The principle of the day of rest is first mentioned in Genesis where God set the example of resting after a week of labor. “And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made” (Genesis 2:3).
God further established this teaching in the Ten Commandments. “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates” (Exodus 20:8-10). The Jewish people, lacking the infilling of God’s Holy Spirit, often saw this fourth commandment as a burden. The Old Testament prophets repeatedly had to warn them of their unfaithfulness in keeping the Sabbath.
This law was given as a type of that era of grace for which God was preparing the world. This commandment, as well as others, were pointing to and typifying Christ. God used them to teach and remind men again and again that the Messiah would come and bring into fulfillment the further unfolding of the spiritual kingdom. There were sacrifices to be offered upon commission of disobediences, thus reminding the offender of the need of a redeemer. Some offerings were offered daily, others weekly and monthly. There were annual feasts and offerings to be held. All of these prescribed rituals had this in common, that they intended to teach of Christ and his kingdom, his redemption, and his grace. It is beautiful when we recognize the harmony in the Word of God, and that God, from the very beginning, was setting the stage in so many ways for the coming of the Messiah. The New Testament further enlightens us on this subject. It tells us that the law was a “shadow” of that more perfect way that was to come. “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ” (Colossians 2:16-17). Read Hebrews 10:1-4, 9-10.
When Jesus came, the intent of these laws became clear. The command “Thou shalt not kill” is the law of God, but Christ taught us that he who hates his brother is a murderer. He taught us that we need to have love born in our hearts, thus making murder unthinkable. The law of love supersedes and makes unnecessary the Mosaic law. We see an example of this in the Passover feast that was commanded. This was commanded to point to the Lamb of God who would be slain for the sins of the world. When Jesus actually did come to die on Mount Calvary, his death eliminated the need for the feast that was observed with a lamb out of the flock. The real sacrifice far surpassed the shadow that had, many years before, been commanded. So Jesus, by bringing the real rest to men’s hearts, accomplished fully what the law could not do by requiring observance of the Sabbath.
One of the other great festivals commanded in the law was the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost. This festival was linked to the Passover. It was on this special occasion that God chose to send the gift of the Holy Spirit which completed the transition to the new dispensation. The resurrection of Jesus and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, without question, are two of the most significant events within the Christian faith. These both occurred, by the perfect plan of God, on the first day of the week. This initiated the new dispensation of a free will offering of the first fruits rather than the commanded offerings of the Harvest Feast, as Pentecost was also called.
As we have already noted God rested on the seventh day after creation. He sanctified this day and this principle. It was his purpose that every seven days man should remind himself of his need for rest. Man has a need for physical rest, but even more so a deep need for the soul’s rest. The deep longing of every soul is to find peace. Many seek this in different ways, but few find real satisfaction. We read that “the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest” (Isaiah 57:20). “The way of peace they know not” (Isaiah 59:8). God very well knew man’s need of peace. He also knew that there was one (Jesus) who could supply this rest for the soul. Just as sacrifices and offerings were commanded to remind man of his need of the saving blood of the Lamb, so also the day of rest was commanded to remind men of their need of a spiritual rest. Through the ages, however, man lost this vision and began to add rule to rule until he focused on the rule rather than on God.
Jesus came and found the religious men of the day very taken up with enforcing the letter to the law regarding the Sabbath but missing the intended purpose of the day of rest. For this reason Jesus said, “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath” (Mark 2:27). Jesus wanted man to see the observance of this day as a privilege in answering his soul’s cry to draw near to God.
Hebrews 4:1-10 further clarifies the matter of the rest that God intended for man through Jesus. There is that urge in man to do something for his salvation, hoping to find rest. In Jesus, man is to find rest from the labor of the law. He is the fulfilling of the commandments. Here verse 10 says, “For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.” Jesus met every requirement of the law. This was something no man could possibly do. We, by faith in this work of Jesus, find rest.
The message that Jesus preached was, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). That rest is freedom from guilt, and the burden of sin. It is rest from laboring to fulfill the law. Jesus brings grace that produces love and devotion in the life of the believer. The recipient of grace nevertheless willingly devotes himself in service to Christ. By his actions and teachings Jesus violated Jewish rules concerning their activities on the Sabbath. He, being the fulfillment of the day of rest, did not command its observance; however, He did attend worship services and did good on that day.
It is important to note how the disciples of Jesus worshipped following his death and resurrection. Jesus’s coming meant the law no longer had a hold on men. He now offered real rest rather than only demanding the observance of a day. Out of joy and appreciation the disciples often met together on the first day of the week, remembering Christ’s triumph over death. This practice of those who were closest to Jesus established direction for worshipping on the first day of the week. We are enjoined not to forsake the “assembling of ourselves together” (Hebrews 10:25).
For the person that has experienced peace with God and rest within, it is right that he would devote the Lord’s day to worshipping God and exercising himself in the way of truth. How sad it is that people who are called Christians would engage in frivolous and selfish activities on that day of remembering the power of his resurrection. It has always been the practice of God’s people to observe the day of worship. This is beneficial for edification of the spiritual man as well as being a type of that future total rest for all the redeemed.
The rest that every Christian can experience is only a foretaste of the eternal rest that shall come. There, in the bliss of heaven, the soul shall be totally at rest with the Father, Jesus, and all the saints and holy angels. The beautiful part is that one can have and enjoy this peace of mind and heart in this life and throughout all eternity (John 11:25-26). They shall “rest from their labours” (Revelation 14:13).