When I first came to the truth of the Bible and realized that we need to obey God's will to
be saved, one of the things that I was unsure of, until I searched the scriptures, was whether or
not I needed to keep the Sabbath day or not. As I knew it was something God commanded the Israelites
to keep. But was it something Christians needed to?
Scripture makes it clear that Christians do not have to keep the Sabbath.
Colossians 2:16
"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:"
From Ellicott's commentary on Colossians 2:16
"It is obvious that St. Paul gives no hint of any succession of the Lord's Day to be,
in any strict sense, a "Christian Sabbath." We know, indeed, that the Jewish Sabbath itself
lingered in the Church, as having a kind of sacredness, kept sometimes as a fast, sometimes
as a festival. But its observance was not of obligation. No man was to "judge" others in respect of it."
In the book of Acts in chapter 21 verse 25, Paul is speaking on things regarding the customs of the Jews,
and what, if any, should the gentiles keep.
"As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no
such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered
to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication."
If the Sabbath was something to be kept under the new covenant,
I believe it would have been mentioned here.
Mark 2:23-28
"And it came to pass, that he went through the corn fields on the sabbath day; and his
disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn. And the Pharisees said
unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful? And he said
unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they
that were with him? How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high
priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and
gave also to them which were with him? And he said unto them, The sabbath was
made for man, and not man for the sabbath: therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath."
Those that are in Christ under grace through faith are not under the Law
neither the commandments of Moses. Though I will say, besides the Sabbath commandment, the other 9 commandments
are taught (some indirectly) in the New Testament.
Romans 6:14
"For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace."
Americans are generally overworked, overstressed, and overstimulated. A full days rest once a week from all these is necessary just to keep our heads above water.
