Remembering the 7th Tenant of Whole Testament Theology: The Key Bullet Points
→ Be deliberate and intentional in worshiping God. Don't be passive (1 Corinthians 10:31; Colossians 3:17, 23-25; 1 Peter 1:13).→ Know and understand what you are choosing to do, and why doing it is truly Biblical (Matthew 7:24-25; James 1:19-27).
→ Know and understand what religious traditions you are choosing NOT to do, and the Biblical reasons for choosing not to carry on with a particular religious practice or tradition Colossians 2:8; Matthew 24:4; Mark 13:5; 2 Peter 3:12-18).
→ Become so well rooted grounded and established in the Scriptural reasons behind your choices and actions, so that you will be able to resolutely yet politely give a simple yet Scriptural defense and explanation to the uninformed person who asks why you choose, and why you live as you do (1 Peter 3:15-16; Colossians 4:6).
Keeping the main principles of the seventh pennant in mind, I now answer the question:
Why I celebrate and keep the LORD's Seventh Day Sabbaths as a believer and follower of Jesus Christ the Messiah:
10 Biblical Reasons Why I Strive to Keep the Lord's Appointed Holy Sabbaths:
- The Sabbaths is the first thing that Yahweh Almighty God made Holy and sanctifies for Himself (Genesis 2:1-3). If we, who claim to be His People, cannot bother to honor the very first thing that God Himself made holy and sanctified, then something's wrong with us.
- The word FEAST in the original biblical language means "an appointed time of meeting with the LORD for a rehearsal. Scripture says that these are GOD'S FEASTS. So, people who claim to Love and follow the Almighty God of creation, should have no real problem taking the time to learn and try to follow HIS Feasts (Leviticus 23:1-3).
- By honoring the LORD's Sabbaths, we are identifying and aligning ourselves with the One True Almighty God of Creation, and we are purposely disassociating ourselves from any allegiance to some pagan sun-god counterfeit which human beings made up (Exodus 20:8-11).
- By keeping the LORD's Sabbaths, we are acknowledging that Yahweh the Almighty God of creation is the One Who sanctifies us, and separates us unto Himself and identifies us as His Holy People (Exodus 31:12-13). I can't speak for anyone else, but from where I sit, being identified and separated out as belonging to the Almighty God of creation is extremely high on my list of priorities.
- The LORD's Sabbaths are among the appointed times of meeting with the LORD for rehearsal. Think about it. Yahweh Almighty God of creation who is perfect love GUARANTEES to show up and be present at His appointed times of meeting with the LORD for rehearsal (that's what the word feast literally means in Hebrew). So why would anybody who loves Yahweh with all their heart soul mind and strength, not want to be there, when God guarantees to show up? Come on, if Yahweh guarantees to be somewhere and to meet with His people at a scheduled time, I want to be there, and I want to practice and rehearse showing up on time (.
- Honoring the Sabbaths teaches people to honor and respect God. Violating the Sabbaths teaches people to profane and malign God (Ezekiel 22:26-31; 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1). In principle alone, if we truly want to honor God and not allow him to be maligned among the people claiming to know Him, then which course should we choose? From where I sit, the choice is simple and straightforward.
- I keep the Sabbaths in an effort to prevent myself from falling into vain worship. I want to become a worshiper after which Yahweh Almighty God seeks; one who worships HIM in spirit and in Truth (John 4:24). In order to become that kind of worshiper whom Yahweh will accept, I MUST learn to avoid worshiping God in vain. According to Jesus Christ, Yeshua the Messiah Himself, we worship God in vain when we teach for doctrine the commandments handed down by human beings, and we worship God in vain when we break and violate the Commandments of Almighty God, in order to keep and maintain human commandments and traditions. The Sabbath was not changed by God or the prophets. It was not changed by Messiah or the apostles in the first century. It was NOT changed in Scripture. The popes and the Roman Catholic Church alone decreed the change without any Godly or Scriptural authority. Secular history and the Roman Catholic church’s own writings easily confirm this to be true. Speaking for myself, I do not want my acts of worship to be done in VAIN as Jesus has defined the term (Matthew 15:1-9; Mark 7:1-13; Matthew 5:17-20). I keep the Sabbaths BECAUSE I believe Jesus, and I take His definitions extremely seriously.
- It's the easiest of all the Commandments. Come on. What is so hard about resting on His appointed Holy Day? (Unless of course, the real problem is that we are in fact addicted to focusing on our own pleasures, and/or worshiping the works of our own hands). I find it ironic that is the first Commandments where God specifically tells us to remember it, and so it’s the first one we most easily forget and ignore (Exodus 20:8). It's a basic Biblical principle. If we can't be bothered to learn to be faithful and obedient with the little things (or with the easier stuff), then how can we ever be faithful and obedient with the bigger and harder things of the Kingdom? (Matthew 25:21, 23; Luke 16:10).
- It is NOT enough to merely SAY that one BELIEVES that the WHOLE BIBLE is TRUE. It is not enough to merely say that one believes that ALL SCRIPTURE is God breathed and given by the inspiration and power of the Holy Spirit. It is NOT enough to merely SAY that we BELIEVE that ALL SCRIPTURE is PROFITABLE for DOCTRINE, for REPROOF, for CORRECTION, for INSTRUCTION IN RIGHTEOUSNESS, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17, NKJV) If we truly BELIEVE, that the entirety of Scripture is profitable for obtaining those great results, then we must do more than simply pay lip service to and mentally assent to those ideas, while we continue to cherry pick the Scriptures we like and ignore the ones that don't suit us. If we say we believe the Scriptures, then the Scriptures and not human tradition and not my own preferences need to direct my choices and behaviors. If I don't progressively grow to let that happen, then in such a case, I plainly do not truly believe the Scriptures, no matter what I may claim. It's that simple. Beloved, what we do ultimately proves what we truly believe.
- I love Yahweh Almighty God. He is the only Father I’ve ever truly had. I want Him to transform me into a son that brings Him great joy, delight, satisfaction, and true gladness to His heart. I want Him to transform me so that I will desire, delight in, choose, and then progressively do what truly pleases Him. I want to progressively learn to walk before God as Yeshua the Messiah walked before Yahweh Almighty God (1 John 2:1-6; John 13:15; John 15:10; 1 Peter 2:21). One of the key reasons that I seek to honor the LORD's Sabbaths is because Messiah did it, and those who claim to abide in Jesus need to learn to walk as Yeshua Himself walked. To do anything contrary to this is to walk in self-delusion and self-deception.
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