Chapter 8 – Monday – The Ten Commandments Number 4 - 2008 7 20

Exodus 20:8 says: "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy". This is The Fourth Commandment. It goes on to say:

"For six days you may labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God; on it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, or your male servant, or your female servant, or your cattle, or the resident foreigner who is in your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them, and he rested on the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy." (Exodus 20: 9-11)

The Sabbath Day was the day of rest. It was to remember that God rested when He finished his work of creation. In Genesis 2: 2-3 we read: "On the seventh day God ended his work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day and 'made it holy' (= sanctified it): because on it He rested from all His work which God created and made".

What does it mean to keep a day holy? We find part of the answer in Exodus 20 vs. 9 – 11. There is even more in Exodus ch. 31: 15, "Six days may work be done; but on the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord; whoever does any work on the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death." Vs. 17 adds: "It is a sign between me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed".

So, basically, we are not to work on the Sabbath day to keep it holy. It also became the day when the children of Israel, and now we as Christians, gather together as a community of believers and seekers to worship God. That is certainly a holy activity. Now, one might argue, we are not the children of Israel, we are not Jews, we are Christian. However, if you study the New Testament you will realize that The Church, the Christians, are in fact a continuation of the children of Israel.  However, instead of keeping the seventh day, most Christians now keep the first day, as that is the day our Lord rose from the dead, or was resurrected.

When the communists took power in Russia, because they did not believe in God, they wanted to do away with anything that had to do with God. So, they decided to cancel the Sabbath, or Sunday, as a day of rest. It did not work. In modern society, people need a day of rest, or they can't function effectively. Indeed, if our all-powerful God took a day of rest after creation, surely we as mere humans need a day or rest and refreshment! So, enjoy your Sabbaths/Sundays!