| Author | Message | ||
| Jude the Obscure |
Dear Adventist Friend: JESUS BROKE THE SABBATH. He broke it so that he could replace it with something better, something superior -- himself. Here's how: For years ñ about a hundred and fifty! ñ you and/or other SDA apologists have argued that Jesus was not REALLY doing what the apostle John (John 5:16-18 NIV) unambiguously and unequivocally said he was doing: ^^^^^^^^^^^ Because Jesus was doing these things [working] on the Sabbath, the Jews persecuted him. Jesus said to them, ìMy Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working.î For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. ^^^^^^^^^^^ You have also argued that Jesus did not break the Sabbath -- the Fourth Commandment of the Decalogue -- but only ìthe TRADITIONS of men.î But you are mistaken, and you have been mistaken all along. And right here, right now, I am going to prove this to you: That regardless of whether Jesus broke ìthe traditions of men,î he broke the letter of the law of Moses. I do not argue that he broke the Spirit of the law. He himself as God was and remains the Spirit of the law. Therefore he did not -- and indeed cannot -- break himself. But he did indeed break the LETTER of the law. Even if it was his own finger that was writing the letter of the law on two stone tablets on Mt. Sinai. Hereís my proof. Data Point No. 1: As God he MIXED a clay poultice on the Sabbath (John 9:6-15). Law broken: the Fourth Commandment of the Decalogue as unambiguously stated in Exodus 20:10 NIV: ìThe seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do ANY work.î Data Point No. 2: As God he allowed his disciples to REAP wheat on the Sabbath and defended them against the Phariseesí charges of Sabbath-breaking (Luke 6:1-5). Law broken: the Fourth Commandment of the Decalogue as unambiguously stated in Exodus 20:10 NIV: ìThe seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do ANY work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.î In other words, NOBODY under your command is exempt. Data Point No. 3: As God he allowed his disciples to THRESH wheat (rub it between their hands so that the chaff fell away) on the Sabbath and defended them against the Phariseesí charges of Sabbath-breaking (Luke 6:1-5). Law broken: the Fourth Commandment of the Decalogue as unambiguously stated in Exodus 20:10 NIV: ìThe seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do ANY work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.î In other words, NOBODY under your command is exempt. Data Point No. 4: As God he commanded a man to PICK UP his sleeping mat and TRANSPORT it on the Sabbath (John 5:1-19). Law broken: the Fourth Commandment of the Decalogue as unambiguously stated in Exodus 20:10 NIV: ìThe seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do ANY work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.î In other words, NOBODY under your command is exempt. Data Point No. 5: As God he allowed Peterís mother-in-law to ìWAIT ON himî or ìMINISTER UNTO him [KJV]î on the Sabbath (Matthew 8:13-16). Law broken: the Fourth Commandment of the Decalogue as unambiguously stated in Exodus 20:10 NIV: ìThe seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do ANY work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.î In other words, NOBODY under your command is exempt. And so, my Adventist friend, these very texts themselves disprove your argument of 150 years standing that he broke only ìthe TRADITIONS of men.î He broke the letter of the law. Furthermore, insofar as he broke one part of the STATEMENT of the law, he broke the whole thing. And he not only broke it, but he ~ abolished it in his flesh on the cross (Ephesians 2:14-18), ~ canceled it (Colossians 2:14), and ~ nailed it to the cross (Colossians 2:14). Your argument is mistaken and has always been mistaken. For Jesus broke the LETTER of the law, the STATEMENT of the law, his own law, written with his own finger. Because he had the RIGHT to break it, for he was and is God. Furthermore, again as God, he had the right to RESTATE it. Or to REINSTATE it. And hereís how in his sovereign will he chose to do exactly that: The word ìsabbathî means ìrest.î With that in mind, letís read Hebrews 4:1-13 NIV: ^^^^^^^^^^^ Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith. Now WE WHO HAVE BELIEVED ENTER THAT REST, just as God has said, ìSo I declared on oath in my anger, ëThey shall never enter my rest.í And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world. For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: ìAnd on the seventh day God rested from all his work.î And again in the passage above he says, ìThey shall never enter my rest.î It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience. Therefore GOD AGAIN SET A CERTAIN DAY, calling it TODAY, when a long time later he spoke through David, as was said before: ìToday, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.î For IF JOSHUA HAD GIVEN THEM REST, GOD WOULD NOT HAVE SPOKEN LATER ABOUT ANOTHER DAY. There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters Godís rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from Godís sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. ^^^^^^^^^^^ The passage just quoted unequivocally and unambiguously tells you that the GOSPEL of belief in Jesus Christ IS the SABBATH-rest. The seventh-day Sabbath was a type (shadow) that met its fulfillment in Jesus Christ as the antitype (reality). The STATEMENT of the law has been replaced with a PERSON who himself ñ in his acts and teachings -- IS the law. Therefore, belief in Jesus Christ as your personal Savior IS THE ONLY POSSIBLE WAY of keeping the Sabbath under the new covenant. I ask you to prayerfully consider my argument for Jesus Christ and then to reply here under this Discussion. In grace alone, faith alone and Scripture alone, Jude |
