20. The Lord's Day
LD

1. DOES THE LORD HAVE A SPECIAL DAY?

1LD Rev. 1:10 The Lord has a day (this is the only place in the Bible where the phrase "the Lord's day" is found). But Revelation 1:10 doesn't tell us which day is the Lord's Day.

2. WHICH DAY IS THE LORD'S DAY?

2LD Matt. 12:8 Jesus said that He was the Lord of the Sabbath day, so the Lord's day mentioned in Revelation is the Sabbath day.

3. BUT, WHICH DAY IS THE SABBATH DAY?

3LD Ex. 20:8-11 This is the fourth of the ten commandments. In verse 10 God says that "the seventh day is the Sabbath." Since the Sabbath is the Lord's day, then the Lord's day is the 7th day of the week.

4. WHY DOES GOD WANT US TO KEEP THE 7TH DAY?

4LD Ex. 20:11 The reason why the Lord asks us to keep the 7th day is to remind us of His creative power. God created the entire earth in just 6 days, and then He rested and blessed the 7th day.

So the Sabbath is the birthday of the world. We measure birthdays by the year, but God measures the earth’s birthday by the week. On the 7th day of each week we can celebrate the creation of Planet Earth, and in that way we worship God as our Creator.

But we're Christians and we follow Jesus.

5. WHAT DOES JESUS HAVE TO DO WITH CREATION?

5LD John 1:1-3, 10, 14 The Being who is called "the Word" is God, the Creator. But Verse 14 says that "the Word" was made flesh, that He was the only begotten of the Father. The only begotten Son, according to John 3:16, is Jesus. So John is telling us that Jesus is the One who created the world.

The Apostle Paul agreed:

  • Col 1:13-17 For he [God] has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
  • Heb 1:1-3 In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.
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    Jesus Created the world—and the Sabbath. That's why He could say that He was Lord of the Sabbath. (I've emphasized all the words that refer to Jesus by making the type bold.)
          • Mark 2:27, 28 Then he said to them, "The Sabbath was
            made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of
            Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."

    6. DID JESUS KEEP THE SABBATH DURING HIS LIFE ON EARTH?

    6LD Luke 4:16 Jesus' custom was to go to the synagogue on Sabbath—like we would go to church. So, while Jesus was on earth He always kept the seventh-day Sabbath.

    7. BUT DIDN'T JESUS CHANGE THE DAY?

    7LD Heb. 13:8 Jesus never changes. So the Sabbath He made at the end of creation week; the Sabbath He kept while He was on earth, is still on the 7th day. Jesus didn't change it.

    Let's go back to creation.

    8. WHAT ARE 4 THINGS THAT JESUS DID ON THE 7TH DAY OF CREATION?

    8LD Gen. 2:1-3
              1. He acknowledged the fact that He had created the entire
              world in 6 days.
          2. He rested from His creative activity.
          3. He blessed the 7th day.
          4. He sanctified the 7th day (set it apart; made it holy)
              because He Himself had rested on that day.

    9. BUT, WASN'T THE SABBATH SUPPOSED TO BE JUST FOR THE JEWS?

    9LD Mark 2:27 God blessed the 7th day and made it holy for the benefit of all mankind. He made the Sabbath after He made man, to be a continual reminder of man's relationship to God as man's Creator. (In fact the Sabbath was made 2500 years before the Jews came into existence.)
          • After God made Adam and Eve on the sixth day, God
             performed the first marriage service (2:24, 25). On the
             following day, God made the Sabbath. Marriage and the
             Sabbath were both made for the benefit of the entire
             human race. No one would say that marriage was only
             for the Jews. God intended it to be for the blessing for
             all mankind. Just so, God set aside the Sabbath for the
             benefit of every son and daughter of Adam—to the end
             of time.

    EXACTLY WHICH DAY IS THE 7TH DAY?
  • In Bible times there were no names for five of the days of the weeks, only numbers. Two days, however, did have names—the Sabbath, and the day before the Sabbath. We learn about this name because of its use for describing the day on which Jesus died.
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    10. WHAT WAS THE NAME THE JEWS USED FOR THE DAY BEFORE THE SABBATH?

    10LD Mark 15:42-45 The day on which Jesus died was the day before the Sabbath. The Jews called it the Preparation Day.

    11. ON WHICH DAY DID JESUS RISE FROM THE DEAD?

    11LD Mark 16:1, 2 Jesus rose on the 1st day—after "the Sabbath was past."

    12. WHAT ARE THE NAMES OF THESE DAYS IN MODERN TERMINOLOGY?

    12LD Luke 23:54-24:3 Luke lists 3 days in succession when telling of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus:

  • DAY 1: The Preparation day—Jesus died and was buried [We call it GOOD FRIDAY]
  • DAY 2: The Sabbath—Jesus and His disciples rested "according to the commandment." (cf. Ex. 20:8-11) [We call it SATURDAY]
  • DAY 3: The first day of the week—Jesus rose from the dead. [We call it EASTER SUNDAY]
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    SO THE SABBATH OF THE BIBLE—THE LORD'S DAY—IS ON THE DAY WE CALL SATURDAY. FOR THIS REASON, THE SEVENTH-DAY SABBATH (SATURDAY) IS REALLY THE CHRISTIAN SABBATH!

    13. WHAT PART DOES THE SABBATH PLAY IN OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD?

    13LD Ezek. 20:12 The Sabbath is a sign of our acceptance of Jesus' blood that was shed for our sins. The Lord will make holy all those who keep His Sabbath holy.

  • "The Sabbath reaffirms that the Lord of the Sabbath becomes our redemption and sanctification [set apart; make holy]. It brings assurance of deliverance from the bondage of sin: 'Sabbath' (rest) to our soul. Just as the Sabbath is set apart for holy use, so are we set apart for God. Such redemption and sanctification in Christ is the bliss that we experience walking with Him here, awaiting our walk with Him in heaven." Sabbath School Lesson Quarterly, April 17, 2000
  • Ex. 31:13 "Say to the Israelites, 'You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the LORD, who makes you holy."
  • The Sabbath, in addition to being a memorial of God's creation of the world, is also a sign that God makes holy those who keep it (from the heart).
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    14. DOES THE SABBATH HAVE ANY RELATIONSHIP WITH THE AGE TO COME?

    14LD Isa. 66:22, 23 The prophet Isaiah says that we will come to worship before God every Sabbath. This will be the pattern of our worship of the Creator-Redeemer throughout eternity.

  • No one ever has, or ever will be saved by keeping the Sabbath—or any other commandment. We're saved by faith in Jesus' Blood (Eph. 2:8, 9); eternal life is a gift from God (Rom. 6:23). But having been saved by grace, we want to obey Him. (John 14:15). Keeping the commandments, including the Sabbath, is an outward sign that we've received God's grace, and that Christ lives in us. And through us Jesus keeps the Sabbath He made and blessed.
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  • God [Jesus] made the 7th-day Sabbath when He created the world;
  • He kept the 7th-day Sabbath while He was on Earth—as did all His followers;
  • He will conduct the worship service every 7th-day Sabbath throughout eternity.

    • While we wait for Jesus to come to take us to the New Jerusalem—where we will enjoy eternal rest—it just makes sense to rest and worship Him now on His seventh-day Sabbath.