Should we still observe the sabbath?

[Esaias]

So what purpose does the WRITTEN "law" serve?

Romans 7:7 KJV
What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.

The law identifies sin. It serves as the objective standard for moral judgments (whether an act is right or wrong). Without that objective standard then right and wrong becomes relative, a matter of whatever the individual "feels" to be right or wrong. It produces confusion, chaos, and... lawlessness.

The reason so many churches teach so many DIFFERENT things as "sinful" or wrong is because they are making it up as they go. No different than the heathens, just going by what "I think/feel" rather than going by an externally sourced objective moral code. Man being ruled by man instead of man being ruled by God.

[Esaias]

Historical side note:

The VERY SAME APOSTASY that introduced trinitarianism, infant baptism, and clericalism also introduced Sunday keeping and anti-Sabbatism. It's all the SAME APOSTATE FALSE RELIGION.

Sunday keeping belongs to Sol Invictus, aka Mithra, aka BAAL. Right along with trinitarianism and "Mother of God"/Mariolatry and all the rest of it.

So "Christians" would rather adopt paganism and traditions of men instead of God's ways. The whole society follows the Apostasy, everybody expects to have church on Sunday, so churches go along to get along... The whole world wondering after the Beast and following along because it's the easy way. The broad way, with a wide gate, everybody else is doing it and it's much much easier than the narrow Bible Way with its straight (narrow) gate.

Traditions of men, maintained through the fear of men (can't risk one's license, can't risk losing the offering plate, can't risk being called bad names). Loving pleasure rather than loving God (God's day? Nah, that's MY day, for bbq and shopping and household chores and whatever else *I* want to do).

Well? Good luck with all that.

[Jito463]

Originally Posted by Esaias

You said you didn't care about it, so why address your reasoning?

I said that I didn't care about the debate, but since you addressed me directly, I was just asking you to address the whole of my post, not just the snippet you quoted. I appreciate you going back and doing so.

Originally Posted by Esaias

You said the reason you don't care is because the Sabbath is not a day of the week. The Bible however says otherwise.

I misspoke (miswrote?), in that my intent was to say that it was no longer about a specific day.

Originally Posted by Esaias

As for your reasoning, it does not follow. Thou shalt not commit murder did not become thou shalt not hate your brother. If that were true and your reasoning about the Sabbath were correct, then committing actual murder would no longer be a sin! Absurdity

By the way, thou shalt not hate your brother is found in the law of God:

Leviticus 19:17 KJV
Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.

It is followed by the Second Greatest Commandment of all:

Leviticus 19:18 KJV
Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.

I already addressed this. As I wrote previously, God's principles build upon each other. By saying that the commandment against murder changed to not hating your brother, I wasn't saying it overwrote the previous commandment, but rather built upon it and leads us into a deeper understanding of who God wants us to be. I don't see anywhere in Leviticus where hating your brother is akin to murder.

Jesus was saying that at the time it was enough not to commit the sinful act, now it's imperative that we don't even think the sinful acts in our hearts. The physical commandment took on a deeper and more spiritual aspect. This is what I was saying about the Sabbath. At one time, God commanded His people to take a day of rest and recuperation; that's the physical. However, now it's taken on a more spiritual aspect, in that our rest is found in Him and not just in the physical act of not working.

This is why the specific day of the week isn't concerning to me, because I believe the greater revelation is our rest in Him.

And if we're going to delve into the Mosaic law, where does that end? Should we avoid eating unclean meat? As Paul wrote, the law was the schoolmaster to guide us into righteousness, but now we have a greater commandment written upon our hearts by the Holy Ghost.

The physical/law is the commandments, the spiritual is the deeper meaning of them.

Originally Posted by Esaias

Jesus was explaining to the people that contrary to rabbinic talmudic heresy, you cannot be outwardly appearing to be righteous while being inwardly a hateful uncircumcised-in-heart sinner and expect to get by.

I agree, but I think it's more than just this alone. I think Jesus was showing His disciples a greater spiritual truth.

[good samaritan]

Law of God to Israel (old covenant) is not the same as the law written in our hearts (new covenant)

[mfblume]

Originally Posted by good samaritan

I am a little rusty on the subject. I received a phone call today from someone that we must observe a Saturday sabbath. It disappointed him when I informed him that I didn’t feel that it is any longer necessary to keep any day as a Sabbath. Instead, we are to enter His rest, by the infilling of the Holy Ghost.

Amen. We've got the body that cast the shadow of sabbaths (all sabbaths) which is Christ! Why settle for a vague semblance of the body in the form of its shadow, when we can have the body, HIMSELF!?!

[good samaritan]

Abraham was counted righteous without law. No Sabbath observances mentioned in his life, but the law came and the children of Israel backslid. Does that not make anyone question their stance of renewing mosaic laws in the church?

[coksiw]

Originally Posted by good samaritan

Abraham was counted righteous without law. No Sabbath observances mentioned in his life, but the law came and the children of Israel backslid. Does that not make anyone question their stance of renewing mosaic laws in the church?

Did the law cause them to turn away from God? Where does it say that?

[good samaritan]

Originally Posted by Esaias

So what purpose does the WRITTEN "law" serve?

Galatians 3:19
Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.

The law of Moses served its purpose till the seed should come.

Galatians 3:24-25
Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

Romans 7:7 KJV
What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.

The law identifies sin. It serves as the objective standard for moral judgments (whether an act is right or wrong). Without that objective standard then right and wrong becomes relative, a matter of whatever the individual "feels" to be right or wrong. It produces confusion, chaos, and....lawlessness.

Galatians 3:21
Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.

The law was insufficient. Like modern liberals saying give us more laws. The laws don’t make us righteous instead they only complicate our lives. Let’s make it a sin today for a person to work on Saturday to feed his family.

Luke 14:5
And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day?

Let’s make a mandatory day to be observed so theologians can argue over what is the exact day. As I have already stated the law was given to Israel for a set time until Christ.

The reason so many churches teach so many DIFFERENT things as "sinful" or wrong is because they are making it up as they go. No different than the heathens, just going by what "I think/feel" rather than going by an externally sourced objective moral code. Man being ruled by man instead of man being ruled by God.

There are many false teachers (some intentional and some unintentional) that are the reason for so much false teaching. Iron sharpeneth iron and us reasoning together we are more likely to come to the truth, whether we accept it or not.

[good samaritan]

Originally Posted by Esaias

Romans 6:16-20 KJV
Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? [17] But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. [18] Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. [19] I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. [20] For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.

Here, sin is identified as iniquity and wickedness. Disobedience = sin = wickedness and iniquity (lawlessness). Sin is thus disobedience to God, wickedness, and lawlessness (crime, transgression or violation of the law). It is the opposite of righteousness, obedience, equity, justice, goodness, etc.

Being without the law of Moses doesn’t make us lawless, but being without Christ does.

[good samaritan]

Originally Posted by coksiw

Did the law cause them to turn away from God? Where does it say that?

The law didn’t cause them to backslide, but it did condemn them as sinners. The point I was making was that Abraham was counted righteous because of his faith and he had no written law. The children of Israel did horribly while given a written law. Wouldn’t having a written law give an advantage to live righteously?Apparently not, the law did nothing to make righteous, but it only condemned.