Note: this is a long question that I came up with after an eureka moment in which I connected a few dots, so please bear with me
About self-denial and the taking up of one's cross
One of the core principles that Jesus taught during his ministry was the denial of self in favor of God's will. And he certainly showed us how by way of example, as even the night before his imminent crucifixion, when the temptation to abandon ship had to be almost unbearable, he said:
And his spoken teaching to the disciples was no different:
This same principle of self-denial and taking up of one's cross is reinforced and expanded upon by Paul in his letter to the Galatians, in which he corrected their views regarding the Law:
And the most enlightening expansion of the self-denial principle in my opinion is found in chapter 5. Here Paul teaches us what the denial of the self actually means in concrete terms: we are to die to the flesh and its desires, and instead live, walk and be led by the Spirit, so that we can manifest its fruit:
Back to the Sabbath and the question
In light of what has been said so far, now let's consider the reasons God raised to accuse the Israelites for breaking his Sabbaths, which can be found in Isaiah 58:13-14 (ESV):
To me, this sounds as if the Israelites were not living lives of self-denial, they were not taking up their own crosses, they were not living lives led by the Spirit and very clearly they were not producing the fruit of the Spirit. Instead, it is evident that they were after their own desires, they were pursuing their own pleasure, they were not in tune with God's will at all.
Question: in light of the points raised by God in Isaiah 58:13-14, if someone takes up their cross daily, denies themselves, dies to the flesh and lives a life led by the Spirit, isn't such a person, by definition, essentially keeping the Sabbath holy every single day? Or in other words, isn't such a person in a full-time spiritual rest?
About self-denial and the taking up of one's cross
One of the core principles that Jesus taught during his ministry was the denial of self in favor of God's will. And he certainly showed us how by way of example, as even the night before his imminent crucifixion, when the temptation to abandon ship had to be almost unbearable, he said:
[...] “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” [Luke 22:42 ESV]
And his spoken teaching to the disciples was no different:
23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? [Luke 9:23-25 ESV]
This same principle of self-denial and taking up of one's cross is reinforced and expanded upon by Paul in his letter to the Galatians, in which he corrected their views regarding the Law:
19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose. [Galatians 2:19-21 ESV]
And the most enlightening expansion of the self-denial principle in my opinion is found in chapter 5. Here Paul teaches us what the denial of the self actually means in concrete terms: we are to die to the flesh and its desires, and instead live, walk and be led by the Spirit, so that we can manifest its fruit:
13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
[Galatians 5:13-23 ESV]
16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
[Galatians 5:13-23 ESV]
Back to the Sabbath and the question
In light of what has been said so far, now let's consider the reasons God raised to accuse the Israelites for breaking his Sabbaths, which can be found in Isaiah 58:13-14 (ESV):
13 “If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath,
from doing your pleasure on my holy day,
and call the Sabbath a delight
and the holy day of the Lord honorable;
if you honor it, not going your own ways,
or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly;
14 then you shall take delight in the Lord,
and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;
I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
from doing your pleasure on my holy day,
and call the Sabbath a delight
and the holy day of the Lord honorable;
if you honor it, not going your own ways,
or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly;
14 then you shall take delight in the Lord,
and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;
I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
To me, this sounds as if the Israelites were not living lives of self-denial, they were not taking up their own crosses, they were not living lives led by the Spirit and very clearly they were not producing the fruit of the Spirit. Instead, it is evident that they were after their own desires, they were pursuing their own pleasure, they were not in tune with God's will at all.
Question: in light of the points raised by God in Isaiah 58:13-14, if someone takes up their cross daily, denies themselves, dies to the flesh and lives a life led by the Spirit, isn't such a person, by definition, essentially keeping the Sabbath holy every single day? Or in other words, isn't such a person in a full-time spiritual rest?
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