Sabbath find itself in the very heart of the Ten Commandments associated with many moral laws?
How did Jesus relate to the Mosaic Laws?
Did Jesus keep the letter of the biblical law? Did He always keep the Sabbath? If not, why? And if not, how can He be our Savior if He did not perfectly keep the law? If He did perfectly keep the Sabbath, then is Sabbath observance part of the righteousness that is imputed to the Christian who believes in Christ? If so, then should Sabbath observance be part of the sanctified life of the Christian? Was there a difference in the way Jesus related to the moral laws of the Mosaic code from the way He treated the ritual laws? If there is a difference then what light will this shed on our study of the Sabbath?
How should one observe the Sabbath?
If we are going to observe the Sabbath, whether it be on the seventh day or on the first day, how is it to be kept? Are we to observe the Sabbath according to Old Testament guidelines? If we did, most of us would be under condemnationand some would say, justly so. If Sabbath observance is derived from the New Testament, there are few, if any, regulations to govern Sabbath behavior. Are we safe to take Jesus as our guide and example in Sabbath keeping while emulation of other acts of Jesus are condemned by the New Testament? For example, Jesus was born “under law” (Gal. 4:4). He was circumcised as prescribed by the law (Lk. 2:21), yet Paul states, “if you receive circumcision Christ will be of no benefit to you” (Gal. 5:2). As a Jew, Jesus participated in many of the other religious convocations and celebrations of the old covenant. What guidelines do we use if we make the example of Jesus normative for Christian life?
Does Sabbath observance bring Christian unity?
Some Sabbath keepers believe the Sabbath is the uniting force among God’s true people. However, with such a wide variety of belief and practice relative to the Sabbath, how is this unity achieved? How the Sabbath is observed varies widely even among those of the same denomination. Does the history of the Christian church, or Sabbath-keeping denominational history for that matter, demonstrate the uniting influence of the Sabbath?
Does the Sabbath promote gospel clarity?
Some Christians believe Sabbath keepers allow the importance of the Sabbath to overshadow the gospel of Christ. On the other hand, some Sabbath keepers have charged non-Sabbath keepers with neglecting an important part of Christian duty designed to strengthen real godliness and they see the Sabbath as a vehicle for a better understanding of the gospel. Which is true?
It was seeking definitive answers to these and other questions that formed the basis of the Sabbath study out of which this book was born.
The Approach
How is a study of the Sabbath to be approached? Most of us come to this study with at least some previous understanding and prejudice. To do a thorough, objective study requires a great deal of discipline, commitment and, yes, even risk.
A highly developed and well-organized belief system can often be the most dangerous blinder to truth. We need only to look at history to see this demonstrated time and again. Jesus told His disciples about His imminent death, but they were unable to comprehend what He said because it did not fit within their theological, or should I say, political, framework.
Copernicus taught that the sun, not the earth, was at the center of the solar system. But this concept was not readily accepted because it did not fit within the approved teachings of the day.
Galileo met with the same resistance to his discovery of truth. He could demonstrate his findings by observable evidence. But when he did this, it often only infuriated those who watched. For a person of that day to accept the teachings of Copernicus or Galileo meant that his whole belief system came tumbling down. Many of the religious leaders felt it was emotionally easier to hang on to the accepted teachings of the time, even if these teachings did have some problems, than to acknowledge new factual evidence which threatened their world view.
For us to entertain the idea that our own belief system may be wrong brings considerable insecurity. People have gone to great lengths to defend the indefensible in order to safely preserve what they considered to be “truth.”
Those seeking truth must have a certain reverence for the evidence. The Bereans were said to be
…more noble-minded…for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily, to see whether these things were so (Acts 17:11).
One who is honestly studying a doctrine must give serious consideration to the evidence that does not fit his belief system. He must be willing, if necessary, to humbly take apart his system of theology and put it back together again to fit the biblical evidence. This is not an easy task. It does, however, bring a great amount of confidence and peace when it is accomplished.
Genuine truth has nothing to fear from searching investigation. Therefore, as we begin this study, let us have a certain reverence for the evidence, let us seriously consider any evidence which does not fit our understanding of “truth,” and let us humbly press on in our study eagerly awaiting the opportunity to understand what the Bible teaches about the Sabbath and what it means to the Christian.†
Endnotes
- “The Sabbath [in reference to Sunday] is to be sanctified by a holy resting all that day, even from such worldly employments and recreations as are lawful on other days; and spending the whole time in the public and private exercises of God’s worship, except so much as is to be taken up in the works of necessity and mercy.” Answer 60, of the Westminster Shorter Catechism as quoted in D.A Carson, From Sabbath to Lord’s Day, (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI, 1982), pp. 326, 338.
- From my personal conversations with Seventh-day Church of God pastors.
- This is the historic teaching of Seventh-day Adventist church.
- “The sign, or seal, of God is revealed in the observance of the seventh-day Sabbath, the Lord’s memorial of creation. ‘The Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 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.’ Exodus 31:12, 13. Here the Sabbath is clearly designated as a sign between God and His people. The mark of the beast is the opposite of the observance of the first day of the week. This mark distinguishes those who acknowledge the supremacy of the papal authority from those who acknowledge the authority of God.” Ellen G. White, Testimonies to the Church, Vol. 8, p. 117. Author’s note: Ellen G. White is considered by Seventh-day Adventists to have manifested the true gift of prophecy. She is seen as a “messenger of God” and “…her writings are a continuing and authoritative source of truth….” The Fundamental Beliefs of Seventh-day Adventists, No. 18, “The Gift of Prophecy”.
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