When Did "For Ever" Change?

Imitate Yeshua's faith walk is the big lesson here. Don't be misled by strange teachings forget them.

It's time to take another journey of discovery to uncover what has gotten lost in transliteration, translation and tradition from Sabbath to Sunday.

In my Scripture studies that really started in earnest seven years ago, I discovered that God's voice in Exodus 20:8 instructs us to "remember" the Sabbath and keep it set apart (holy) from other days:

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy."

That got me thinking. 

Almighty God knew many of us would forget the Sabbath!! 

When I started reading the Bible from the beginning, I re-read Exodus 20 over and over and I looked up the Hebrew word for Sabbath שּׁבּת and discovered it's Shabbat.

The Almighty said to remember it, so I turned the pages over to Hebrews 4:9-10 that declares the Sabbath rest remains. 

Hum... that's right in the middle of the Newer Testament. 

Then, I turned back to Isaiah 56:6-7:

Also the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD,

To minister to Him, and to love the name of the LORD,

To be His servants, every one who keeps from profaning the sabbath

And holds fast My covenant;

Even those I will bring to My holy mountain

And make them joyful in My house of prayer.

That's when I realized... the Shabbat is not just Jewish as I had thought, but thank God Jesus the Jew kept it as well as the rest of God's calendar.

Had He forgotten the Sabbath, we would have never heard about His Sabbath teachings in those synagogues. 

If he used the Pope's sundial Sunday, He would have forgotten all about Leviticus 23, even missed Passover thinking it was Easter and tied to the vernal equinox instead of the 14th of Abib (now called Nisan). 

Jesus would have missed resurrection First Fruits too and where would we be?

HalleluYah praise God !! His calendar remains and the Sabbath rest also remains for everyone since creation week because Almighty God does not change. 

In other words, there's no Sunday time travel. 

Shabbat was never done away with, there's no time travel in the Newer Testament and for ever has not been forgotten or done away with. That's what the book of Hebrews says: 

"So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His." Hebrews 4:9-10

Wait a minute, I had always thought there was a church time change to Sunday. Why was I reading about the Sabbath marked out on God's appointment calendar in the Newer Testament? 

For years, I thought there was a Sunday shift. I also thought the Old Testament was old and done away with (aka changed). I was innocent in a way and fell for a tradition until I read the Bible.

Thanks to help from God's Spirit, I realized that the for ever Sabbath did not shift gears in New Testament time travel or fast forward regardless of Constantine's church councils or any Caesar or Pope's calendar whether his name was Julius or Gregory. 

That doesn't mean Sunday's not a good day to worship The LORD, everyday is a good day, it's just not the for ever day to remember. 

I no longer believed the theory I'd heard a few times that a young man fell out of a window and inserted a leap day in God's day of rest. I'll offer a bit more on that window a bit later if you want to read on.

The Sunday sermons I'd heard went something like this... until the cross, Jesus Christ and the disciples honored and kept The LORD's seventh day Sabbath that had been honored since creation. But, after the resurrection, the disciples lost track of time and forgot the for ever seventh day, the rest day Sabbath, after all it was old and done away with at the cross. 

I had to ask when did for ever change? 

With very little research, I found that the early Roman church made a Sol Invictus mandate and fast forwarded God's day of rest to Sunday to recruit some pagan masses into the fold.

By doing so they replaced The LORD's for ever holy day of rest. 

At age 45, in about 30 minutes of research, I found church time travel started with a Roman Emperor by the name of Constantine. I'd heard about him, but never though much about him.

Back in the day, he suggested a counsel be put together to set out some new Roman rules on the empire's new religion. 

Constantine's councils basically re-aligned The LORD's day of rest to make it acceptable for sun-god worshipers that detested the Jewish people throughout the dark shadow of the Roman Empire. 

Bottomline, Constantine wanted to keep the old Babylonian-Persian sun-god system intact. That way people would come to Sunday church ordained by the Emperor. 

In doing so, the councils made a religious gear shift easier to deal with.. for the pagans. 

A few new church elders simply adopted the old traditions and ignored the book of Hebrews: 

"There remains a Sabbath rest." 

I knew I had to dig in deeper because I had a few questions.

Did the guy that wrote the book of Hebrews not know the sermon I'd heard that the writings of Moses were done and dusted on the cross? 

Did he forget that Sabbath time travel would help usher the Roman Empire into a new religion? 

Then I realized the guy that wrote the book of Hebrews would have likely gotten into a heated debate with one of the early church fathers by the name of Ignatius. 

Ignatius was a new bishop and unfortunately an ignorant anti-Semite. He wrote this:

“Let us therefore no longer keep the Sabbath after the Jewish manner, and rejoice in days of idleness..."

Hum... Ignatius ignored Genesis. 

He tossed out the fourth commandment.

Forgot Jesus was Jewish.

Skipped past the book of Hebrews.

Igantius forgot for ever. 

Then I wondered, who put Ignatius in charge? 

I thought, maybe the word ignoramus comes from not so good 'ol Ignatius.

Seriously, perhaps like Ignatius, for years I'd skimmed past parts of the very Bible Jesus read. Then I read it and found it declares what our Creator God, The LORD of Hosts has to say, but like an ignoramus, I ignorantly ignored Leviticus and these words from the mouth of my Creator: 

"Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations, as a covenant forever. It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.'” Exodus 31:16-17

I wondered what would Jesus say about me and then I read this:

But he answered, "It is written, "'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Matthew 4:4 

Hum, every word. So, when did "For Ever" change?

It didn't. 

The Sabbath is the weekly appointment, the set apart memorial of God's creation and authority over it and those in it, and thank God The LORD declares the end from the beginning. 

The Sabbath points toward redemption in the Messianic Age to come.

I still had more questions. 

Why was a God's vacation day forgotten?

I questioned my tradition. I even questioned my belief. Why isn't The LORD's for ever memorial day kept for ever by everyone?

Then, I realized that some of us who say we "believe in God" and say we are the children of God and follow Jesus, don't believe the voice of God or do what Jesus did because we don't live by every word that come form the mouth of God.

Many like me, in Ignatius ignorance ignore the voice of Father God our Creator as we put our hands over our eyes and ears and forgot the for ever words of the Bible. 

I went into a form of spiritual shock. 

Without knowing it, I had sidestepped my Creator and skipped cluelessly past Him and what Jesus said.

It was time to do what Jesus always said to do: REPENT!

It was time for me and my family to turn back and return to Abba Father's "forever" memorial day of rest embedded in time since creation. 

For many like me, church time travel has been a tradition for about 1,700 years, but this commentary about my own journey is NOT about Sunday sermon bashing.

It's about repentance and seeking the light of truth, plain and simple. 

I confess I forgot the Sabbath and I did not know why I'd ignored God's voice. 

When I repented, I opened the Bible and realized that I was ignorant because I'd been skimming with verse snippets for years. I soon realized I was blinded by tradition.

I continued to dig deeper and then I discovered the "Sabbaton" window in the book of Acts. 

As promised, there's more on that in a minute...

If we want to believe the Bible -- its time to start from the beginning.

As I said, I was shocked, shaken and disappointed I'd forgotten The Lord's Sabbath remains!

I felt as if the guys that had listened to all those pulpits were fraudsters. But then I realized, hey they were just like me, we just got lost in time. 

So, I locked my heart, mind and soul into The LORD's voice given to Malachi 3:6. 

The prophet wrote this for a good God reason:

“I The LORD do not change.” 

I was heartbroken when I realized that some early church fathers had turned the wrong way preaching anti-semitic replacement theologies that God changed His mind and that Jesus wasn't really Jewish after all because he debated some add on religious traditions about the Sabbath's big purpose. 

That kind of Greco Roman thinking is still echoing in some church bells. It started when the Roman and Greek elders claimed the "church" replaced the Jewish people and made up their own religious rules against them.

Their Greek thinking adopted a new paradigm... God under the church.

The Sunday time travel theory has a big problem that you may have not thought of, it plays on the presumption that Almighty God does not keep His word and that He changes His mind. 

The truth is the God of Israel has never changed His mind nor turned His back on the Sabbath or the Jewish people. For that matter, He never forgot the Sabbath day to remember that Jewish people have honored for thousands of years. 

One big problem with Greek thinking is this: if God gave up on His so-called Old Testament and changed His mind, He forgot for ever! 

It seems that few people outside the synagogue believe Malachi, yet the truth remains, God does not change. The Sabbath remains, it's not done away with and it's not replaced. There's nothing wrong with Sunday, after all it's the first day The LORD made, but it's not the Shabbat rest of The LORD.

Soon, it dawned on me that the old Sunday sermons seldom reference Romans 11, Constantine's councils or pagan sun-god history. So, I'll offer a bit more on that if you read on.

Instead of Constantine and his councils, the echos of some Sunday shift preaching points to an upper room storyline in Acts 20 and a time travel window, so it's time to dig into that word Sabbaton so we can really know what time it is. 

The Jewish men were gathered in that room for a reason when that young man fell asleep sitting on the ledge of the third story window. Many sermons remember bits and pieces of the upper room story and the fact that the young man slammed into the ground below, but few ever mention his name. 

More too on that in a minute...

After all, many sermons dig into the Greek words and their meanings gleaned in seminary, but anyone can open a King James Bible and see that it has some italics publishers plug into their translation versions. 

Check this one from the King James version of the story, the insert is the word day:

"And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight. And there were many lights in the upper chamber, where they were gathered together." Acts 20:7-8 KJV

So what's up with the "day" italics insert? 

What's really going on in this time setting and why does the record make a point about breaking bread? 

It's time to dig into some Greek words of the two verses and while we're at it consider that bread. 

The place to look into is the evidence of some Acts 20 Greek manuscripts. 

Why go to all that trouble? 

Because translators are human and like most people, they can be influenced by doctrine, opinion and religious tradition. 

The King James crew had their own western views and customs embedded in their italics from Sunday sermons. After all, the Church of England had renounced papal authority in 1534, yet some Catholic doctrines were kept in Protestant traditions. 

This about this: the doctrines of men is the reason you can drive down any road in America and find a Sunday sermon service calendar marked with all kinds of church logos and labels for hundreds if not thousands of denominations based on differing religious doctrines. 

It's much the same in any Bible bookstore. Why so many translations??

Just walk through the aisles and you will find dozens of different Bible translations for sale. Most have commentaries and opinions in the margins from the publisher's team of "experts" with their own interpretations, not just translation.

Often the question at the counter is like the one I used to ask: which translation is the best?  

I asked that question back in in 2001, and thank The LORD the wise young lady at the counter was not the usual minimum wage clerk. 

She brilliantly pointed me in the right direction!

That's the day I learned the Bible that Jesus read and taught was Hebrew. I debated for about 20 seconds telling her that the word Pentateuch was Greek, so I thought the Bible was Greek. She said no the Torah is Hebrew just like the rest of the Bible.

I was shocked.

Here's a shocker... if you think a dozen or so translations is a big number to choose from in a bookstore, think about this:

There are more than 5,300 Greek manuscripts in existence and none of them have that italicized word "day" in Acts 20:7. 

No, not one!!

Just read the preface of most bookstore Bibles, usually the publisher declares that the words in italics are added in so that the reader can understand. In other words, the italics are not translation, they're an opinion. Another fact is the Greek manuscripts are hand made copies of copies of copies from the originals that have been lost in time. 

Many were assembled into the Codex Vaticanus and the 1550 Stephanus New Testament. These happen to be the "Minority" Texts favored by the Roman Catholic Church. 

Then there's the Codex Sinaiticus which so far is the oldest known surviving copy of the manuscripts of the "Newer" Testament, but it's not an original either, it's a copy of a copy.

No one it seems has the originals. 

Like I said they are lost in time, but the Codex Sinaiticus is the oldest copy of a copy. It was handwritten some 1600 years ago. That's some 300-350 years after the originals were written. 

The Sinaiticus Codex predates all Bible manuscripts by some 500 years that is until Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered, but no scroll in the Qumran caves contains a single Newer Testament manuscript, just the scrolls of the Bible Jesus read.  

[Update July 2009: the Codex Sinaiticus project] is now online]. 

By the way, the King James Bible is the English translation used on the Codex Sinaiticus website so don't "assume" a literal word for word translation.

Hold on to your Sunday pew folks.

The Koine Greek text of the Acts 20:7 opening statement found in all MAJOR Greek texts including the oldest, the Codex Sinaiticus reads like this:

εν δὲ τῇ μιᾷ τῶν σαββάτων
If you are like me and don't read Koine Greek, a true translation will help: 

σαββάτων is 'sabbaton' -- it's Greek for the English word Sabbath which is the Shabbat. 

Sabbaton does not mean first day or Sunday, it means Sabbath. The Greek word italicized in the KJV as “day” is never found in any known Greek manuscript. None. Zero. Whether in Greek, English or Hebrew, the Sabbath is the seventh day of the week. 

Bible translators use the word Sabbath about 60 times for the Greek sabbaton in the New Testament, so why on earth did the "authorized" Church of England's King James choose to insert the "first day of the week" in Acts 20?

The reason is simple: new tradition crept into the printing press, the Greek text actually says:

On the first Sabbath...
Holy smoke... the Greek manuscripts of Acts 20:7 got it right but the king's translator's added in a church tradition from the days of Constantine. Here's the Greek: 

“...on the first Sabbath when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.”

"εν δε τη μια των σαββατων συνηγμενων των μαθητων του κλασαι αρτον ο παυλος διελεγετο αυτοις μελλων εξιεναι τη επαυριον παρετεινεν τε τον λογον μεχρι μεσονυκτιου"

You can use any Greek dictionary or just about any online translator to see the Sabbaton fact for yourself. It is the Sabbath fact as plain as the seventh day!!

Sabbaton is the Hebrew word Shabbat שּׁבּת.

Next question, what's up with the bread in the story? 

Well, for thousands of years, faithful Jewish people including those disciples welcomed and closed each Shabbat with a challah bread blessing to our Creator. 

The breaking of the bread (HaMotzi) opening prayer blessing goes like this:

"Baruch atah, Adonai Eloheinu, Melech haolam, haMotzi lechem min haaretz."

"Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Sovereign of all, who brings forth bread from the earth."

This blessing points to the miracle of manna given for 40 years during the Exodus journey from Egypt to The Promised Land and thanks our Creator for the bread. There's another seventh day blessing embedded in the ages old bread blessing. 

It points to Messiah. 

It points to Yeshua, the bread of life that was brought forth to sustain life. Yeshua is different than all other people before and after the first trip. One reason: Yeshua kept the Torah of God (teaching and instruction) in the image of God as God intended from the beginning (Genesis 1:26). 

Why God's image? He never wavered or missed the mark of God's voice. 

The transformation back to the image of God is what Paul wrote about when he penned this referencing the veil Moses worn only after Moses stood in the literal presence of The LORD. 

In the tent of meeting, in freedom from sin Moses never wore the veil:

But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:16-18 

In God's image way, Yeshua's voice was God's voice including the great purpose of Shabbat. 

Is God's voice our voice or do we rely on a translator's doctrine?

Acts 20 describes that Paul intended to leave Troas only after that Sabbath day. Paul was heading out of town on Sunday, the first day of the week for his journey to Assos. 

After all, Paul was Jewish and like all believers in Almighty God at that time before Constantine showed up, Paul kept the Lord's Shabbat as a day of rest and refreshing.

Since Constantine's councils, there's been a falling away...

Yet, the Sabbath remains so its time to remember it. 

It remain holy, set apart. Paul knew nothing about a Sunday time shift, he understood remember and knew it meant for ever. 

Every day is a day to worship The LORD, but Sabbaton, the Sabbath Shabbat is not a good day for work, as seen in Acts Paul didn't see it as a good day to begin a long, laborious journey like the difficult and tiring 125 mile road trip to Assos from Jerusalem.

So, what is ti about young Eutychus and that third story window?

The young man's name has significant meaning in the upper room story. He's called Eutychus, that means "fortunate" and he was fortunate. By a miracle of faith, Paul resuscitated the fortunate young man. 

Seriously, think about it, no day is a good day to leave an injured boy broken down on the ground. After all, the ultimate purpose of Shabbat is to rest, heal our bodies and refresh our souls. 

Yeshua of Nazareth healed the sick and injured on the Sabbath because our Creator God is all about life. 

A few Pharisees argued with Yeshua constantly about that because of their "oral traditions." Their Shabbat rules added to the Torah and they missed the Torah behind the Shabbat point: 

Healing is NOT work, it's not labor, and their religious rulebook was not written by Moses. 

That was Yeshua's big message. 

In the end, Shabbat points to the day of redemption, the Olam ha-Bah, the 7th day of rest in the world to come that will be led by Messiah King so remember it! 

For now, in Almighty God's design including the human body, Sabbath rest is the remembrance refresher each week and as we pray, break bread and study God's word we get to rejoice and worship, remembering Almighty God's goodness and provision of eternal life to come. 

On each Shabbat, we get to participate in God's plan to refresh our souls in the end.

Not only that, if we take off our Greco Roman sunglasses for a minute and re-read Acts 15:21, we can see that it also proves that the new Gentile believers in the God of Israel and Messiah were to remember  the Sabbaton. It's not just a Jewish thing,  the disciples all expected the grated in Gentiles to attend a gathering each Sabbath to hear, learn and study the Scriptures written by Moses and the Prophets!

Think about this too, the so-called New Testament didn't exist when Acts 20 was written. 

The accounts written in the book of Acts are an after the fact historic account, written many years after the events described that made their way into the book we call the New Testament, but it's not new. 

The four gospel accounts about Yeshua and the Acts of the apostles (aka the sent out ones) was compiled years down the road. The Codex Sinaiticus is the first known copy that was compiled some 500 years after Eutychus fell out that window.

You can see the proof of the disciple's expectation for everyone to attend the weekly synagogue Shabbat reading. The fact is in plain sight in Acts 15:19-21. 

The hidden storyline of Acts 15 you may have not seen before is that the Jewish disciples knew that the Gentiles coming into Biblical faith could share in its Shabbat inheritance. It's a flashback, Madras moment to Leviticus. It's not new. 

The faithful men in that Midrash moment knew the covenant message: turn away (repent) from "idolatry" and its unholy abominations and detestable sin. They knew because they all believed what is written in Leviticus 17-10-16 and Leviticus 18.

Yes, you read that right, Acts 15 is a real world, real life Midrash moment with a decision based 100% on God's voice in Leviticus and Moses wrote every word he heard. 

They believed Moses because they believed God and they were witnesses to the fact that Yeshua lived, breathed, taught and explained what Moses wrote and that Yeshua never added to or took away from the written word of God. 

For those that have assumed from an old pulpit sermon or two that Acts 15 does away with Leviticus, think again. Peter declared it remains!!

Take a moment to read 1 Peter 2. 

The disciples wanted the Gentiles to clean up a few pagan problems first before synagogue attendance to hear and study the Bible if they wanted to learn to walk in the ways of Rabbi Jesus the Jew, the Torah keeping teacher from Nazareth.

"For from ancient generations Moses has had in every city those who proclaim him, for he is read every Sabbath in the synagogues.”

Sabbath was the custom of Jesus. Do you have the heart to follow Him and do what He did? 

No need to take my word for it, read Luke 4:16, Luke 6:1-11 or these 56 verses in the Newer Testament that wraps it all up with this book of Hebrews conclusion so many miss and take note:

"So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, or whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. 

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart." Hebrews 4:9-12

Still in doubt, let's keep it simple, ask yourself three questions about Constantine's change:

1) Do you believe that the Bible is God's living voice and that the original is inspired by our Creator?

2) Do you believe that all of Almighty God's covenant words, including the Ten Commandments still apply to you, or are you unwittingly exempting yourself from the forever covenant for mankind, remembering just nine of them?

3) Do you believe that the Almighty God of the universe is all knowing, or do I think that our Creator does not know that for ever means for ever?

From my Scripture studies, I can offer a few observations:

1) The "original" Scriptures are the authoritative, inspired Word of God. They are eternal, living and always apply to my life and yours if you seek to follow in the footsteps of Messiah into the Kingdom of God. The very Scriptures read every Sabbath for millenia are Messiah's Bible.

2) The Ten Commandments, not just nine establish the refreshing outline for "the rest" of God's instruction and teaching for all that choose to believe and follow Him. They were written in stone and apply to you and me. We are not to add to or take away from His voice to change it. So why do we compromise on the day of rest.

3) The LORD God is perfect, unchanging and His voice of truth is eternal. When He says "for ever" He means it. Unlike man, God does not change - so the concept of change is that you and I need to repent and return to "the faith which was once delivered" because truth does not change even for the lost sheep.

The facts are in the Hebrew Bible Jesus taught each Sabbath. It tells us about change:

Proverbs 24:21 My son, fear thou the LORD and the king: [and] meddle not with them that are given to change.

Malachi 3:6 For I [am] the LORD, I change not; therefore you sons of Jacob are not consumed.

Leviticus 26:2 You must keep My Sabbaths and revere My sanctuary; I am Y-H-V-H.

When most Christians think of faithful Jewish people, they likely think of the weekly Sabbath and Feast Day Sabbaths they have remembered since Sinai. The Newer Testament tells us this about the Jewish disciples that witnessed the acts and heard the words of Jesus the Jew:

Hebrews 13:7-9 Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith. Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. Do not be carried away by varied and strange teachings...

Like I said, imitate Yeshua's faith walk is the big lesson here. Don't be misled by strange teachings forget them.

This core truth is plain and simple, we should uphold and return to their faith of the disciples rooted firmly in God's unchanging Word - not get carried away with strange teachings like replacement theology, misguided translations or new doctrines with Sabbath time travel opinions from Rome.

Jerusalem is our home, it's the apple of God's eye. 

Despite the instruction to imitate the faith of the disciples, the fact is many like me have stumbled teaching that the Sabbath underwent a Gentile time shift away from God's forever instruction to remember even after the resurrection of Messiah Yeshua (Jesus Christ).

The no voice in the Bible that says forget. It's never found in any Hebrew Bible or the Newer Testament Greek manuscripts that say... On the first Sabbath.

Since creation, the heart of the meaning and purpose of the Sabbath is rest and restoration. God dis need a break, but He set apart the Sabbath for everyone that wants to live in His image. In my Scripture studies, I've learned Shabbat's goal of sanctification, rest and redemption. The Shabbat is God's perpetual sign of for the children of God that believe Him.

I also learned there are a few big reasons given in the Scripture for Shabbat as the seventh day, not the first work day of the week.

One is found in Exodus 20:11. Here we see God once again declares that He finished creation in six days and then rested on the seventh day and made it set apart... holy:

"For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." Exodus 20:11

What's the lesson? 

In the Bible, God teaches people to be like Him, after all, in the beginning He made us in His image! Almighty God instructs us to rest just like He did after His six days of creative work. You can read that in Genesis 2:1-3:

"Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation. Genesis 2:1-3

Why did God rest? 

He accomplished His creation, but He also knew we would drop the ball on the big ball, we would fall from His image, forget and make our own way on His planet of life so The LORD showed up at Sinai. 

Almighty God knew from the beginning we would need His words to be restored to His image in the end. 

That's the end game seventh day blessing to come and it's embedded in the Sabbath!

God's people, all of them, Jew or non-Jew must recognize our Creator set a limit to our earthly work and that ties to the restoration of creation as He intended it. There is a need to rest, to allow our body, mind, our soul to get a taste of Heaven on earth. That's God's way for Shabbat. 

There will be a day of refreshing led by Messiah. Just as Adam dropped the ball, Messiah Yeshua carries it. That's the message at the end of the book of Revelation.

There's another reason the Shabbat was given and Moses points it out... Remember that you were slaves in Egypt (the burden) and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God has commanded us to observe the Sabbath day (Deuteronomy 5:15). 

The Shabbat is a gift from our Creator God, it gives us the day to reflect on God's mighty hand accomplishments like creation, the Exodus from Egypt's ways of slavery and anything we cannot do on our own. 

That great escape from slavery points us all to Messiah's rest before He overcame the death burden of sin for all mankind in resurrection. You can choose to believe that miracle of life.

Still another reason can be seen in "the sign" of Shabbat declared by God to Moses on the Mount Sinai. 

That "sign" is found in the Torah scroll portion called Ki Tisa which means: "When You Take." That Torah portion is seen when the scroll is unrolled to Exodus 30:11-34:35. It teaches us about another great gift of Shabbat: 

"So that you may know that I am the LORD who sanctifies you."

The Sabbath include the God gift of sanctification.

Those are the last known words spoken by Almighty God before Moses came down the mountain of fire with the first set of precious stone tablets representing the child of God family sanctification sign of the Sabbath:

"The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “But as for you, speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘You shall surely observe My sabbaths; for this is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the LORD who sanctifies you. 

Therefore you are to observe the sabbath, for it is holy to you." 

"For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, holy to the LORD…"

Bottomline, the Sabbath is a Holy (set apart) appointment of The LORD.

It's His. 

If we'll just study the Scriptures, we can learn the Heavenly perspectives for the Shabbat include: creation, redemption and sanctification in rest oand rejoicing in the mighty salvation and deliverance from the slavery of sin by right arm of Almighty God.

I encourage you to search the Scriptures, be a Berean!!

God's unchanging written word is the light for our walk, the bread of truth, the water of life and Yeshua kept all of it, not religious tradition, doctrine or misinterpretation. 

Always, always test everything you hear from others and ask Almighty God to show you how to walk in His ancient unchanging path which are the footsteps of Messiah Yeshua an observant Jew who correctly interpreted the Torah as a Rabbi with His true message of repentance through fidelity to the Torah of God and His good news about redemption and the coming Kingdom of God.

For ever is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 

If you ask of The Father in prayer, He will to show you. Yeshua promised the Spirit of God will teach you His ways. Th LORD is the Almighty God of forgiveness and restoration and that includes His forever Sabbath as a sign. 

The Sabbath is God's day to sanctify you.

Open your Bible 
Rest in God's Sabbath.
When you do you may find what "appears to be" a conflict in Scripture translations, so you need to return to the original like the Acts 20 example above, but don't let that discourage you!! 

If you will study God's word and pray for the Spirit of God to guide your journey, you will be encouraged and discover the unchanging sanctification truth, but you have to open your Bible and close the door on the traditions of men, because you need to listen to God's voice and do what you can do about it.

You can believe that Jesus aka Yeshua is the anointed one, the Messiah that was perfect in Torah obedience, explanation and teaching. You can know that is why He's "Lord of the Sabbath" (Matthew 12:1-8, Mark 2:23-28 and Luke 6:1-5). After all, Yeshua always kept the Sabbath as God intended and did not break the for ever instruction from The Father.

There's no need to take my word here about God's Sabbath or the words of anyone else for that matter. Find the truth for yourself and ask not only what would Jesus do, but what did Jesus do?

The Bible shows us God's Kingdom way. It's Messiah's lifestyle in the image of God. Study Scripture for yourself, it's your connection to God's voice and the constitution of His Heaven on Earth plan, the Kingdom to come.

Dig in, study and you will find there's no Sunday time travel. 

Lies started with the serpent, he went after Eve with some poison in his mouth because he thought if he could kill her, human life on earth would end, but he was sorely mistaken. Do you remember the lie in Genesis 3? 

It's about the ongoing deception that God does not mean what He says. God's words were twisted in the deception that Eve would not die. The serpent called Elohim God a liar and God's word about that remains a warning:

"Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 

The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ 

“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”"

For me, one key to understanding the Sabbath that God made for mankind is to understand that our Father God and Creator made us to be in His image and so He gives us all His teaching and instruction for living His way because He loves us and we "get to" follow His teaching if we love Him.

The Father gave us the Sabbath because He loves us.We get to return the love!
In everyday life and even in death and resurrection, Yeshua showed us the importance of Sabbath rest. He rested in the grave on the Sabbath day when His atonement work as the suffering Messiah was complete to cover mankind's sin with His life blood poured out for all. 

In the end, the millennium (1000 year) 7th day is all about Sabbath. It's the grand finale. 

Think about it - is it really so hard to rest in God's teaching and instruction on His Sabbath? It's not a heavy burden at all. God declared the Sabbath day holy שַׁבָּת because He set it apart with a purpose to remind people every week that He is our source of resurrection life eternal, our source of restoration and The Lord will ultimately restore us from the curse of sin for eternity. 

We aren't saved from sin just yet, in our weakness we all still sin, but the Sabbath Day promise is holy, it's set apart forever and has not changed (see Exodus 20:8). It was given to the former slaves of Egypt, both of Jacob and the sojourners that left with them. It gave them a day of rest they had not experienced in Egypt's slavery. 

Right now Shabbat is a time slice of Heaven and a break from the sweat and dirt work declared in Genesis 3:17:

"And to Adam he said,

“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife
and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.

By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

That dust is not the end, there's a resurrection. That is why Yeshua said:

“The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27

The Sabbath is a promise from beginning to end, it is not like other days of the week that are numbered in Scripture, the Sabbath is the one day that was "named" by our Creator and He set the day apart as a Heavenly sign.

Time to re-read Genesis 1. 

There you will find the original "Sun" day. Yes, Sunday is the first day of God's "work." It's the day "God said, “Let there be light” and there was light. God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness."

If you look, you will also see the second day. That's when God separated the waters and on the third day plant life was given to the planet. On the fourth day, God divided the day from night and set the solar system and His master time clock with signs in Heaven to declare His seasons (His moed) Feast Days. On the fifth day God gave fish and birds life too. On the sixth day, that's the day He gave life to animals and on that sixth day, our Creator formed mankind from the dust of the Earth and breathed life into Adam.

Almighty God will do that again in resurrection. He will bring His children out of the dust of the earth (the grave) and breathe eternal life back into those in His covenant that are written in the book of life.

The weekdays on our calendars still correspond to the Genesis creation account despite the name disguises from Greek and Roman mythology, and take note, the days of God all begin at sunset not midnight. They are:

1. Yom Rishon – יום ראשון meaning "first day" [Sunday].
2. Yom Sheni – יום שני meaning "second day" [Monday].
3. Yom Shlishi – יום שלישי meaning "third day" [Tuesday].
4. Yom Reviʻi – יום רביעי meaning "fourth day" [Wednesday].
5. Yom Chamishi – יום חמישי "fifth day" [Thursday].
6. Yom Shishi – יום ששי meaning "sixth day" [Friday].
7. Yom Shabbat – יום שבת "rest" [Saturday aka the Sabbath].

Each day points toward the 6,000 year Biblical blueprint for the age of strife with the dirt and toward another Sabbath rest promise that is embedded in the Feasts of The Lord's Sabbaths. Paul wrote about that, like shadows they point to the day we call the millennium rest:

"Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a holy day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Messiah." Colossians 2:16-17

Yeshua gave three of His disciples a glimpse, a picture of the resurrection glory of the coming seventh millennium and life glory in resurrection. That time is about a restoration, a transfiguration. The account below is from the Hebrew Names Translation:

"After six days, Yeshua took with him Rock, Ya`akov, and Yochanan his brother, and brought them up into a high mountain by themselves. He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as white as the light. Behold, Moshe and Eliyah appeared to them talking with him. Rock answered, and said to Yeshua, "Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you want, let's make three tents here: one for you, one for Moshe, and one for Eliyah." While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them. Behold, a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Listen to him." When the talmidim heard it, they fell on their faces, and were very afraid. Yeshua came and touched them and said, "Get up, and don't be afraid."  Lifting up their eyes, they saw no one, except Yeshua alone." Matthew 17:1-8 HNV

It's the original message of the demon "deceiver" to fall (pun intended) for the idea that God does not mean what He says or that He changes His mind. You don't have to listen to that message any longer.

You can choose to believe Almighty God.

The Torah gives the world the story of the six days of creation and the seventh day Sabbath rest in the book of Genesis as a shadow picture of things to come in glory. Genesis is about God's 7,000-year plan of restoration for His relationship with mankind like the Garden of Eden before our fall into deception. 

As shown by the prayer of Moses in Psalm 90:4 and confirmed by Peter (see 2 Peter 3:8-9) each prophetic day described in the in creation account represents 1,000 years since Eden. 

The seventh day of creation (the Sabbath rest) is a prophetic shadow picture of the glory of the 1,000 year Messianic day of restoration. So don't be concerned if others miss-judge you about keeping the Sabbath day that was created for eternal life. If you believe a Sunday Sabbath deception, you may never understand God's eternal unending purpose for His Sabbath. 

It's about rest because its about restoration of life in the image of God just as He intended from the beginning.

Should you worry about the Sunday deception? Jesus said:

Matthew 5:18 "For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law (Torah), until all (of Torah) be fulfilled (filled with meaning)."

I know that I am still alive and breathing. I know that heaven and earth are still here too. 

How about you?

If you're reading this now, then you are alive and God's forever instruction still applies to you too because not one letter of God's word has passed away and there's much more to be fulfilled!

Think about those jots and tittles of the Torah for a moment.

They are only seen in the Hebrew script and never in English. It's not that translations are bad, but we must understand that the Bible Yeshua-Jesus read and taught each Sabbath was the Hebrew Bible, the Tanak. I like to think of it as the Messiah's Bible and remember a lot can be lost in translation.

At the sermon on The Mount, Yeshua aka Jesus the Jew is teaching that we must not ignore the Hebrew Scriptures. He said, they are not done away with. Instead, we need to repent and go back, return to them. When we do this, we get to realize there's much more to the sign of the Sabbath that we ever thought about on any work-day Sunday.

The Sabbath, like all of the appointments of The Lord, also have Heaven sent power to restore the relationship of Christian and Jew, a mixed multitude.

That's a big part of the hidden Lord of the Sabbath sanctification story behind the misunderstood letters of the Pharisee Paul. 

If you've read his letter to the Romans you can't miss it, he wrote of how God will reconcile Jew and Gentile in one body through Messiah, thereby killing the hostility, the dividing wall between them so that we are no longer strangers but fellow citizens of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with the cornerstone of Messiah in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a living holy house in the Lord.

Let's summarize what we can learn from the same unchanging Scriptures that Jesus taught:

• The Sabbath is the seventh day and a day of rest for a reason.
• God sanctified the Sabbath and made it holy for a good reason.
• The Sabbath is an eternal covenant between God and all of his people.
• The Sabbath is a Feast day, a celebration of The Lord.
• Yeshua is Lord of the Sabbath, because it points to Him.
• Both Jews and non-Jews are to keep the Sabbath.
• The Jewish Messiah is our Sabbath rest.
• The Sabbath is a shadow picture of the years of the Messianic Age to come.
• That Sabbath will start with the coming Day of Messiah.
• The Day of The Lord is the Messianic Age, the millennium of rest to restore the world.

Have you read the Ten Commandments recently?

If not, you should do that now. They are the summary outline, a table of contents if you will for the Torah teaching of God. They show us how to walk in His image and represent the eternal Sabbath. Believe it or not, the Sabbath is the longest commandment on God's list. Before ever declaring the Ten Commandments in thunder and fire on the mountaintop, God explained this about His teaching and instruction to the mixed multitude as they left Egypt. 

Remember, important words preceded Mount Sinai. They were spoken before the manna or the Pillar of Fire appeared, before the Red Sea crossing, before water poured from the rock:

“"There shall be one law (Torah) for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you.” Exodus 12:49

Bottomline, the Torah is for everyone.

The word "Sabbath" appears in some 137 verses in the King James Bible and 61 of them are in the so-called Old Testament, believe it or not 76 more are found in the Apostolic writings we call the New Testament. Check out the Bible facts for yourself.

So we must ask, should a blank page really divide the Old and New?

Nope. One reason we can know that is because God tells us that He established the Sabbath as a perpetual "sign." That child of God sign is so we can know that God is always in charge and that He wants to sanctify all of us in relationship to Him - in the end as it was in the beginning.

That sanctification sign will set you apart from the confusion and chaos of the dust, sweat and aching muscles and sadness in this fallen world, so that you get to enter into relationship set apart in God's rest.

Almighty God is as serious about this as He is about the resurrection to come, so He repeats His instruction. Look again at Exodus 20:8:

"Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy."

Holy means set apart, the Sabbath sets you apart as a beacon of light to show others you follow God like a sojourner with Him and notice what God says to do... "remember." 

Can you just imagine for a moment - that our Heavenly Father knew some of us would "forget" His sanctified seventh day and instruction to rest and that we would need to remember it?

I once forgot, but perhaps like you, I had not believed God's word when I read it. Again, I'm not church bashing, but I sat on a pew and listened without my own leaven fact check. I'm not preacher bashing either. 

The issue at hand is that any innocent excuse is gone, it's time to believe a Sabbath rest remains.

It's time to follow the signposts of the Sabbaths of The LORD in our Exodus from sin. It's time to heard God's voice and know why God said remember, because He knew some of us would forget:

"Speak also to the children of Israel, saying: `Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it [is] a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that [you] may know that I [am] The Lord who sanctifies you." Exodus 31:13

"...Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days." Matthew 12:12

"And he said unto them, the sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath" Mark 2:27

"And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read." Luke 4:16

"And it was the sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes." John 9:14

It's time to remember the clay...

Read John 1.  Jesus used clay for a reason. Man was formed man from clay and God wants to open our eyes to remember His appointed Sabbath day. The Father made it for you and I as a time to rest in Him and a time to do what Jesus did every week and turn our attention to The Father and study the word of God just like Jesus.

The Sabbath is a sign that our God sanctifies you and sets you apart. If you are searching to understand the Biblical background of your faith instead of new doctrine and tradition, open your eyes and ears to God's voice! 

If you are like me and ask how did we forget, some history is worth repeating. 

One of the first men to write and teach against the Sabbath ordained by God from the beginning was the son of a Roman Centurion. His name was Tertullian.

Can you believe that? The Roman Centurions not only killed Jesus they killed the Sabbath.

Tertullian was one of the so-called early church fathers along with Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr, Origen and others in the Greco-Roman world influenced by the idol worship of Sol Invictus. They called for a change in the times and seasons. Their goal was ultimately declared by the Emperor's Councils of Nicaea (325AD) and Laodicea (364AD). 

Those church councils infused the day of Sol Invictus into their church. That's one reason the world's calendars from a Pope or two are so random and chaotic.

The truth is God's calendar is tied to His creation and His plan to redeem the world from sin and restore it. God's calendar is organized as each month each starts with God's handiwork above. Our Creator uses a new moon to show us He's in charge and He is the God of order. In God time, each day begins with something we can all see not a manmade clock at midnight but a beautiful sunset.

After creation, God set apart the 7th day of the week for rest. In doing so He is pointing us to the Messianic Age to come. It will be the time to relearn the Bible and God's ways, a time to restore the world as it was in the beginning. That's exactly what Revelation 21 and Revelation 22 reveal: "There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him."

Despite the voice of our Creator that declares His Sabbath covenant in Exodus 31:12-17 and His teaching to keep it as a forever sign in Exodus 31:16-18, Tertullian wrote this: "We solemnize the day after Saturday in contradistinction to those who call this day their Sabbath" (Tertullian's Apology).

The Centurion also wrote that for ever changed: "It follows, accordingly, that, in so far as the abolition of carnal circumcision and of the old law is demonstrated as having been consummated at its specific times, so also the observance of the Sabbath is demonstrated to have been temporary." (Answer to the Jews 4:1, Ante-Nicene Fathers Vol. 3).

So, are we to follow Biblical truth or a Tertullian tradition that flies in the face of God's voice? 

Let's take another look at the Creator's instruction in Exodus 31:16-18:

"Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, [for] A PERPETUAL COVENANT. It [is] a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for [in] six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed. And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God."

When Did "For Ever" Change?

With God... it never does. The Sabbath is a perpetual covenant sign and it's the longest instruction given by God in the Ten Commandments for a God reason, it's a part of the bigger picture regarding  redemption and restoration in the age to come.

Our work schedules should not override God’s order of the universe or His appointments in the big plan of Almighty God. The fact is, the first day of the week, Sunday is a work day on God's calendar.

Look at the Biblical evidence for yourself:

"Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is a Sabbath, there will be none.” Exodus 16:26

"Six days you shall labor, and do all your work" Exodus 20:9

"For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." Exodus 20:11

“Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your servant woman, and the alien, may be refreshed." Exodus 23:12

"Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day shall be put to death." Exodus 31:15

"It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.'” Exodus 31:17

“Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest. In plowing time and in harvest you shall rest." Exodus 34:21

“Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work. It is a Sabbath to the LORD in all your dwelling places." Leviticus 23:3

"Six days you shall labor and do all your work" Deuteronomy 5:13

“Thus says the Lord GOD: The gate of the inner court that faces east shall be shut on the six working days, but on the Sabbath day it shall be opened, and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened." Ezekiel 46:1

The words from Ezekiel are a prophecy of the coming of Messiah the "one lifted up" that will enter by the vestibule of the golden gate of the Temple Mount when all nations will bow down at the entrance of that gate before The Lord of the Sabbath.

You see, when we "get to" honor and remember God's Sabbath rest as a day to stay away from our labors, we are not to just resting from our jobs and work chores that serve our earthly needs, we are acknowledging that Shabbat represents God's coming day of provision.

The Sabbath is eternal because Almighty El Shaddai declared it for ever. Simply said, He is Sovereign of the Universe.

Each week Shabbat provides a picture representing 'the day' that many know as the 1,000 years of the millennium.... "for a day is as a thousand years" (see Psalms 90:4 and 2Peter 3:8). The seventh day is to be set apart (holy) because represents it is "the day" that Messiah will return as King to restore Heaven on Earth.

That's the message of The Lord's Prayer (read Matthew 6:9–13 and Luke 11:1–4 for yourself).

Isaiah has a lot to say about this too. The amazing thing about the prophet Isaiah is that The Lord God told the prophet that prayer is linked to the Sabbath even for those that consider themselves foreigners or Gentiles:

“And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD,
to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD,
and to be his servants,
everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it,
and holds fast my covenant—
these I will bring to my holy mountain,
and make them joyful in my house of prayer;
their burnt offerings and their sacrifices
will be accepted on my altar;
for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”
The Lord GOD, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares,
“I will gather yet others to him
besides those already gathered.” Isaiah 56:6-8

The House of Prayer is for everyone and it is eternally linked to the Sabbath.

You read here that the Sabbath rest and the millennium is all about restoration, that not my idea, it is described by Isaiah:

"For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, [that] from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD." Isaiah 66:22-23

But don't freak out, God knew many would "innocently" forget by the inheritance of Tertullian lies about His instruction, but now that you know the truth... it is time to correct our hearts and our calendar to align with God's. Read Jeremiah 16:19:

"O LORD, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and [things] wherein [there is] no profit. 

Where is the evidence?"

Jeremiah asks... where is the evidence? Let's look:

God's word, His Torah requires two or three witnesses. What are they?

"For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit: and these three are one." 1John 5:7

If, like many, you think the words "it is finished" mean that the Torah has been done away with and hung on the cross, consider this:

"But if he will not hear [thee, then] take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established." Matthew 18:16

It is plainly written that Messiah Jesus (Yeshua) and the disciples kept the Sabbath. Let's look again at these words:

Mark 1:21-22 And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the Sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught. And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes.

Mark 2:27-28 And he said unto them, the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath: Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath.

Mark 6:1-2 And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him. And when the Sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing [him] were astonished, saying, From whence hath this [man] these things? and what wisdom [is] this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands?

Luke 4:16-19 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord [is] upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

Luke 4:31-32 And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the Sabbath days. And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power. 

Luke 6:5-6 And he said unto them, That the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath. And it came to pass also on another Sabbath, that he entered into the synagogue and taught: and there was a man whose right hand was withered.

Luke 13:10-13 And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up [herself]. And when Jesus saw her, he called [her to him], and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid [his] hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.

Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ (Yeshua The Anointed One) the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

Who is the One called Jesus? He is the one that shows us his deep remembrance of The Sabbath as He describes the events of the future end of the age of sin:

Matthew 24:20-22 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day: For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.

Many say the Apostle Paul rejected his Jewish heritage, started a new religion and ignored the Sabbath, but as we have already seen from the Greek text, Paul kept the Sabbath. Just read this from the book of Acts:

Acts 13:13-49 Now when Paul and his company loosed from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia. And John departing from them, returned to Jerusalem. But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath, and sat down. 

And after the reading of the law and the prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent to them, saying, Men, brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, speak. 

Then Paul stood up, and beckoning with [his] hand, said, Men of Israel, and ye that fear God, give audience. The God of this people Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt, and with a high arm he brought them out of it. And about the time of forty years he suffered their manners in the wilderness.

And when he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, he divided their land to them by lot. And after that he gave [to them] judges, about the space of four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet. And afterward they desired a king: and God gave to them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years. And when he had removed him, he raised up to them David to be their king: to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the [son] of Jesse, a man after my own heart, who shall fulfill all my will.

Of this man's offspring hath God, according to [his] promise, raised up to Israel a Savior, Jesus (Yeshua): John having first preached, before his coming, the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John fulfilled his course, he said, Whom think ye that I am? I am not [he]. But behold, there cometh one after me, whose shoes of [his] feet I am not worthy to loose. 

Men, brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent. For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the words of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, they have fulfilled [them] in condemning [him]. And though they found no cause of death [in him], yet they desired Pilate that he should be put to death. And when they had fulfilled all that was written concerning him, they took [him] down from the tree, and laid [him] in a sepulcher. But God raised him from the dead: And he was seen many days by them who came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses to the people. 

And we declare to you the glad tidings, that the promise which was made to the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same to us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus (Yeshua) again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. And as concerning that he raised him from the dead, [now] no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of David. Wherefore he saith also in another [psalm], Thou wilt not suffer thy Holy One to see corruption. For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, and was laid to his fathers, and saw corruption: But he whom God raised again, saw no corruption. 

Be it known to you therefore, men, brethren, that through this man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. Beware therefore, lest that come upon you which is spoken in the prophets; Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye will in no wise believe, though a man declare it to you. And when the Jews had gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath. 

Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas; who speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. 

And the next Sabbath came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God.

Acts 15:21 For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath day. Acts 17:2-4 And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, opening and alleging, that Messiah must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus (Yeshua), whom I preach unto you, is The Messiah. And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few. 

Acts 18:1-4 After these things Paul departed from Athens, and came to Corinth; And found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, lately come from Italy, with his wife Priscilla; (because that Claudius had commanded all Jews to depart from Rome:) and came unto them. And because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought: for by their occupation they were tent makers. And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.

How about you, are you now willing to look at the truth from God's point of view or continue in the lies of some forefathers?


The question now is once you discover the truth for yourself, what will you do with the traditions of men?

If we keep the Sabbath, we obey our living eternal God and follow His sign of obedience as we demonstrate our respect and love for The Father.

If we don't keep the Sabbath, we are obeying the edicts of Tertullian and a Roman Emperor by the name of Constantine, the words of mortal men, dead in the grave. As to Emperor Constantine of the Roman Empire, you can easily do your own research, but basically here is what happened:

The following is an excerpt from The Ausburg Confession of Faith, Article 28, written by Philip Melanchthon, approved by Martin Luther, which was submitted to His Imperial Majesty Charles V at the Diet of Augsburg in the Year 1530:

"They refer to the Sabbath-day as having been changed into the Lord's Day, contrary to the Decalog, as it seems. Neither is there any example whereof they make more than concerning the changing of the Sabbath-day. Great, say they, is the power of the Church, since it has dispensed with one of the Ten Commandments!"

Why should you have a problem with some of man's "traditions"?

Simple, they perhaps unwittingly, change God's for ever "instruction" although the Ten Commandments are written in stone by the finger of God Himself.

Here is the tradition of men straight from The Catholic Encyclopedia: on the council of Trent that claim the church overrides God's word:

"The Ten Commandments are precepts bearing on the fundamental obligations of morality and the revealed expression of the Creator's will in relation to man's whole duty to God and to his fellow-creatures. They are found twice recorded in the Pentateuch, in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5, but are given in an abridged form in the catechisms. Written by the finger of God on two tables of stone, this Divine code was received from the Almighty by Moses amid the thunders of Mount Sinai, and by him made the ground-work of the Mosaic Law. Christ resumed these Commandments in the double precept of charity--love of God and of the neighbour; He proclaimed them as binding under the New Law in Matthew 19 and in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5). He also simplified or interpreted them, e.g. by declaring unnecessary oaths equally unlawful with false, by condemning hatred and calumny as well as murder, by enjoining even love of enemies, and by condemning indulgence of evil desires as fraught with the same malice as adultery (Matthew 5).

The 'church' on the other hand, after changing the day of rest from the Jewish Sabbath, or seventh day of the week, to the first, made the Third Commandment refer to Sunday as the day to be kept holy as the Lord's Day. The Council of Trent (Sess. VI, can. xix) condemns those who deny that the Ten Commandments are binding on Christians."

"Sunday (Day of the Sun), as the name of the first day of the week, is derived from Egyptian astrology. The visible seven planets which can be seen by the naked eye, known to us as Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, the Sun, Venus, Mercury, and the Moon, each had an hour of the day assigned to them, and the planet which was regent during the first hour of any day of the week gave its name to that day (see CALENDAR). During the first and second century the week of seven days was introduced into Rome from Egypt, and the Roman names of the planets were given to each successive day." "These and similar indications show that during the first three centuries practice and tradition had consecrated the Sunday to the public worship of God.

The Council of Elvira (300) also decreed: "If anyone in the city neglects to come to church for three Sundays, let him be excommunicated for a short time so that he may be corrected" (xxi)."

"...we find St. Caesarius of Arles in the sixth century teaching that the holy Doctors of the Church had decreed that the whole glory of the Jewish Sabbath had been transferred to the Sunday, and that Christians must keep the Sunday holy in the same way as the Jews had been commanded to keep holy the Sabbath Day. He especially insisted on the people hearing the whole of the Mass and not leaving the church after the Epistle and the Gospel had been read. He taught them that they should come to Vespers and spend the rest of the day in pious reading and prayer."

"The obligation of rest from work on Sunday remained somewhat indefinite for several centuries. A Council of Laodicea, held toward the end of the fourth century, was content to prescribe that on the Lord's Day the faithful were to abstain from work as far as possible. At the beginning of the sixth century St. Caesarius, as we have seen, and others showed an inclination to apply the law of the Jewish Sabbath to the observance of the Christian Sunday. The Council held at Orleans in 538 reprobated this tendency as Jewish and non-Christian. From the eight century the law began to be formulated as it exists at the present day, and the local councils forbade servile work, public buying and selling, pleading in the law courts, and the public and solemn taking of oaths. There is a large body of civil legislation on the Sunday rest side by side with the ecclesiastical. It begins with an Edict of Constantine, the first Christian emperor, who forbade judges to sit and townspeople to work on Sunday. He made an exception in favour of agriculture."

Now let's look at the Council of Laodicea - CANON XXIX (29) from the Council of Laodicea in the year 364: "CHRISTIANS must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honouring the Lord's Day; and, if they can, resting then as Christians. But if any shall be found to be judaizers, let them be anathema from Christ."

Did The Lord know this would happen?

The Council of Laodicea has a discipline coming if they do not repent: "Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent." Revelation 3:19

Other "Canons" from Laodicea include these words:

"CANON XLIV. Women may not go to the altar. CANON LIX. No psalms composed by private individuals nor any uncanonical books may be read in the church, but only the Canonical Books of the Old and New Testaments. CANON LX. THESE are all the books of Old Testament appointed to be read: 1, Genesis of the world; 2, The Exodus from Egypt; 3, Leviticus; 4, Numbers; 5, Deuteronomy; 6, Joshua, the son of Nun; 7, Judges, Ruth; 8, Esther; 9, Of the Kings, First and Second; 10, Of the Kings, Third and Fourth; 11, Chronicles, First and Second; 12, Esdras, First and Second; 13, The Book of Psalms; 14, The Proverbs of Solomon; 15, Ecclesiastes; 16, The Song of Songs;17, Job; 18, The Twelve Prophets; 19, Isaiah; 20, Jeremiah, and Baruch, the Lamentations, and the Epistle; 21, Ezekiel; 22, Daniel. And these are the books of the New Testament: Four Gospels, according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John; The Acts of the Apostles; Seven Catholic Epistles, to wit, one of James, two of Peter, three of John, one of Jude; Fourteen Epistles of Paul, one to the Romans, two to the Corinthians, one to the Galatians, one to the Ephesians, one to the Philippians, one to the Colossians, two to the Thessalonians, one to the Hebrews, two to Timothy, one to Titus, and one to Philemon."

Just think about this for a minute...

Women may NOT go to the altar? Key books of the Bible were banned by the Council of Laodicea: Source: The Lost Books of the Bible and the Forgotten Books of Eden. Published by World Bible Publishers, Inc 1926.

Do you see it? The edicts, precepts and the doctrines of men change. With "man" little is constant but change, we all tend to think change is good but that too is a deception when it comes to God's teaching and instruction. GOD DOES NOT CHANGE.

The followers of Yeshua honored the Sabbath of rest before they approached the empty tomb:

Matthew 28:1 “In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first [day] of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.”

The plain and simple fact is that the Bible states the seventh day is the Sabbath Day of The Lord.

That is the day we now call Saturday on our modern weekly calendar. So, consider carefully and closely the words and the actions of Messiah Yeshua:

And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the Sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught. And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes. Mark 2:28 

Therefore the Son of Man is Lord also of the Sabbath. Luke 4:16 

And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. Luke 4:30-31 

But he passing through the midst of them went his way, And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the Sabbath days. Mark 1:21-22 

And he said unto them, That the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath. And it came to pass also on another Sabbath, that he entered into the synagogue and taught: and there was a man whose right hand was withered. And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the Sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him. But he knew their thoughts, and said to the man which had the withered hand, Rise up, and stand forth in the midst. And he arose and stood forth. Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the Sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy [it]? And looking round about upon them all, he said unto the man, Stretch forth thy hand. And he did so: and his hand was restored whole as the other. Luke 6:5-10

In the Torah, the teaching and instruction of Almighty God, human life is the grand scheme.

Yeshua taught this by healing broken and crippled people ravaged by birth defects or disease even on the Sabbath.

In our modern society where human life is taken easily even before birth, this reflects just how far humanity has strayed from its life purpose, especially the Sabbath.

The Bible never says that after the resurrection of Jesus we are to now ignore the rest of Scripture and change the Sabbath Day to Sunday in tradition to commemorate an empty tomb. You will never find it. I know, you may have heard that, but you will never ever find that message in God's word.

Look for yourself, that is another tradition of man which tries to void the eternal Word of God!

A key proponents of this "church" tradition was a guy by the name of St. Thomas Aquinas.

Aquinas was held to be the model teacher for those studying for the priesthood and its required celibacy. Think about that one for a second. If we followed that order, there would be no marriage, so there would be no children. Mankind would die off in about 70 years, so much for the tradition of Aquinas. God's second commandment given in Genesis 2:24 would be broken.

The theological work for which Aquinas is perhaps best-known is called the Summa Theologica and the Summa Contra Gentiles. He is considered by most Catholics to be the "church's" greatest philosopher.

In the Summa Theologica he states: "It would seem that blessing and sanctifying are not due to the seventh day. For it is usual to call a time blessed or holy for that some good thing has happened in it, or some evil been avoided. But whether God works or ceases from work nothing accrues to Him or is lost to Him. Therefore no special blessing or sanctifying are due to the seventh day."

So much for philosophy. From what I just read, Aquinas opposes God's word, but in the end, you must judge and decide for yourself what is right and good.

You may have heard it said that God changed His mind and did away with His Sabbath because Jesus arose from the tomb on Sunday morning. If so, let's look at the record.

The book of Matthew is quite clear. Mary Magdalene and "the other" Mary went to the sepulcher at the end of the Sabbath day and as two witnesses, they saw the angel of The Lord arrive with an earthquake that caused the guards to pass out, then he rolled back the stone to prove that it was already empty as it began to dawn toward Sunday. The angel even told them that he had left and gone on before them into Galilee. Now let's look at the words of Matthew:

Matthew 28:1-7 In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first [day] of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulcher. And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of The Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead [men]. And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you.

What does the Master of the Universe have to say about people that follow men like Aquinas?

Matthew 15:9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men.

Now you should do the research on your own and test what you have read here. Until you do your own study of God's unchanging word you may not be convinced about the for ever sign.

If you have read to this point, I believe your call is to pursue the Sabbath of The Lord. It has nothing to do with earning salvation, but everything to do with loving obedience to the voice of our Creator if you want to serve Him and be like His Messiah.

The choice is your. Choose to walk in your own tradition and rely on man's traditions or be set apart, sanctified to walk in God's ways, His ancient path. If you do choose the right path, you will notice that the Bible not only speaks of the Sabbath as a memorial of His creation week, but it also shows us a shadow picture of the future as it was in Eden and you will begin to understand the words in Isaiah 46:8-10 and remeber the Sabbath:

“Remember this and stand firm,
recall it to mind, you transgressors,
remember the former things of old;
for I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me,
declaring the end from the beginning
and from ancient times things not yet done,
saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
and I will accomplish all my purpose...

So, in addition to doing your own homework on the ancient Roman pagan day of sun worship, the day named Sun-day, you must research the facts of the Bible. Learning the truth about  sun worship is hard reading, but you may need to know about the ancient Mithraist day of Saturnalia and the pagan fertility festival of Eostre adopted by the Romans from Babylon and later by the "church" fathers at the first Council of Nicaea in 325AD led by Constantine if you still have doubts.

Shockingly, if you search, even a little, you will find the truth with your own eyes, that the "traditional" day you may have revered, has its origin in a lie with the time zone of pagan sun-worship, the traditions of men that oppose God and Scripture.

Believe me, I know - it is shocking to discover these traditions are the traditions of men, not God but you can take heart in these words:

Matthew 15:3 But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?

Colossians 2:16-17 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath [days]: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body [is] of Christ.

Like I used to, some Christians may ask: Didn’t Paul render the Sabbaths and God's holy days obsolete? Doesn’t Colossians 2:17 say that these things were 'mere' shadows?

Well... not quite. Look for yourself, the NASB does say "mere" shadows; however, the word mere is not found in any Greek text. That is why it appears in italics in the NASB, this indicates that the word mere was added in by the translator's tradition from Constantine.

"things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ."

Colossians 2:17 does not teach that the Sabbaths and holy Feast Days “were” a shadow. It says they “are” a shadow of what is to come.

Why is this important? It is important because it shows us that Paul properly regarded the Sabbath and the Feasts of The Lord as a shadow of the reality of Messiah, and not as a lost shadow of the past which had been made obsolete by the shadow of the cross.

The shadow of the Messiah is still with us. When we honor the Sabbath and The Feasts of The Lord if we are standing in the shadow of the Messiah.

Does that really matter?

Absolutely!!

Update: September 20, 2018: He is coming quickly (Revelation 22:12), even Pope Frances now agrees...

*******

The very command we are given to follow is a 'sign' spoken from the voice of God, not man. So as I have said, listen to Him not me. Just look in Exodus 20:1 and Leviticus 23:1 to see this for yourself. Despite what you may have heard or read from others, Scripture never gives any indication of changing any of God's appointed days.

When we look at the New Testament, and see that the disciples of Christ's time observed the Sabbath, and it just so happens that Messiah Yeshua called did too and praise God the Jewish people have preserved and honored His Sabbath and understand its ultimate reality.

I recently read a short article about the celebration of the Sabbath in Jewish tradition. The author described how the day of rest often concludes in the home with:

"Tales of Elijah the Prophet and songs that revolve around Elijah, King David and the King Moshiach, our righteous redeemer yet to come. You see, Shabbat is more than a day of rest ; it is a foretaste of the messianic era. As the day departs, we hope and yearn for the real thing – Elijah’s announcement of the arrival of Moshiach, the righteous scion of the House of David."

Open your mind to the light and water of God's truth about the Sabbath and heal your heart.

It's life giving when you understand when examining the life of The Messiah - our Savior, is Lord of the Sabbath. When you do it becomes quite evident that Jesus (Yeshua) kept the seventh-day Sabbath that He established as the Creator. He is the Lord and Master, He is the supreme authority of the Sabbath day and He NEVER gives any instruction to change it. After His death and resurrection, His followers also kept it holy as a set apart day. Through His example and theirs, we know that all people that want to show the sign of His authority will keep God's ordained seventh-day Sabbath!

The Messiah Jesus, teaching as a part of His gospel message teaches us how to observe the Sabbath, He says:

"The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath" Mark 2:27-28

If this verse ever seemed confusing to you in the past, let's clear it up with a question: What does He mean when He asserts that the Sabbath was made? Answer: It was part of God's original creation. Therefore, The Sabbath had to have a Maker, a Creator.

OK... next question: Who then, made the Sabbath? Answer: The Creator. But wait a minute, Paul proclaims in Ephesians 3:9 that "God . . . created all things through Jesus Christ." What was he talking about?

Let's look at the words of the gospel writer called John that were noted earlier. He begins:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men... And "the Word" became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." See John 1:1, 3-4 & 3:14.

The "Word" is Yeshua, it means salvation. He is "Salvation" who became a human being and lived among men.

Isaiah 43:11 I, [even] I, [am] the LORD; and beside me [there is] no savior.

He is God the Father from eternity. All things were made through Him! The Sabbath is one of those things that He made. God declared it at creation! Notice Colossians 1:16-18:

"For by Him [Christ] all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible... And He is the head of the body..."

If you have overlooked this in the past, don't feel bad, just repent and return to God because now you know the truth: Yeshua made the Sabbath! It is no wonder then when He says plainly that, as its Creator, He is The Lord and Master of His Sabbath Day!

Pay close attention to the words of Scripture:

"And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done."

God ended His work, the creation week was over! Creation Week was a full seven days of creation.

What did God do on the seventh day? He ended His work! So should we - - if we want to be like Him.

He established the Sabbath, not by work, but by ceasing from it. God has no need to re-order the days of His creation, nor do we. When He finished His work He then blessed and set apart the seventh day as a day of rest. It's that simple. So we must consider that Adam and Eve spent their first day "resting" in fellowship with the Creator.

God requires His children to treat the day with a respect not required of other time. Let's read what He told the prophet Isaiah:

"If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable, and shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, then you shall delight yourself in the Lord; and I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth, and feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father. The mouth of the Lord has spoken." Isaiah 58:13-14

We honor God by keeping holy those things that He has made as set apart, as "holy" and only God can declare and make things holy.

Jesus Christ, Yeshua Ha Mashiach is the same today as He was yesterday, and shall be forever (Hebrews 13:8). He has not changed in the least. 

"Blessed [is] the man [that] doeth this, and the son of man [that] layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil. Neither let the son of the stranger [nekar=alien], that hath joined himself to the LORD, speak, saying, The LORD hath utterly separated me from his people." Isaiah 56:2-3

I know there are many excellent books if you want to insist on reading about the Sabbath outside of God's word, you might want to try this one: The Sabbath - Scriptural Truth Concerning the Sabbath and Christian Sunday Observance.

But if you'd like to learn more on the Sabbath right now and how it ties into you life you should just set apart an hour or two aside right now and open your Bible to read and pray about keeping and honoring this perpetual sign of God's people that keep His word.

In closing, as you look in the Bible, take a look at the Greek word “kai” καί which is translated as “and” in Revelation 14:2... But did they (the translators) perhaps miss something in the meaning of this word? It also means “indeed”...

“Here is the patience of the saints: here [are] they that keep the commandments of God, [indeed] the faith of Yeshua.”

Indeed, we are to walk like Yeshua walked, keep the commandments of God, the faith of Messiah.

So as the Bible shows us, it turns out Sunday is not the Sabbath day of The Lord. God does not change His mind.

God's teaching is simple. We are to rest from occupational vocations on the Sabbath just as Jesus (Yeshua) did. God wants us to stop "tilling the soil" and "tending to business" for just one day each week so that we can immerse ourselves in worship of the Holy One. In this way, we can spend that time studying and teaching the word of God just as Messiah did. We just need to listen to God and out the words of men and their traditions in the proper place just as Paul taught in the misunderstood admonition of Colossians 2:16-17. If you job requires Sabbath work, Messiah shows us that healing or saving others is not work but if your job is not in this area look to God and ask Him in prayer for your employer to change your schedule.

God ordained the weekly Sabbath by His own declaration just as He created the world as a gift of life to mankind, animals and the land. Yeshua says of the Sabbath, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27) and He declared this about the Sabbath not because He changed it, but because He kept it and we have three witnesses:

For the Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath day. Matthew 12:8

Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath. Mark 2:28

And he said unto them, That the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath. Luke 6:5

The Sabbath is one of the appointment blessings God made for mankind to enjoy. Shabbat started on the seventh day of creation and it remains today for us to rest with Him.

If we think about it, the Sabbath of rest is an integral part of His unchanging laws of physics from creation. After all, whether he meant to reference the 7th day or not, consider what physicist Frank J. Tipler PhD writes:

"in general relativity, time is not relative: a unique rest frame exists."

What does this all mean?

Consider a prayer: Please God, teach me, guide me as to what I should do.

Help me repent and return to your Sabbath. Help me return to hear and do Your word and walk in the faith of Your Kingdom path. I want to be ready with your lamp for my coming assignment with Your new covenant promise written on my heart. 

Almighty God is a sovereign God. He is a loving God and He has provided a way to offer you His salvation though the One whose name means salvation: Yeshua. You can receive His gift of life. Consider carefully what your life consists of, look at it and pray to God and repent of any sin, pray and ask His forgiveness and accept His gift of love through Messiah Yeshua. Do it now! The Teacher is calling for you.

If Jesus called and asked you to arrange one opportunity to worship with Him, what day would He ask you to set apart for Him?

Revelation gives a big hint as it tells the last message and testimony of our Savior that includes the promise of the new Heaven and New Earth where He will teach us from His throne. Isaiah first writes to us about this and he says something important:

And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all mankind shall come to worship before me, saith the LORD. For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain. Isaiah 66:22-23

He chose the Sabbath day to teach.

And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught. Mark 1:21

And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands? Mark 6:2

And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. Luke 4:16

And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days. Luke 4:31

The apostles followed the Sabbath for ever established at creation.

And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. Acts 14:44

And he reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks. Acts 18:4

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Exodus 20:8

See, for that the LORD hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. Exodus 16:29

A Psalm for the sabbath day. It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High Psalm 92:1

May God Bless as you consider what would Yeshua ask you to do?

Shalom.