Reflections on the Sabbath

 Reflecting on the Sabbath

So recently I've been trying to think a bit more biblically when it comes to the Sabbath, and I think I have something that works well, both from the text and practically. So here's the summary:

Regarding the day, the Sabbath is from creation, and it's more-or-less confirmed in the New Testament, so we should take it seriously. However, the Sabbath being on Sunday is just a matter of practicality and tradition. I mean shoot, the New Testament church moved the "regular day of rest" from Saturday to Sunday. Furthermore, people in ministry often take a proper "day off" on Monday if they have obligations all day Sunday. That's a proper Sabbath too. We should also remember that the Sabbath was "made for man", and so adjusting the day to suit circumstances seems very scriptural.

That's not to take the "regular" Sunday Sabbath lightly, we should endeavor to share that rest with our Christian brothers and sisters in our local congregation, when possible. But we shouldn't get too hung up on the day. In fact, it's noteworthy that Paul specifically warns the Colossians against putting the old Jewish burdens on the Gentiles:

"see to it that nobody takes you captive... according to human tradition..., and not according to Christ. [L]et no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ."

As far as "what to do on the Sabbath", we should put a priority on simply "resting from normal labors", which is very consistently taught in the Old and New Testament. We can make the "rest" more spiritual, but just like the other parts of the law, it is AT LEAST what it says, a rest from regular physical labor. From scripture, we should also be VERY careful not to be quick to say, "you should do X on the Sabbath", and thus place obligations on others on their day of rest. The Pharisees were rightly condemned for such things.

Now, we do "obligate" worship on Sunday, though perhaps we can agree that it's an example of the more spiritual fulfillment of the Sabbath? We are certainly not "working", but instead receiving blessings and communion and the sermon, through no effort of our own.

Now, for a specific application that I struggled with once, should Christians go out to eat on Sunday? I think it's completely fine. The person serving my food is working on Sunday, but as I've mentioned above, I think it's unscriptural to get too hung up on WHICH day is the day of rest. This person serving food has his or her own day off, but if their employer doesn't allow them a day off, they are certainly violating God's institution of a Sabbath rest. And if going out to eat helps a Christian feel rested on the Sabbath, that sounds like a GREAT thing.