Today we will read some of what God's word has to say about the Sabbath.
Some celebrate the Sabbath on Saturday, while for others the Sabbath is Sunday.
But regardless, it's clear that God intends the day to be a day of replenishment
for us, a day that includes worshipping Him, learning about His word and
fellowshipping with fellow believers.
Exodus 20:8 (NAS) Remember the sabbath day, to keep it
holy.
Mark 3:1-5 (NAS) He entered again into a synagogue; and
a man was there whose hand was withered. They were watching Him to see if
He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. He said
to the man with the withered hand, "Let up and come forward!'' And He said
to them, "Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a
life or to kill?'' But they kept silent. After looking around at them with
anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He said to the man, "Stretch out
your hand.'' And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored.
Matthew 12:1-7 (NAS) At that time Jesus went through the
grainfields on the Sabbath, and His disciples became hungry and began to
pick the heads of grain and eat. But when the Pharisees saw this, they said
to Him, "Look, Your disciples do what is not lawful to do on a Sabbath.''
But He said to them, "Have you not read what David did when he became hungry,
he and his companions, how he entered the house of God, and they ate the
consecrated bread, which was not lawful for him to eat nor for those with
him, but for the priests alone? Or have you not read in the Law, that on
the Sabbath the priests in the temple break the Sabbath and are innocent?
But I say to you that something greater than the temple is here. But if you
had known what this means, 'I DESIRE COMPASSION, AND NOT A SACRIFICE,' you
would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the
Sabbath.''
Mark 1:21-22 (NAS) They went into Capernaum; and immediately
on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and began to teach.They were amazed
at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not
as the scribes.
Acts 14:42-44 (NAS) As Paul and Barnabas were going out,
the people kept begging that these things might be spoken to them the next
Sabbath. Now when the meeting of the synagogue had broken up, many of the
Jews and of the God-fearing proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking
to them, were urging them to continue in the grace of God. The next Sabbath
nearly the whole city assembled to hear the word of the Lord.
Acts 18:4 (NAS) And he was reasoning in the synagogue
every Sabbath and trying to persuade Jews and Greeks.