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July 15, 2020 1:00 am
God made it clear that all of us need to observe a day of rest. The concept is so important that He made it into one of the Ten Commandments. But now, Sunday is just another day to shop, work, or be on the move: not a day for reflection, meditation and prayer. What does the Sabbath have to do with us?
Click here to listen (Duration 25:02)One reason for us to Jesus phone number for the dog made it clear all of this made the day of rest. The concept is so important that he made it into one of the 10 Commandments. Nowadays, Sunday is just another day to shop for me on the moon. Not a day for reflection, meditation and prayer.
Stay with us from the Moody Church in Chicago this morning when Dr. Sir is clear teaching helps us make it across the finish line after Luther.
Some churches are so busy that their staffs really need a different day for rest and reflection.
After the long hours of Sunday.
That's right day but also let us keep in mind that many people in our congregation have to work on Sunday.
I'm thinking for example of nurses and doctors caregivers of various kinds.
Those who work in those kinds of professions they have to work on Sunday and were glad that they do. They most assuredly need to worship and relax on another day. And so as we come into the New Testament, but we discover is that some of the laws that pertain to the Old Testament Sabbath do not have direct application and the apostle Paul actually makes that clear in the book of Colossians. That being said, I've written a book entitled why holiness matters. The 10 Commandments Jesus and you and you might ask the question why do I include Jesus.
Well, as you shall see Jesus actually gives us 1/11 commandment and that also is incredibly important.
Why holiness matters. The 10 Commandments Jesus and you for a gift of any amount. It can be yours. And thanks in advance for your generosity in helping us with the ministry of running to win. Here's what you do go to RTW offer.com RTW offer.com or call us at 1-888-218-9337 and now let us listen carefully as once again we go to Sinai, where God personally speaks now we come to the $64 question about Jesus Christ's relationship to the Sabbath Jesus six times in the New Testament is specifically accused of having broken the Sabbath. The Pharisees were constantly getting on him. For example, one day he and his disciples were walking through the fields of grain, and they took some of the heads of wheat and they rub them in their hands and they ate that grain and everybody said the Old Testament said you're not supposed to thrash on the Sabbath day and they are thrashing their harvesting hand that Jesus said to them now wait a moment the Sabbath was made for man's benefit and if we have to eat on the Sabbath day we eat. If your ox falls into a pit on the Sabbath day you pull them out. There are these necessities of servant hood that you have to do on the Sunday or rather on Saturday that are perfectly legitimate. If you're a nurse and you have to work on Sunday and you have to help people. What better way to commemorate God's rest in God's interest in the human race than to have deeds of kindness on the Sabbath day. And then Jesus healed people and your member they said wait a moment there is nothing in the Old Testament that says that you can healed a person on the Sabbath day. And Jesus once looked around, glaring in anger because of all of the plaque that he was getting for healing people on the Sabbath and Jesus.
It will what is it better to do.
Shall I do evil on the Sabbath day is it wrong for me to do good on the Sabbath day they called him a Sabbath breaker. In fact, they called him a continuous Sabbath breaker. We don't have time here to look into all the passages but I just want to say that I don't think Jesus broke the Old Testament Sabbath because he came to fulfill the law and the Jesus Christ being under the law of the Old Testament. It is unlikely that Jesus broke the Old Testament Sabbath, even though he said he was Lord of the Sabbath. What's more likely is that all kinds of little laws and traditions grew up to protect bad day and Jesus was someone who loathe the tradition he constantly was speaking against. He was saying to the people you nullify the word of God through your traditions. You are always adding all kinds of little regulations to what God has said and you are making it more stringent and more in explainable than God's word and so that's what happened in 1954. Time magazine reported that in Tel Aviv there are some elevators in hotels that go constantly all day.
They are set to go all day and they stop at every single floor because the Orthodox Jews do not want to press a button on the Sabbath day they see what really happens is, there are laws that grow up in regarding the Sabbath and people begin to so emphasize those meticulous laws when God says you're missing the point. I had intended that you have a day of rest and worship and reflection. And here it hasn't been reduced to a time when you are nitpicking regarding all kinds of small little regulation.
Well, that's one question we come to another question. That is why does the Christian church not observe the Sabbath and this of course is a tremendous controversy as you well know, some of our Seventh-day Adventist friends will tell us we are breaking the law of God, and in response. Of course all that we can do is show them the New Testament held that the early church began to meet on the first day of the week and they took this time of rest and reflection and they changed it into a time of rejoicing.
Now just to give you an idea.
For example, if you're taking notes John chapter 20 verse 19 it says that they gather together on the first day of the week. Then maybe we should take time to look at the book of acts chapter 20 acts chapter 20 where you have the early church again. Meeting on the first day of the week. Acts chapter 20 verse seven it says, and on the first day of the week when we were gathered together to break bread pole began talking to them, intending to depart the next day the breaking of bread refers to communion and you'll notice that it was on the first day of the week another passage. First Corinthians 16 verse two. Just write that one down. You don't have to turn to it.
First Corinthians 16 verse two Paul says on the first day of the week you want to keep in store a certain amount of money that you might be able to give it when you gather together in worship.
First Corinthians chapter 16 verse two.
It seems impossible to me that God would've intended that people keep the Sabbath when all of Paul's epistles and all of his writings say nothing about any Sabbath day violations that are going on in the church. In fact pulses just the opposite. Now I know I've asked you to turn to many passages today would could you take one more. Let's take Colossians chapter 2 Colossians chapter 2 you'll notice it's farther on there in the New Testament, Colossians chapter 2, and that Paul is speaking specifically to the issue of Sabbath days and special events like that the people were commemorating, and I won't take time to give you the total context and that which precedes it and follows it, but in the Colossians chapter 2 verse 16 it says therefore let no one act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day pulses. Don't let anybody judge you regarding these things and in Romans 14.
He says one person esteems one day above another.
Another esteems every day alike. He says you have to be fully persuaded in your own mind. So, nowhere in the New Testament do we have all of the Sabbath day regulations transferred over to Sunday. Sunday becomes a voluntary day of rejoicing and praise and gratitude.
And it's a day when people can do and serve God in the way in which they ought not, under the compulsion of the Old Testament how you know of course that often times in American history there has been a transfer from the Sabbath day to Sunday with all of the regulations.
Parenthetically, have you ever eaten a Sunday company never had gone into a store and had a Sunday only 42 of you. I thought more of you liked ice cream you know where that got associated in Evanston, Illinois.
You've heard of that place. What happened was, there were no stores open in Evanston and finally one store opened on Sunday and served only ice cream so the idea arose that you would have a Sunday to be able to buy ice cream that's the origin of the Association of having a Sunday and eating some ice cream.
What would come along way since that time have away with everything virtually open on Sunday. Now what I'd like to do is to take all the loose ends and tie them together and give you three conclusions all right and that this will help us I think nailed some important things down regarding Sunday and the Sabbath, etc. first of all, the regulations of the Sabbath are not transferred over to Sunday.
The regulations of the Sabbath are not transferred over to Sunday in the New Testament. For example in the book of Exodus 35 verse three. It expressly says that you shall not light a fire on the Sabbath. You can imagine, of course, that this would create problems for those of us who live in the Midwest. If we try to apply that on Sunday they were not to go out and even gather manna on the Sabbath day you are not to go a Sabbath day's journey, or there was a certain limitation. I should say as to how far you could go and travel on the Sabbath and there were all kinds of regulations that were a part of that that are explained in the Old Testament, and today I must say that we do not transferred those to Sunday now what about Eric Lindell Judy of run that race on Sunday. Let me answer this way if he thought that he was disobeying God. Of course he should not have.
Because the Bible says that whatever is not of faith is sin. If you if you think that your disobeying God. And then you go ahead and do it anyway you are sitting even if it's in something that perhaps you may be mistaken about such as eating meat onto idols are running a race on Sunday. I would simply say that in the minds of a believer. Some might be free to run the race on Sunday and some might not be pulses don't judge one another regarding some of these matters.
What about that young pastor should he have been able to skate to church on Sunday will, of course, he should of been able to skate his church on Sunday and what the elders should've said is we want you to skate to church and we are commanding you to enjoy it.
That's what they should've said because obviously to say that you should skate without enjoyment is is indeed a foolish now so I don't see a transfer of the regulations of the Old Testament Sabbath to Sunday, but I'd like to make a second conclusion and that the prince of this is the second that the principle of one day in the seven is woven right into the fabric of the universe. The idea that God rested is predates the giving of the law and God rested on the one day after he had done all of his creation as a principle that I think transcends all time. So to observe Sunday in principle is being completely biblical and right and what kind of the day should be. Will let it be a day of rest. Let it be a day of reflection, and above all, let it be a day of rejoicing. Let it be a day in which we are edified and strengthened by the gathering together of the body of Jesus Christ. Let it be a time in which Jesus Christ, resurrection and ascension into heaven is exalted and thought about and a day in which we worship him.
Together, the Bible says that we should not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is but that we should be together.
We should provoke one another unto good works are hearts have to be knit together in love pulses in Colossians so that we can enter into all of the inheritance that there is in Jesus Christ while I'm on the topic. There are many of you here whose participation at Moody church is minimal. You may come Sunday morning and then we do not see you. You are not involved in any ministry so let me say very quickly were glad to have you here come back again next week, but do you know that it is so important within your severe of life to become more closely knit together with other believers to experience the inheritance of the risen Jesus Christ. That's why it's so important that a church like ours so important that you participate in a smaller group such as a Sunday school class or a Bible study where you are able to get to know others and where there is interaction and prayer and a bearing of one another's burdens and I encourage you in the name of Christ to be all that God wants you to be to become involved in the lives of other believers and have hearts knit together in love. All that to say this, that Sunday is a day in which that ought to happen, as we worship the Lord our God is 1/3 conclusion and that is that Sunday is really a reminder.
It's a reminder of God's grace, you realize that in the Old Testament.
This is been pointed out that in the Old Testament, which was an age of law course there was grace in the Old Testament, but the law was given by Moses, and grace and truth came by Jesus Christ in the Old Testament during that age of law. The idea was that after you worked six days you would be rewarded with rest you'd be rewarded with rest. It's interesting that in the New Testament the first day of the week is observed as a day of rest which really means that while law says if you work hard you get to rest. Grace turns that around and says you begin with rest in order that you might be able to work and it says in the book of Hebrews that there still remains of rest for the people of God. It's such good news. Retired Christians.
There is a rest coming for the people of God. He may be speaking there about the millennial kingdom. But notice Jesus Christ's words come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
I should've pointed out that the Hebrew word is Sabbath Shabbat is rest. Jesus Christ you see comes along and says freely as a gift. I give you rest.
And now that you have received rest. You are free to be able to serve me and to be able to walk with me and to be able to labor in my work.
You see me use the life of Martin Luther to illustrate, here's a man whose prime objective in life is to be right with God. I mean that's what he wanted above all else, which incidentally is the most important question question is not whether or not the Earth's resources are going to wear out or whether not were going to be at war.
That's important, but not nearly as important as where you're gonna spend eternity. So here he is, he is pursuing this right relationship with God. And Luther says I flogged my body, perhaps 40 or 50 times. But how do I know that God doesn't demand 51 was Luther was so was saying I'm looking for rest, I'm looking for security, a sense of knowing that I belong to God. I wanted to be addressed in my soul and have assurance I'm on my way to heaven. So he confessed his sin sometimes six hours at a time. The problem was this that in order for a sin to be forgiven. It had to be confessed in order to be confessed, it had to be remembered.
And Luther's problem was, how good is my memory and sometimes after six hours he could still think of one that he had overlooked you think that leads to rest that leads to bondage and frustration and uncertainty. Then one day when he was studying the book of Romans. He came to that fantastic conclusion that righteousness is a gift of God given in response to face.
Forgiveness is a gift of God given in response to faith. It is a free gift conferred upon those who give up trying and believe in the merits and the completeness of Jesus Christ work and after that he was a man dressed addressed free to be able to serve God says to us today that there is a rest for the people of God. Jesus is come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest and I give you the gift freely upfront and after it's been received. You have the opportunity of serving me is not a matter of being rewarded at the end of labor. It's a matter of being rewarded at the beginning. That's grace before you've earned it. And then after that you can serve me and you can love me.
The Sabbath is rest Sunday at time of rest, but above all, Jesus, the giver of rest to those that believe in him. Let's pray together. Our father, we do want to thank you the Jesus Christ fulfilled the Sabbath and we thank you that he is our rest.
We think of those father who today may be searching and going from one part of the world to another, from one church group, even to another.
We pray that you will help them to stop to know that they can find rest in Christ who said come and I will give you rest enable his father to see him as the ultimate rest for God's people we ask in Jesus name, amen. My friend, I'm so glad that the Bible teaches that there is a rest for the people of God and of course that culminates in the Lord Jesus Christ. You know it's because of people like you that running to win can continue.
Recently I was in Knoxville, Tennessee.
I was speaking there to pastors and I met people who regularly listen to our ministry and are blessed and helped and you have a part in that. I'm thinking of those of you who have joined in effect, the running to win family we call them endurance partners endurance partners are people who stand with us regularly with their prayers and their gifts. Would you like to receive more information. Here's what you do go to RTW offer.com.
Click on the endurance partner button go to RTW offer.com. Click on the endurance partner button or if you prefer, call us at 1-888-218-9337 and we will answer your questions. That's 1-888-218-9337 ask about becoming an endurance partner now for another chance for you to ask Pastor looks or a question about the Bible or the Christian life. It's a lot easier to see in the rearview mirror of history to peer into the unknowns of the future, and so one running to one listener has written asking Pastor lutes or this question. Do you think any of us here today will be alive at the rapture.
Well I'm going to give an interesting answer. I'm going to say may be yes and may be no you know, I grew up with the prophecy, conferences, and often times when the speaker was finished. I honestly thought that Jesus Christ was going to return that evening. It seemed as if world events were all lined up in such a way that it was just a moment of time. And Jesus would return in history would be wrapped up. But as the years have gone on, I began to see that there there so many changes in the world changes that can take place very rapidly, and yet at the same time were really not in the position to say for sure when Jesus Christ is going to come put yourself in the shoes of the Old Testament prophets, and you think for example of the coming of Jesus.
The first time in Bethlehem. The Scripture says that the prophets try to figure out the time and how Jesus was going to come and what the details were, but they couldn't quite do it and I don't think we can either remember having a professor at a Bible college who used to say that when it comes to matters of prophecy.
Sometimes it is better to say much too little than a little too much because we've had people in even in our days say that we were living in the last generation. And yet this time is going on that's shown that it wasn't the case. Bottom line is this, and this is the most important thing you'll hear from me in response to this question whether Jesus comes soon or whether it is a later it doesn't make any difference regarding our faithfulness. Either way we are going to give an account for the deeds done in the body, whether they be good or bad just because Jesus Christ might come next week doesn't mean that this next week we should be more holy than we would be otherwise.
Were going to give an account to God anyway. Bottom line, let us wait for the return.
Let us look forward to the return and be faithful until it happens. A careful look forward from Dr. Erwin lutes or thank you Pastor lutes or if you'd like to hear your question answered. Go to our website@rtwoffer.com and click on ask Pastor lutes or or call us at 1-888-218-9337 that's 1-888-218-9337 you can write to us at running to win 1635 N. LaSalle Boulevard Chicago, IL 60614 murder. It's now so common that we are pleased by it anymore. The taking of innocent life breaks one of the cardinal commandments of God since Roe versus Wade.
That commandment has been broken.
Untold millions of times. Next time I'm running to win. Return to commandment number five thou shalt do no murder command disobeyed an America by the rampant divorcing of the unborn, learning to win is all about helping you understand God's roadmap for your race of life. This is Dave McAllister running to win is sponsored the Moody church