Are we subject to the Old Covenant today?

[SabbathBlessings]

the sabbath is part of the 10 commandments and the two commandments the LORD gave us covers them ALL,

The two commandments hang on all the law and the prophets- not deleting them.

However...."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:”
Nor are we to put Stumbling Blocks before each other,
“Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his

There is more than one sabbath in the scripture- there is the Sabbath commandment written in stone that was before sin Genesis 2:1-3 and the annual sabbath (s) ordinances that are the feast days that point to Jesus who became our sacrificial Lamb for the forgiveness of sin when we repent and turn from sin. Colossians 2:14 tells us it is referring to the sabbath(s) ordinances, not the seventh day Sabbath commandment.

Colossians 2:14
Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

So we know this from Colossians 2:14:
1. They are handwritten
2. They are ordinances
3. They are contrary.

Does this fit the Sabbath commandment in any way? Absolutely not.
1. The Sabbath was finger-written by God Exodus 31:18
2. The Sabbath is a commandment of God. Exodus 20, Exodus 34:28
3. God said the Sabbath is holy and blessed Exodus 20:8-11

What Colossians 2:14 is referring to:

1. They are ordinances that have to do with sacrifices
Exodus 12:43 And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the Passover:
Ezekiel 43:18 And He said to me, “Son of man, thus says the Lord God: ‘These are the ordinances for the altar on the day when it is made, for sacrificing burnt offerings on it, and for sprinkling blood on it.

2. They were handwritten
2 Chronicles 33:8 Neither will I any more remove the foot of Israel from out of the land which I have appointed for your fathers; so that they will take heed to do all that I have commanded them, according to the whole law and the statutes and the ordinances by the hand of Moses.
Deuteronomy 31:24 So it was, when Moses had completed writing the words of this law in a book, when they were finished,

3. They were contrary
Deuteronomy 31:26 “Take this Book of the Law, and put it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there as a witness against you;

With that Being Said, Happy Sabbath/Shabbat (From New York)

A big Happy Sabbath to you too!

 

[daq]

In a conversation with DAQ in another thread, the question moved from whether we were still required to keep the kosher laws of the Old Covenant to whether we were still required to keep any of the laws of the Old Covenant. Below is a summation of my understanding of the modern Christian's responsibility to the Old Covenant based on Scripture, New and Old.

What is the purpose of the Law today?
1 Cor 10:11 - "Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come."
The Old Covenant stories are an example to us and as instruction to us; they are history from which we learn.

Rom 15:4 - "For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope."
Again, the Old Covenant Scriptures are for our encouragement and instruction.

2 Tim 3:14-17 - "You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, 15 and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man or woman of God may be fully capable, equipped for every good work."
The "sacred writings" and "all Scripture" here are the Old Covenant (the New Covenant having not yet been compiled as we have it today). The Old Covenant Scriptures are valuable "for teaching, for rebuking, for correction, and for training in righteousness". However, are they still binding on us today? Are we still bound to obey the Law of Moses? Is our salvation tied to keeping the Law? Or are we freed from the Law?


What then is the purpose of the Mosaic Law and the Old Covenant?
In Galatians 2, Paul tells of his confrontation with Peter. Before some of the Jews came to where Peter was, Peter was living and eating with Gentiles (presumably eating what the Gentiles ate), but when the Jews came Peter withdrew hypocritically from the Gentiles, and caused many of the Christian Jews with him to sin also (Gal 2:11-14).
Gal 2:15-21 - "“We are Jews by nature and not sinners from the Gentiles; 16 nevertheless, knowing that a person is not justified by works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the Law; since by works of the Law no flesh will be justified. 17 But if, while seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have also been found sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Far from it! 18 For if I rebuild what I have once destroyed, I prove myself to be a wrongdoer. 19 For through the Law I died to the Law, so that I might live for God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and ]the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.”"
The Law of Moses does not have the capability of making a person righteous before God.

The purpose of the Law was to show us what sin was, and to demonstrate to us that we could not keep the Law of God perfectly no matter how hard we try.
Gal 3:21-29 - "Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? Far from it! For if a law had been given that was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law. 22 But the Scripture has confined everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
23 But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the Law, being confined for the faith that was destined to be revealed. 24 Therefore the Law has become our guardian to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.
But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. 26 For you are all sons and daughters of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise."
The Law was not given to make us righteous, nor was it able to give us life. It was given to be a guardian (some translations say schoolmaster), an educator that would teach us morality and bring us to Jesus when He came. But now that Jesus has come in the flesh, we are no longer under the guardian, but are now under Christ. And this makes us heirs to God's promise to Abraham.
Romans 3:19-20 restates this same point.
"Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; 20 because by the works of the Law none of mankind will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes knowledge of sin."

But we are told in Jeremiah 31:31-34 that someday a New Covenant would be made with Israel.
"“Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers on the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord. 33 “For this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord: “I will put My law within them and write it on their heart; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 They will not teach again, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord, “for I will forgive their wrongdoing, and their sin I will no longer remember.”"
This very passage was quoted by the writer of Hebrews in chapter 8. Right after the writer says that we have a High Priest greater than any High Priest of the past (the Old Covenant), who is not able to be a priest of the Old Covenant because He is not of the right House. But He is both our High Priest and King then and forever.
Heb 8:1-7 - "Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, 2 a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord set up, not man. 3 For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices; so it is necessary that this high priest also have something to offer. 4 Now if He were on earth, He would not be a priest at all, since there are those who offer the gifts according to the Law; 5 who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, just as Moses was warned by God when he was about to erect the tabernacle; for, “See,” He says, “that you make all things by the pattern which was shown to you on the mountain.” 6 But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, to the extent that He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises.
7 For if that first covenant had been free of fault, no circumstances would have been sought for a second."
The OT priests (Levites) served a copy of the Heavenly things, but Jesus is the thing which they copied. But there was fault in the first (Old) Covenant, and so a second was required; a better Covenant based on better promises.
Heb 8:13 - "When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is about to disappear."
When did He say that there was a New Covenant coming? In Jeremiah. The Old Covenant was made obsolete when Jeremiah was alive, but it did not disappear (cease to be relevant to believers in God) until Jesus came and fulfilled it.
Heb 10:1-10 - "For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the form of those things itself, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually every year, make those who approach perfect. 2 Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have had consciousness of sins? 3 But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. 4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. 5 Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says,
“You have not desired sacrifice and offering,
But You have prepared a body for Me;
6 You have not taken pleasure in whole burnt offerings and offerings for sin.
7 Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come
(It is written of Me in the scroll of the book)
To do Your will, O God.’”
8 After saying above, “Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and offerings for sin You have not desired, nor have You taken pleasure in them” (which are offered according to the Law), 9 then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will.” He takes away the first in order to establish the second. 10 By this will, we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time."
By His sacrifice on the Cross, Jesus took away the first order (the Old Covenant) to establish the second (New Covenant).
Finally, Gal 4:21-31 gives us a very clear picture from history to depict the reality of the two covenants.
"Tell me, you who want to be under law, do you not listen to the Law? 22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and one by the free woman. 23 But the son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, and the son by the free woman through the promise. 24 This is speaking allegorically, for these women are two covenants: one coming from Mount Sinai giving birth to children who are to be slaves; she is Hagar. 25 Now this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is enslaved with her children. 26 But the Jerusalem above is free; she is our mother. 27 For it is written:
“Rejoice, infertile one, you who do not give birth;
Break forth and shout, you who are not in labor;
For the children of the desolate one are more numerous
Than those of the one who has a husband.”
28 And you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise. 29 But as at that time the son who was born according to the flesh persecuted the one who was born according to the Spirit, so it is even now. 30 But what does the Scripture say?
“Drive out the slave woman and her son,
For the son of the slave woman shall not be an heir with the son of the free woman.”
31 So then, brothers and sisters, we are not children of a slave woman, but of the free woman."
The Old Covenant which came from Mt. Sinai is likened to Hagar, the slave mother of the slave son of Abraham who would not be heir.
The New Covenant in Christ is likened to Sarah, the free mother of the free son of Abraham who was heir to the promise.
As we have seen in Gal 3:29 above, those who believe in Christ are heirs to Abraham and the Promise, not those who cling to the Old Covenant.

What does this mean for us today?
Acts 15:8-11 - "And God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; 9 and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. 10 Since this is the case, why are you putting God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our forefathers nor we have been able to bear? 11 But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are.”"
Peter, speaking here to the other Apostles and leaders in Jerusalem, asks a very pertinent question. Why would the Jews seek to put around the necks of the Gentiles a yolk that they themselves had been able to bear? The Jews were and are saved through the grace of Jesus just as the Gentiles of the first century were and are still today.
So then, it is clear when Paul speaks to the people at Colossi that he is telling them that they are not bound to the Law in what they eat, or what festivals they keep, or to keeping the sabbath.
Col 2:16-17 - "Therefore, no one is to act as your judge in regard to food and drink, or in respect to a festival or a new moon, or a Sabbath day — 17 things which are only a shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ."
Let no one judge you or criticize you about what you eat or drink, or about a festival you keep or don't keep, or about keeping or not keeping the sabbath, because these things are only a shadow of the real thing, and the real thing is Christ.
Matt 5:17-18 - "“Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. 18 For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished!""
Jesus came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets (the Old Covenant). What does it mean that He "fulfilled" it?
1. He kept them perfectly
2. He fulfilled the prophecies about the Messiah that would come and save both Israel and the Nations.
3. He satisfied the Covenant with God, finishing all the requirements of the Law and making room for a New Covenant to be established that would accomplish the promise made to Abraham.

Heb 4:1-11 - "Therefore, we must fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have come short of it. 2 For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also did; but the word they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united with those who listened with faith. 3 For we who have believed enter that rest, just as He has said,
“As I swore in My anger,
They certainly shall not enter My rest,”
although His works were finished from the foundation of the world. 4 For He has said somewhere concerning the seventh day: “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works”; 5 and again in this passage, “They certainly shall not enter My rest.” 6 Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it, and those who previously had good news preached to them failed to enter because of disobedience, 7 He again sets a certain day, “Today,” saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before,
“Today if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.”
8 For if Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that. 9 Consequently, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. 10 For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His. 11 Therefore let’s make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following the same example of disobedience."
From this passage we see that the Israelites were given the sabbath as a rest, but many did not "enter into My rest". Why? Because of disobedience. But then He sets another day. What day? TODAY! Then verse 10 says that the One (Jesus) who has entered His rest has also rested from His works (salvation). So let us make every effort to enter into His (Jesus') rest.
But from what is it that Jesus is our rest? Jesus is our rest from our efforts to be "good enough" or to keep the Law perfectly. He kept the Law, and He offers us His perfection so that we can rest.
Thus, Jesus is the New Testament sabbath, and TODAY is the day to enter into Him.

I said one passage at a time, (#631), not a wall of scripture with your commentary interspersed so closely that it looks like part of the scripture. You already accused me in the former thread of quoting you out of the context of the scripture because I had to clip your comment out a paragraph to quote it. Apparently we do not even study the scripture the same way.

 

[Doug Brents]

See how you did that- you added to my words, I see a pattern here. God's commandments are His Word, they are not in conflict.

God's commandments are His Words, whether spoken, engraved, inspired, or heard in the heart. Yet you seem to think that the fact that God engraved the 10 with His own hand makes them more special or something. They aren't! The New Covenant commands are just as meaningful, actually they are more meaningful than the Old since it is God Himself who said that the Old Covenant is obsolete and no longer the standard of life for the New Testament Christian.

 

[SabbathBlessings]

God's commandments are His Words, whether spoken, engraved, inspired, or heard in the heart. Yet you seem to think that the fact that God engraved the 10 with His own hand makes them more special or something. They aren't! The New Covenant commands are just as meaningful, actually they are more meaningful than the Old since it is God Himself who said that the Old Covenant is obsolete and no longer the standard of life for the New Testament Christian.

Where are God’s Ten Commandments now? Revelation 11:19. I believe God’s work is special Exodus 32:16, written by the finger of God is more significant than written by human hands. Written on stone is more significant than written on paper. Inside the ark is more significant than outside. In the Most Holy of God’s Temple where He dwells is significant and I am sorry you don’t recognize these significances. God’s Ten Commandments will never be obsolete, the covenant is obsolete not God’s laws. God instead of deleting His commandments are now written in the heart and mind of His people Hebrews 8:10 God laws are the same laws that Jesus kept and taught. John 15:10, Matthew 15:3-9, Matthew 5:19-30, Matthew 19:17-19, John 14:15 Luke 4:16 Mark 2:27, Matthew 7:21-23 as well as the apostles- too many scriptures to quote but here’s a few Romans 7:7, Romans 7:12, Revelation 14:15, 1 John 2:3-5, 1 John 2:3-6, James 2:10-12, Eph 6:2, Revelation 22:14-15, 1 Cor 7:19 so no the commandments of God have not been deleted in the New Covenant. God’s laws reflect God’s character- trying to remove God’s law is essentially removing God. There is another spirit that wants us to believe we do not need to keep the commandment of God Revelation 12:17 and disobeying God is what got him kicked out of heaven. To think we can follow the same path of disobedience and get a different result is not building our house on the Rock.

 

[Doug Brents]

No, Jesus lived His life under the New Covenant Hebrews 12:24 and lived a perfect life without sin as an example for us to follow.1 Peter 2:21-22, 1 John 2:6 There was no changes after Jesus died it was finished. Jesus commanded His disciples to teach everything Jesus observed Matthew 28:20, Jesus observed the Sabbath so your argument is with Someone much greater than I.

ROTFL, just wow. The New Covenant could not have begun until Jesus' blood was shed, at the end of His life (Luke 22:20, 1 Cor 11:25). Jesus lived under the Law (Gal 4:4), so that He could redeem those who were under the Law. A Will (or testament) is not in force until the testator dies (Heb 9:16-17). Heb 12:24 says that He is the mediator of the New Covenant, not that He lived under it.

 

[SabbathBlessings]

ROTFL, just wow. The New Covenant could not have begun until Jesus' blood was shed, at the end of His life (Luke 22:20, 1 Cor 11:25). Jesus lived under the Law (Gal 4:4), so that He could redeem those who were under the Law. A Will (or testament) is not in force until the testator dies (Heb 9:16-17). Heb 12:24 says that He is the mediator of the New Covenant, not that He lived under it.

The New Covenant started in the Old Testament Jeremiah 31:33 which is unchanged from Hebrews 8:10. Jesus lived under the New Covenant and He is the Mediator of God’s New Covenant promise. Hebrews 9:15, Hebrews 8:6 Jesus came to show us how to overcome sin and lived as our example to follow 1 John 2:6 not to do something different the moment He died. Jesus kept all of the commandments of God and Jesus and God are not in conflict with their laws. Jesus came to do the will of the Father John 6:38 God’s will is that we obey Him through love Exodus 20:6 Psalms 40:8, Hebrews 8:10 and faith which upholds the law Romans 3:31, Revelation 14:12

 

[Doug Brents]

I said one passage at a time, (#631), not a wall of scripture with your commentary interspersed so closely that it looks like part of the scripture. You already accused me in the former thread of quoting you out of the context of the scripture because I had to clip your comment out a paragraph to quote it. Apparently we do not even study the scripture the same way.

Indeed we do not study it the same way if you believe that we are still subject to the Old Covenant. Just one passage at a time you say? Not really possible, since Scripture is really only one document in many volumes, and all of it is the same voice speaking (God) regardless of the writer. But you want to look at one single passage? Let's start with Gal 4:21-31. Oh, and by the way, it is very easy to tell what is the commentary I wrote, and what came from Scripture. Scripture is red, and my comments are in black. And most of the time, I am just restating what is there in Scripture.

I know you disbelieve the truth of this passage, But the very first statement is aimed directly at you from God.
"Tell me, you who want to be under law, do you not listen to the Law? 22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and one by the free woman. 23 But the son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, and the son by the free woman through the promise. 24 This is speaking allegorically, for these women are two covenants: one coming from Mount Sinai giving birth to children who are to be slaves; she is Hagar. 25 Now this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is enslaved with her children. 26 But the Jerusalem above is free; she is our mother. 27 For it is written:
“Rejoice, infertile one, you who do not give birth;
Break forth and shout, you who are not in labor;
For the children of the desolate one are more numerous
Than those of the one who has a husband.”
28 And you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise. 29 But as at that time the son who was born according to the flesh persecuted the one who was born according to the Spirit, so it is even now. 30 But what does the Scripture say?
“Drive out the slave woman and her son,
For the son of the slave woman shall not be an heir with the son of the free woman.”
31 So then, brothers and sisters, we are not children of a slave woman, but of the free woman."

Now, I will take the very same passage and add comments.
"Tell me, you who want to be under law, do you not listen to the Law? 22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and one by the free woman. 23 But the son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, and the son by the free woman through the promise. 24 This is speaking allegorically, for these women are two covenants: one coming from Mount Sinai giving birth to children who are to be slaves; she is Hagar [Hagar, the slave, from Mt Sinai, the Old Covenant]. 25 Now this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is enslaved with her children [How is present Jerusalem enslaved? She is bound to the Old Covenant]. 26 But the Jerusalem above is free; she is our mother [This is the New Covenant]. 27 For it is written:
“Rejoice, infertile one, you who do not give birth;
Break forth and shout, you who are not in labor;
For the children of the desolate one are more numerous
Than those of the one who has a husband.” [These are the children of the New Covenant from all nations]
28 And you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise [Children of the New Covenant]. 29 But as at that time the son who was born according to the flesh [Followers of the Old Covenant] persecuted the one who was born according to the Spirit [followers of the New Covenant], so it is even now. 30 But what does the Scripture say?
“Drive out the slave woman and her son, [Drive out the Old Covenant]
For the son of the slave woman shall not be an heir [Followers of the Old Covenant will not be heirs with Christ] with the son of the free woman.”
31 So then, brothers and sisters, we are not children of a slave woman, but of the free woman."

So, are you as son of Hagar (Mt Sinai, slavery, the Old Covenant)? Or are you a son of Sarah (Jerusalem above, freedom, the New Covenant)?

 

[BobRyan]

"Remains from when"?

Where do you get a "when" from which it remains in this passage?

If something remains then it remains from a prior point in time, by definition.

What prior point in time does Heb 4 reference for that statement?

It quotes from David in the Psalms (Ps 95:7)

7 He again sets a certain day, “Today,” saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before,​

​

“Today if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.”​

​

8 For if Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that. 9 Consequently, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God.​

"remains" from the way it was at the time of David -

Heb 4:7-9
"He again sets a certain day, “Today,” saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before,
“Today if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.”
8 For if Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that. 9 Consequently, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God."
There remains a sabbath rest:

Indeed. It remains just as it was at the time of David. With the call for repentance.

“Today if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.”


Nothing here makes it appear that "do not take God's name in vain " no longer applies.

in fact we have a lot of NT saints quoting directly from the OT as we see here - but more than that - quoting from the Law of Moses

Christ quotes from the Law of Moses in Matt - the two greatest commandments in the Law of Moses
Christ quotes from the Law of Moses in Matt 19
Paul quotes from the Law of Moses in Eph 6:2
Paul quotes from the Law of Moses in Rom 13, and Romans 7
James quotes from the Law of Moses in James 2


Which they would not be doing had all those commandments been deleted at the cross.

 

[BobRyan]

I myself Try to Observe the sabbath when able out of respect for the heavenly father and his WORK
the sabbath is part of the 10 commandments and the two commandments the LORD gave us covers them ALL,
However...."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:”
Nor are we to put Stumbling Blocks before each other,
“Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother's way.”




With that Being Said, Happy Sabbath/Shabbat (From New York)

Amen --- this is not about judging others - it is about "what does God's Word say"?

It is about addressing the question "how does the New Covenant in Jer 31:31-34 related to the Old Covenant"?

What Law did Jeremiah and his readers know about that is "written on the heart" in the New Covenant?

 

[daq]

Indeed we do not study it the same way if you believe that we are still subject to the Old Covenant. Just one passage at a time you say? Not really possible, since Scripture is really only one document in many volumes, and all of it is the same voice speaking (God) regardless of the writer. But you want to look at one single passage? Let's start with Gal 4:21-31. Oh, and by the way, it is very easy to tell what is the commentary I wrote, and what came from Scripture. Scripture is red, and my comments are in black. And most of the time, I am just restating what is there in Scripture.

I know you disbelieve the truth of this passage, But the very first statement is aimed directly at you from God.
"Tell me, you who want to be under law, do you not listen to the Law? 22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and one by the free woman. 23 But the son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, and the son by the free woman through the promise. 24 This is speaking allegorically, for these women are two covenants: one coming from Mount Sinai giving birth to children who are to be slaves; she is Hagar. 25 Now this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is enslaved with her children. 26 But the Jerusalem above is free; she is our mother. 27 For it is written:
“Rejoice, infertile one, you who do not give birth;
Break forth and shout, you who are not in labor;
For the children of the desolate one are more numerous
Than those of the one who has a husband.”
28 And you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise. 29 But as at that time the son who was born according to the flesh persecuted the one who was born according to the Spirit, so it is even now. 30 But what does the Scripture say?
“Drive out the slave woman and her son,
For the son of the slave woman shall not be an heir with the son of the free woman.”
31 So then, brothers and sisters, we are not children of a slave woman, but of the free woman."

Now, I will take the very same passage and add comments.
"Tell me, you who want to be under law, do you not listen to the Law? 22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and one by the free woman. 23 But the son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, and the son by the free woman through the promise. 24 This is speaking allegorically, for these women are two covenants: one coming from Mount Sinai giving birth to children who are to be slaves; she is Hagar [Hagar, the slave, from Mt Sinai, the Old Covenant]. 25 Now this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is enslaved with her children [How is present Jerusalem enslaved? She is bound to the Old Covenant]. 26 But the Jerusalem above is free; she is our mother [This is the New Covenant]. 27 For it is written:
“Rejoice, infertile one, you who do not give birth;
Break forth and shout, you who are not in labor;
For the children of the desolate one are more numerous
Than those of the one who has a husband.” [These are the children of the New Covenant from all nations]
28 And you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise [Children of the New Covenant]. 29 But as at that time the son who was born according to the flesh [Followers of the Old Covenant] persecuted the one who was born according to the Spirit [followers of the New Covenant], so it is even now. 30 But what does the Scripture say?
“Drive out the slave woman and her son, [Drive out the Old Covenant]
For the son of the slave woman shall not be an heir [Followers of the Old Covenant will not be heirs with Christ] with the son of the free woman.”
31 So then, brothers and sisters, we are not children of a slave woman, but of the free woman."

So, are you as son of Hagar (Mt Sinai, slavery, the Old Covenant)? Or are you a son of Sarah (Jerusalem above, freedom, the New Covenant)?

I see, so this is one of the passages you claimed in the other thread that I had ignored. Obviously that was not true. We already went over this extensively in that thread and I explained my understanding from the scripture. Then you accused me of going off on unrelated tangents because you refuse to include the background material to which Paul refers when he quotes from passages out of the Torah, Prophets, and Writings. You've now lost all credibility with me.

 

[daq]

26 But the Jerusalem above is free; she is our mother [This is the New Covenant]. 27 For it is written:
“Rejoice, infertile one, you who do not give birth;
Break forth and shout, you who are not in labor;
For the children of the desolate one are more numerous
Than those of the one who has a husband.” [These are the children of the New Covenant from all nations]

Galatians 4:22-23 KJV
22 For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman.
23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise.

One born of the flesh: the other through the promise. The one born of the flesh is Yishmael. The one born through the promise is obviously Yitzhak.

Galatians 4:24 KJV
24 Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.

This concerns an allegory of the two covenants. The one from mount Sinai, which is "of below" engenders bondage because all who see and hear the Torah according to the natural eyes and mind of the flesh put themselves into bondage trying to keep the Torah according to the flesh. This is represented in the allegory by Hagar, an Egyptian, and as the scripture speaks about in many places concerning the allegory, Egypt represents the flesh.

Galatians 4:25 KJV
25 For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children.

Hagar being likened to mount Sinai in Arabia answers to Yerushalem "which now is", meaning that this concerns Yerushalem "of below", the natural physical city of below. At the time, what Paul says here was true: Yerushalem of below was in bondage with her children, for her "children" misunderstood the Torah because they understood everything according the natural mind of the natural man, seeing all things according to the natural eyes and mind of the carnal minded man.

Galatians 4:26 KJV
26 But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.

Yerushalem of above is free, and is the mother of all those who understand the very same Torah and Word of Elohim according to the Spirit, and especially in this time in which Paul writes this, those who understood the Torah according to the Testimony of the Messiah who had come by the time Paul writes this.

Sarah is Yerushalem of above in this allegory.

Galatians 4:27 KJV
27 For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband.

Fully explained by reading the background context, as already posted previously: Yerushalem above is likened to the Mishkan-Tabernacle of the Torah. This means that, just as the Master says to Nikodemos, Amen, amen, you are required to go back into the womb of your mother and relearn everything because your entire physical minded understanding of the Torah is no different from the first century Pharisees: the only real difference is that you reject it instead of trying to walk in it.

Galatians 4:28 KJV
28 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.

Children of the promise walk in the Word of Elohim according to the Spirit and the Testimony of the Messiah in the Gospel accounts. They do not claim that the Word of Elohim is cancelled or abolished: those are the children of Hagar because they are not capable of understanding the Torah, and are repulsed by it because they only walk according to the eyes and mind of the natural man who sees all things according to the flesh.

Galatians 4:28 KJV
29 But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.

And that is the thrust of the argument: the Flesh vs the Spirit, as always, and the natural minded man cannot please Elohim just as Paul likewise says.

Sarah -vs- Hagar (Egypt, great of flesh, Eze 16:26)
Horeb (of above) -vs- Sinai (of below)
Yerushalem (of above) -vs- Yerushalem (of below)
Yitzhak -vs- Yishmael
The Spirit -vs- the Flesh

Are you aware that Paul quotes Isaiah 54:1 in Galatians 4:27 immediately after saying that Yerushalem of above is our mother? And by the context and the allegory he surely means our mother covenant. N/T authors do not quote from scripture passages and ignore the surrounding context: that would be cherry-picking. Paul surely intends that the reader go back and study the context so that he or she may fully understand what he is saying. In the passage from which he quotes we find that Yerushalem of above therein is likened to the Mishkan Tabernacle of the Torah and thus according to Paul this is representative of our mother covenant.

Isaiah 54:1-3 KJV
1 Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD. [Gal 4:27]
2 Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;
3 For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.

The tent, the curtains, the cords, the stakes?
These are all items pertaining to the Mishkan-Tabernacle.

Where is the Mishkan-Tabernacle of Yerushalem of above in your "new covenant" theory? It isn't there because you canceled it, and therefore it is you who is preaching a different gospel than what Paul preaches. Please review Galatians 1:6-9, for it is a double-edged sword that cuts both ways: not just for the one who quotes it more often.

 

[Doug Brents]

The New Covenant started in the Old Testament Jeremiah 31:33 which is unchanged from Hebrews 8:10. Jesus lived under the New Covenant and He is the Mediator of God’s New Covenant promise. Jesus came to show us how to overcome sin and lived as our example to follow 1 John 2:6 not to do something different the moment He died. Jesus kept all of the commandments of God and Jesus and God are not in conflict with their laws. Jesus came to do the will of the Father John 6:38 God’s will is that we obey Him through love Exodus 20:6 Psalms 40:8, Hebrews 8:10 and faith which upholds the law Romans 3:31, Revelation 14:12

Just WOW!!!

Jeremiah speaks of a future covenant, not a covenant that was then in effect. Hebrews 8 is looking back at Jeremiah's prophecy about the New Covenant that was to come, and saying that the New Covenant is now in effect.
Throughout His ministry, Jesus always pointed forward to the Kingdom of Heaven (New Covenant). The New Covenant was not in effect throughout His ministry. It was not established until His death, because a covenant (testament, will (all the same Greek word) does not go into effect until the death of the maker of the will (Heb 9:16-17). Even the Old covenant did not go into effect until blood was shed (in this case God allowed lamb's blood to substitute (Exo 24:8)).
Yes, Jesus gave us an example of how to live, but His command was to obey Him, not the Old Covenant.

 

[Doug Brents]

If something remains then it remains from a prior point in time, by definition.

What prior point in time does Heb 4 reference for that statement?

It quotes from David in the Psalms (Ps 95:7)

7 He again sets a certain day, “Today,” saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before,​

“Today if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.”

8 For if Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that. 9 Consequently, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God.

"remains" from the way it was at the time of David -

Sorry, but no. You are misplacing your focus. The point God is making through the Hebrew writer is "TODAY". Read it again. He again sets a certain day. What day? Today!! As David said in his Psalm "TODAY if you hear His voice...." Today is the day to find your rest in Jesus, and cease your efforts to find rest in the Law.

Nothing here makes it appear that "do not take God's name in vain " no longer applies.

Very true. This passage is not addressing taking the Lord's name in vain, because that command was restated in the New Covenant in Matt 5:33-37, Matt 12: 36-37, Eph 4:29-30. It is not the focus of this passage.

in fact we have a lot of NT saints quoting directly from the OT as we see here - but more than that - quoting from the Law of Moses

Christ quotes from the Law of Moses in Matt - the two greatest commandments in the Law of Moses
Christ quotes from the Law of Moses in Matt 19
Paul quotes from the Law of Moses in Eph 6:2
Paul quotes from the Law of Moses in Rom 13, and Romans 7
James quotes from the Law of Moses in James 2

Which they would not be doing had all those commandments been deleted at the cross.

I didn't say the commandments were deleted. I, echoing Scripture, said the Old Covenant, and all of the commands in it, have been made obsolete. Today, when a contract or covenant is made, we sometimes reference material in an older contract or covenant, making that part of the old contract part of the new, but not incorporating the whole of the old contract into the new. Jesus and the Apostles frequently referenced the Old Covenant because it is the foundation upon which the New Covenant was laid. But not all of the commands in the Old were brought into the New. Yes, there are commands in the New Covenant to honor our parents, not murder, not covet, not become adulterers, etc. However, there is no commandment in the New Covenant to keep the sabbath, and likewise no commandment to keep the kosher diet of the Old Covenant.

 

[Doug Brents]

Where is the Mishkan-Tabernacle of Yerushalem of above in your "new covenant" theory? It isn't there because you canceled it, and therefore it is you who is preaching a different gospel than what Paul preaches. Please review Galatians 1:6-9, for it is a double-edged sword that cuts both ways: not just for the one who quotes it more often.

I did not cancel anything: God canceled the Old Covenant in making the New Covenant.
The Tabernacle of God in the New Covenant is our body (1 Cor 3:16-17, 1 Cor 6:19-20, Rom 12:1). The Mishkan-Tabernacle was replaced by the Temple in Jerusalem, and both were just a pale reflection of the real Temple in Heaven. But both the Tabernacle and the Temple were replaced in the New Covenant with our bodies. I am my temple to God, as are all believers in Christ. We can worship God wherever we are, and do not need to go to a certain place to be near God (John 4:21).

 

[Freth]

Sorry, but no. You are misplacing your focus. The point God is making through the Hebrew writer is "TODAY". Read it again. He again sets a certain day. What day? Today!! As David said in his Psalm "TODAY if you hear His voice...." Today is the day to find your rest in Jesus, and cease your efforts to find rest in the Law.

Very true. This passage is not addressing taking the Lord's name in vain, because that command was restated in the New Covenant in Matt 5:33-37, Matt 12: 36-37, Eph 4:29-30. It is not the focus of this passage.

I didn't say the commandments were deleted. I, echoing Scripture, said the Old Covenant, and all of the commands in it, have been made obsolete. Today, when a contract or covenant is made, we sometimes reference material in an older contract or covenant, making that part of the old contract part of the new, but not incorporating the whole of the old contract into the new. Jesus and the Apostles frequently referenced the Old Covenant because it is the foundation upon which the New Covenant was laid. But not all of the commands in the Old were brought into the New. Yes, there are commands in the New Covenant to honor our parents, not murder, not covet, not become adulterers, etc. However, there is no commandment in the New Covenant to keep the sabbath, and likewise no commandment to keep the kosher diet of the Old Covenant.

---

Sin is still transgression of the law of God.

1 John 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.

God does not change.

Malachi 3:6 For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.

His light does not change.

James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

Jesus does not change.

Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

Jesus calls Himself "I Am", which links Him to Mt. Sinai, giving the law to Moses.

Exodus 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I Am That I Am: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you.
John 8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

God the Father dwells fully in Jesus. Jesus does the will of the Father.

Colossians 1:19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell.
John 5:30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

The faithful people of God are observing the Sabbath when the tribulation hits, according to Jesus.

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.

God said to remember, because He knew men would forget.

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

According to Jesus post-crucifixion, in heaven, the saints keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

Revelation 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

Jesus said something in Matthew 5 that puts the matter to rest.

Matthew 5:17-19 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

If Jesus did not come to destroy the law, then not one of the Ten Commandments were done away with at the cross. Not one jot or tittle passes from the law until all be fulfilled. Is all fulfilled? No.

Jesus did not end His work at the cross, He is in heaven being our mediator (1 Timothy 2:5) and our high priest (Hebrews 3:1, Hebrews 4:15, Hebrews 5:5, Hebrews 7:26; et al), and He has yet to come again (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). Heaven and earth do not pass away until the thousand year reign is over and there is a new heaven and new earth and the kingdom of God is in place. Then all is fulfilled. Even then, according to Isaiah, the Sabbath will be observed in the new heaven and new earth (Isaiah 66:23), which means there is no lack of continuity as far as the Sabbath is concerned. It is a perpetual covenant (Exodus 31:16).

 

[SabbathBlessings]

Just WOW!!!

Jeremiah speaks of a future covenant, not a covenant that was then in effect. Hebrews 8 is looking back at Jeremiah's prophecy about the New Covenant that was to come, and saying that the New Covenant is now in effect.
Throughout His ministry, Jesus always pointed forward to the Kingdom of Heaven (New Covenant). The New Covenant was not in effect throughout His ministry. It was not established until His death, because a covenant (testament, will (all the same Greek word) does not go into effect until the death of the maker of the will (Heb 9:16-17). Even the Old covenant did not go into effect until blood was shed (in this case God allowed lamb's blood to substitute (Exo 24:8)).
Yes, Jesus gave us an example of how to live, but His command was to obey Him, not the Old Covenant.

The New Covenant was ratified by the blood of Jesus but He lived and taught under God’s New Covenant. He lived for our example to follow. When Jesus died, nothing can be added or changed to His New Covenant- it is finished. Show me where Jesus taught we no longer need to obey His Fathers commandments? Where we no longer have to keep the Sabbath commandment? God wrote His laws in our hearts and minds in His New Covenant promise and Jesus kept all of those laws as our example to follow. If Jesus changed one of His Father’s commandments, it should be easy to find in scripture. Something along the lines as ”you no longer have to Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy” If the Sabbath was different in the New Covenant it would simply be called the seventh day instead of being called the Sabbath. The Sabbath is repeated over 50 times in the New Covenant all with the same respect it had in the Old Covenant and Jesus expected His followers to keep the Sabbath decades after He ascended back to heaven Matthew 24:20 and continues on for eternity Isaiah 66:22-23 just as God promised- God will never break His covenant.

 

[Doug Brents]

---

Sin is still transgression of the law of God.
God does not change.
His light does not change.
Jesus does not change.
Jesus calls Himself "I Am", which links Him to Mt. Sinai, giving the law to Moses.
God the Father dwells fully in Jesus. Jesus does the will of the Father.

No debate on any of this. But this is not the subject of this discussion. God did change His covenant. When the Old Covenant was fulfilled in Jesus, God established the New Covenant in Jesus' blood when Jesus died.

The faithful people of God are observing the Sabbath when the tribulation hits, according to Jesus.

Yes, there were people observing the sabbath when that tribulation came (AD70 when Jerusalem was sacked and the Temple was destroyed.

God said to remember, because He knew men would forget.
According to Jesus post-crucifixion, in heaven, the saints keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
Jesus said something in Matthew 5 that puts the matter to rest.



If Jesus did not come to destroy the law, then not one of the Ten Commandments were done away with at the cross. Not one jot or tittle passes from the law until all be fulfilled. Is all fulfilled? No.

Yes, all of the Old Covenant was fulfilled in Jesus at His death. He kept the Law perfectly, and fulfilled every commandment of the old Covenant. That was His purpose, and the New Covenant replaced the Old, hence the moniker NEW.

Jesus did not end His work at the cross, He is in heaven being our mediator (1 Timothy 2:5) and our high priest (Hebrews 3:1, Hebrews 4:15, Hebrews 5:5, Hebrews 7:26; et al), and He has yet to come again (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

All true. But that is all part of the New Testament. The Old has been fulfilled.

Heaven and earth do not pass away until the thousand year reign is over and there is a new heaven and new earth and the kingdom of God is in place.

So much wrong with this sentence.
Heaven and Earth pass away at the second coming, which occurs before the thousand years.
The New Heavens and New Earth are part of the Third Heaven (where God is).
The Kingdom of God was established either at the resurrection, or 47 days later at Pentecost. Pentecost is the very latest that the Kingdom of God could be said to have come, because that is when the Church began to spread. The Church IS the Kingdom of God.

Then all is fulfilled. Even then, according to Isaiah, the Sabbath will be observed in the new heaven and new earth (Isaiah 66:23), which means there is no lack of continuity as far as the Sabbath is concerned. It is a perpetual covenant (Exodus 31:16).

"And it shall be from new moon to new moon
And from Sabbath to Sabbath,
All mankind will come to bow down before Me,” says the Lord."
This is simply a way of marking periodical times and events. It is not a command that the sabbath will still be observed. God is simply saying the same thing that was said in Job 1:6, "Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them.".
There was a day, one of the periodical times, when the angels came to worship God, and there was one time when Satan came with them.

 

[Doug Brents]

The New Covenant was ratified by the blood of Jesus

Yes.

but He lived and taught under God’s New Covenant.

He taught the New Covenant, but He lived under the Old. The New did not come into force until His blood was shed, at the end of His life.

He lived for our example to follow. When Jesus died, nothing can be added or changed to His New Covenant- it is finished.

Exactly, when He DIED the New Covenant was sealed and unchangeable.

Show me where Jesus taught we no longer need to obey His Fathers commandments?

I did not say we don't have to follow the Father's commandments. I said that God has set aside the Old Covenant and all the requirements of it, in favor of the New Covenant and all the commands and requirements of it.

Where we no longer have to keep the Sabbath commandment?

Col 2:16-17 - "Therefore, no one is to act as your judge in regard to food and drink, or in respect to a festival or a new moon, or a Sabbath day— 17 things which are only a shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ."
Rom 14:5-6 - "One person values one day over another, another values every day the same. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 The one who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and the one who eats, does so with regard to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and the one who does not eat, it is for the Lord that he does not eat, and he gives thanks to God."

We see from these two passages that we are each free to decide, for ourselves and no one else, if keeping the sabbath is what each individual should do or not. If you think you should keep the sabbath, more power to you. I choose not to keep it, seeing all days as equal in Christ. Both of us are right if we are fully convinced in our own heart. But neither of us should try to enforce our belief on the other. That is why this thread is based on whether we are subject to the New Covenant or still subject to the Old. Since we are not subject to the Old, the mandate from God to keep the sabbath is no longer LAW, and so each of us is free to keep it, or not keep it, as we choose.

I borrowed the paragraph below, because it is a little more eloquent than I am:
Is there anything wrong with worshiping on Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath? Absolutely not! We should worship God every day, not just on Saturday or Sunday! Many churches today have both Saturday and Sunday services. There is freedom in Christ (Romans 8:21; 2 Corinthians 3:17; Galatians 5:1). Should a Christian practice Sabbath-keeping, that is, not working on Saturdays? If a Christian feels led to do so, absolutely, yes (Romans 14:5). However, those who choose to practice Sabbath-keeping should not judge those who do not keep the Sabbath (Colossians 2:16). Further, those who do not keep the Sabbath should avoid being a stumbling block (1 Corinthians 8:9) to those who do keep the Sabbath. Galatians 5:13-15 sums up the whole issue: “You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.”

God wrote His laws in our hearts and minds in His New Covenant promise and Jesus kept all of those laws as our example to follow.

No, He kept all of the Old Covenant Law.

If Jesus changed one of His Father’s commandments, it should be easy to find in scripture. Something along the lines as ”you no longer have to Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy” If the Sabbath was different in the New Covenant it would simply be called the seventh day instead of being called the Sabbath. The Sabbath is repeated over 50 times in the New Covenant all with the same respect it had in the Old Covenant and Jesus expected His followers to keep the Sabbath decades after He ascended back to heaven Matthew 24:20 and continues on for eternity Isaiah 66:22-23 just as God promised- God will never break His covenant.

God did not break His covenant. He fulfilled it in Christ and then established a New Covenant through Christ.
Yes, the sabbath is mentioned many times in the New Testament. However, most of those mentions are along the line of telling us when someone did something, rather than a command to keep it. When did the Jews meet to study the Torah? On sabbath. So where and when would the Apostles go to meet with people studying Torah? To the synagogue on sabbath. Why? Because that is when and where people who were already receptive to hearing the Torah would be gathered. But then the Apostles (and other disciples) would teach, not the Torah, but from the Torah teach Christ as the fulfillment of Torah.

 

[SabbathBlessings]

Col 2:16-17 - "Therefore, no one is to act as your judge in regard to food and drink, or in respect to a festival or a new moon, or a Sabbath day— 17 things which are only a shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ."

This has been addressed a few times and I won’t spend too much time on addressing it again, but where does this scripture say we no longer need to keep the Sabbath commandment? To read it at face value it talks about not judging, which we should not do anyways, our judgement doesn‘t matter only the righteous Judgement of Jesus does and if you back up to Colossians 2:14 you would see this is not referring to one of God’s Ten Commandments, but the annual sabbath(s) found in ordinances that have to do with food and drink offerings.

Col 2:14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; The Sabbath commandment is not handwritten by man it was finger written by God Exodus 31:18 and is not contrary, but holy and blessed by God Exodus 20:–11, Genesis 2:1-3 and the Sabbath is not an ordinance it is a commandments of God Exodus 20, Exodus 32:16. Once God blesses something like He did with the Sabbath man cannot reverse Numbers 23:20 so an honest look there is no doubt this is not referring to the Sabbath in the 4th commandment

The Sabbath does not point forward to Christ, it points to Creation- “Remember” Genesis 2:1-3 and is a memorial for everything God created for us, without us. The Sabbath can never be a shadow of anything as it continues for all eternity Isaiah 66:23 just as God promised.

Rom 14:5-6 - "One person values one day over another, another values every day the same. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 The one who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and the one who eats, does so with regard to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and the one who does not eat, it is for the Lord that he does not eat, and he gives thanks to God."

My suggestion would be to read the entire passage starting at Romans 14:1 and you will not find one mention of the Sabbath commandment in this entire passage- you are reading into what is not there. This passage is about food. This passage is connected to Colossians 2:16 and it is about the annual feast days, not the Sabbath commandment.

If the Sabbath ended at the cross- why did the apostles continue keeping the Sabbath long after Jesus ascended back to heaven? Acts 13:44, Acts 13:42, Acts 18:4 if the Sabbath was no longer the Sabbath it would have been called simply the seventh day- but instead it continues to be called the Sabbath which God defined as being on the seventh day Exodus 20:10 and the holy day of the Lord and the day we are to honor Him Isaiah 58:13. Why would Jesus indicate to His people that the Sabbath would be kept decades after He ascended back to heaven if it ended at the cross? Matthew 24:20. Why does the Sabbath continue to be the day God’s saints gather to worship before Him for eternity thus saith the Lord if it had ended at the cross? Isaiah 66:23, because it didn’t and one of the biggest deceptions that has most of the world deceived, which is a warning in scripture. Daniel 7:25

God instead of deleting His laws in the New Covenant wrote them in the hearts and minds of His people who keep them through faith right up until Jesus comes, but it is a remnant and not the majority- sadly . Revelation 12:17, Revelation 14:12, Revelation 22:14-15. There is no scripture in the entire bible that says we can break the commandments of God that of course include the Sabbath commandment. Your really on the wrong side of this, the majority did not believe Noah either, but everything Noah preached came true. God tests His people and His promises are true.

Duet 8:2 And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.

I know you don’t think we need to pay attention to the OT, but there are important lessons to be learned and there are many allegories in the story of Moses, that very much applies to us today.

God did not break His covenant. He fulfilled it in Christ and then established a New Covenant through Christ.
Yes, the sabbath is mentioned many times in the New Testament. However, most of those mentions are along the line of telling us when someone did something, rather than a command to keep it. When did the Jews meet to study the Torah? On sabbath. So where and when would the Apostles go to meet with people studying Torah? To the synagogue on sabbath. Why? Because that is when and where people who were already receptive to hearing the Torah would be gathered. But then the Apostles (and other disciples) would teach, not the Torah, but from the Torah teach Christ as the fulfillment of Torah.

According to the scripture Jews and Gentiles met on the Sabbath to be preached to every Sabbath to hear the Word of God, which is Sabbath-keeping and Paul reminds us what matters is keeping the commandments of God and you have yet to prove that God chiseled out the 4th commandment He wrote on stone and said we can forget what He commanded us to Remember and keep Holy. We have free will and my prayers are this works out for you in the end, you have a cute girl in your profile photo.

Take care.

 

[daq]

I did not cancel anything: God canceled the Old Covenant in making the New Covenant.
The Tabernacle of God in the New Covenant is our body (1 Cor 3:16-17, 1 Cor 6:19-20, Rom 12:1). The Mishkan-Tabernacle was replaced by the Temple in Jerusalem, and both were just a pale reflection of the real Temple in Heaven. But both the Tabernacle and the Temple were replaced in the New Covenant with our bodies. I am my temple to God, as are all believers in Christ. We can worship God wherever we are, and do not need to go to a certain place to be near God (John 4:21).

So according to your theory concerning the allegory in Galatians 4, now you are saying that you are your own mother covenant Yerushalem of above: that's not surprising to me.