PROFANING GOD'S SABBATH

Is working or asking someone to work for you on God's Sabbath PROFANING God's Sabbath, and a sin that can keep one out of the Kingdom of God?

      Jesus Christ said in Ex. 20:8-10, "Remember The Sabbath Day to keep it holy: six days we are to do our work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord, and you shall not do any work, nor your family, or your servant." A person is not to work on God's Holy Sabbath, nor is he to ask or pay someone, even a stranger, to work for him on the Sabbath. Christ's Word is clear, Ex. 20:10. Some believe God's commandment is unclear. Are church people, who profess to be  the children of God, obeying Christ's Sabbath commandment when they profane God's Sabbath by working on His Holy Day? All the Churches of God stand guilty before God and Jesus Christ of this sin whether ministers or members, and will be judged so at the judgment if they work or ask another person to work for them on Christ's Sabbath Day. This profanes God's Sabbath, and is a clear transgression of the 4th commandment.

        Jesus Christ, the God of the Old Testament, asked the question to His people..." How long refuse you to obey My commandments, My Sabbath--My Laws?"  The people of the Lord God had just been given the understanding about how they were to obey  and keep holy the 7th day Sabbath, and then they turned right around and began to disobey the Sabbath Day by doing what-- (working to gather food on the Sabbath.) Read it in Ex. 16: 26-29! Are the people of God today guilty of the same thing, of going out of their houses to work, ask and pay a stranger or any body to work, by gathering and preparing them some food  to eat on God's Holy Sabbath? What excuse are they going to tell Jesus Christ at their judgment---that their church said it was all right? Woe be unto those man followers!

Jesus Christ is the Lord of the Seventh Day Sabbath, Mark 2:27-28, because He is the Creator of the Sabbath, Gen. 2:1-3.

     In the very beginning, God sanctified the seventh day, set it apart to be kept special and holy for all of mankind, not only for Israelites and Jews, but all mankind, and set the seventh day apart from the first work day, Sunday, and all the other work days of the week, Gen. 2: 3, Ex. 20:8-10. He not only commanded His law for all of mankind to rest on the seventh day from all of man's work and his personal pleasures, and physical  involvements, Isa. 58:13-14, but it was to be rest for all man's servants, family and the stranger who might be asked to work for him as a  servant on the Lord's Sabbath, Ex. 20: 8-11.

God wanted man to have this day unhampered by man's own work, and to be involved in doing God's powerful work, and come to know God in a personal relationship by setting this day to be Holy. This day is to  be used  to learn about the things pertaining to God, His Kingdom, and also how man can inherit eternal life in His kingdom, and to learn how to get involved in the greatest work on this earth.

        Jesus Christ gave to His people in the wilderness, twice as much food on the sixth day, preparation day, to teach His people how to keep the Sabbath holy and special, Ex. 16: 29. The Lord commanded His people not to go out of their houses to gather food on the Sabbath, Ex. 16: 29, but to do their food gathering and preparing the day before the Sabbath.  The people of Israel were called to be a nation of priests, and to set the Godly Example before all the world. Has Christ and His Sabbath law changed, and has the calling to set this priestly example been changed? Study Heb. 13: 8, I Pet. 2: 5. Has Christ left the Sabbath observance to man's choice, or permitted the changing of His law without Scripture? THE ANSWER IS A RESOUNDING NO!

Jesus Christ said in Mat. 5: 17,"Don't think He came to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill."

        Christ's fourth commandment, when it is not obeyed in its entirety, as He commanded it, is a sin punishable by death. Jesus Christ gave His judgment on one man as an example of judgment, soon to come on all Sabbath violators and profaners of His Holy Day. In Numbers 15: 33, this man refused to obey God's Sabbath as it was commanded, and died by the Lord's command for gathering sticks, either to make a fire to work at his work, or to cook his meal--either action would be rebellion against God's Word, and law, Ex. 16: 28-29, Ex. 20:8-11.  This man presumptuously broke the Sabbath command, and quickly died by God's command. Every man or church member will also die for this sin if he does not repent of this commandment transgression.The wages of sin is death, Romans 6: 23. Sabbath violation demands repentance, a change to observe Christ's Sabbath as commanded, and asking for Christ's shed blood to cover the sin, Heb. 10: 26. Christ's blood was shed because His Sabbath law is violated  and profaned by man, and must be repented of to be justified and forgiven of his sins.

        People and churches of Christianity who are resisting and refusing to even acknowledge Christ's Sabbath as He commanded, or are working or working someone on the Sabbath, are in rebellion and disobeying His fourth commandment--His law, and are asking for the punishment of His judgment upon them, Neh. 13:17-18.There  are also today, Sabbath keepers, confessing commandment keepers, but who believe they are above God's law in having to keep His Sabbath, as He  has commanded it to be kept. They believe and are told by their church hierarchy, they can go out of their houses to obtain food on the Sabbath, by going to a restaurant, and hiring a servant to prepare and serve them a meal on Christ's Sabbath, unashamed and unrepentant in doing so. Why is it that churches, members and ministers put the church's hierarchy, central authority or leader of their church organization above the Word of Jesus Christ? Is it because of the sin of  man worship--"following a man," instead of following Christ, and  by a fear tactic of intimidation put on Christ's little ones, to cause them to believe their hierarchy is Christ's authority, and there  is no salvation beyond their church's hierarchy, its church government or organization? Jesus Christ calls this the deeds of the Nicolaitans, (power over the laity), which He says, "He hates," Rev. 2: 6, 15. This church policy is also casting a stumbling block before God's chosen ones, which is the doctrine (teaching) of Balaam, which God says He also hates. Any believer committing his salvation to man or a church hierarchy rather than Christ, is committing idolatry--sin, which is also punishable by death, Rom. 6: 16-23.

        Ministers and members will try to justify their sins  of working or causing work to be done for them on the Sabbath by  misunderstanding the  words and actions of Christ and His disciples in the grain field, Mat. 12:1-7.  In verses 1 and 2 the Pharisees began to accuse Christ's disciples of unlawful conduct of profaning the Sabbath, by their plucking and eating grain as they walked through the grain field. Then Christ proceeded to explain to them  in verses 3-6, that what He and His disciples were doing was no different, or the same kind of work  (God's work) as to what the priest did on the Sabbath. The Pharisees who  (by their lack of spiritual perception) should also by comparison consider the priest as profaning the Sabbath, but they dared not do that. Jesus Christ only used the word profane to show the Pharisees they didn't the know difference between the physical work of man and the work of God. In fact, Christ said what He was doing was even a greater Spiritual work of God than what the priests were doing in the temple, verse 6.

In Mat 12:7 Jesus Christ gives great understanding that many church people do not understand---"But if you had known what this means, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the guiltless." This means that Jesus Christ is that mercy  of  all the sacrifices and the priest represented, and Christ representing that mercy, was standing before them being condemned  of sin, of profaning the Holy Sabbath, by these "without  spiritual understanding" Pharisees.

        Christ and His disciples were going about doing God's work, and in passing through a grain field, ate ready to eat, available God-prepared food--ripe grain, from the field. Notice also, Christ did not ask or require of His disciples to gather the grain, go somewhere, have it ground, and then bake it to prepare some meal or bread, nor did He on the Sabbath buy it from someone. What He did was well within His law of a priest, minister, or anyone doing God's work on the Sabbath, and did not profane the Sabbath. Jesus Christ and His disciples lived out and away from their homes most of His 3 1/2 ministry of doing God's work, and because of doing God's work, which was giving, teaching love, and mercy, and providing the way of salvation. Christ Himself said, "He did not have a place to lay His head at night," Mat. 8: 20. It was not that He didn't have a home, but because of being on foot, traveling and with His deep, burning desire to do God's work of preaching the Good News of  the way for man's salvation, and becoming man's Sacrifice upon man's repentance. Christ had only a short time to do that work. He and His disciples at times ate whatever food was readily available, or food prepared beforehand in their traveling, especially on the Sabbath.

      Christ's commanded Sabbath law did however permit limited food preparation, Ex. 12: 23, on the Sabbath, but in no way did that include any extensive effort of preparing food, such as boiling, baking and cooking of food, Ex. 16:23, or going out of one's house to hire a servant or restaurant hired hand to prepare one's meals on the weekly or annual Sabbaths, Ex. 16: 27-29 and Ex. 20: 10.

      Christ gave to all mankind the Sabbath to be a pure delight, not to be profaned with one's own personal work, food preparation, or any of man's many personal interests, sports and other physical involvements, but for rest and doing God's work, and to worship and honor God. Study Isa. 58:13-14. The Sabbath is for rest, and expressing the joy and excitement of being involved in God's work, of teaching and learning life's purpose. It's a work that commands that every member of His Body be involved in, providing instructions and being examples of God's love and mercy to His people, and above all to love, worship and honor God, as our Great Loving Creator. What Christ, His disciples, and the priests did on the Sabbath, Mat. 12: 1-7, was well within God's law, and did not in way transgress His law, verse 5, and Lev. 23, and was not sin. Christ said they were blameless, not guilty of breaking God's law. Sin is the breaking of God's law, I John 3:4.

        Christ taught, commanded and gave to the people a preparation day before the Sabbath, Ex. 16: 29, and there was to be a preparation day before the annual Sabbaths as well.  Study Mat. 28: 62, and then study Neh. 8: 10-12, where Nehemiah encouraged God's people once again how to keep the Sabbath holy, to share some of their prepared food with others who had prepared no food on the Feast of Trumpets. Why even have a preparation day if food can be prepared and bought on the Sabbath or annual Holy Days, as some erroneously teach?

        The work of the earlier priests of preparing sacrificial offerings on the Sabbath and Holy Days, Lev. 23, Numbers 28-29, was God's work, given to God as  offerings and providing love and mercy to the people.  The work of the priests then, and the work of a true servant (minister) today, in preparing some meaningful, excellent, satisfying, spiritual food about God's love and mercy on the Sabbath, is work, but a spiritual work of God, and is not to be compared to the physical, servile work of preparing a meal, by cooking, boiling or baking food on the weekly or annual Sabbaths. One is God's work, the other is not, but man's own work. Jesus Christ wants us to eat and enjoy our meals on the Sabbath, but to prepare for them the day before the Sabbath, in order to have very, very limited work for the meal on the Sabbath. In this way, the people of God are able to learn how to keep the Sabbath holy, by having more time for constructive, spiritual fellowship and discussion, having time to actually study God's Word, not man's literature--having more time to draw closer to God through prayer, and having time to be involved in doing God's work, of helping others to understand God's Good News.

        Nehemiah once again taught God's people how the Sabbath was to be kept holy when he ordered the gates into Jerusalem to  be closed, to stop other people from bringing in food and meals to sell to God's people on the Sabbath, Neh. 10: 31, Neh. 13:15-18.  What an awesome example and lesson for God's people today--not to profane His Sabbath, and to heed His warning to prevent Him-Jesus Christ, from once again bringing evil upon His called and chosen people of today, Neh. 13: 17-18.

        Another excuse ministers and members use to justify their sin of breaking  and profaning the Sabbath is because of the need of energy sources and services people receive on the Sabbath such as gas, electricity and water, and these services are like the services  and stored energies of the sun that man would like to store and then charge man for them if he could. However, all of these sources of services are done by equipment automation, or can be ,and does not, or would not require anyone to work on the Sabbath. Sabbath mail delivery is not a need, but a government service we have no control over, but restaurant, food catering or food preparing services are different and are services that a true Christian should not engage a person to work for him-- to prepare him a meal on the Sabbath, because if he does, he is profaning God's Sabbath, and setting the example of man's laziness and lack of order in his life. This is not an optional, personal preference, but a clear violation of the Sabbath commandment, given by Jesus Christ, not to work a servant or anybody on the Sabbath, and if you profane the Sabbath by committing this sin, prepare for evil to come upon you such as The Great Tribulation, captivity, imprisonment  and death, Neh. 13: 18, if there is not repentance now!

       Sabbath profaning has become a church tradition  of sinning by the churches of God at the Feast Of  Tabernacles and Christ's other annual Sabbath Feasts, as well as on the weekly Sabbath.  Every year at the Feast of Tabernacles, members, ministers and minister hierarchies hire (cater) a meal to be brought into the hall, or everyone is invited to meet at a certain restaurant, and be a part of hiring some servants to prepare a meal for them, and it is always on the weekly or annual Sabbaths. Why is this always on the Sabbath, and not on the non-Sabbath days when one could work a servant or people? Ministers and members must believe that if all participate, that it is approved by Christ, and that He will compromise His law and withhold His penalty of judgment. This is the deception of a church following the deeds of the Nicolaitans, and the doctrine of Balaam. Whose word is final, a church hierarchy, or Jesus Christ's and His commandment? The people of God today are either committing one of these sins; they are either too lazy, too disorganized, too proud  that they feel they  are above God's law, determined to put their trust and salvation in a church hierarchy-idolatry, or have been mislead, and deceived by a hierarchy about keeping Christ's Sabbath holy, or all of the above. Which of these is the excuse you use in your life and family? Ask yourself who  are you following, the word of a church hierarchy, some man, a church majority, or the Word of Jesus Christ, in obeying and keeping Christ's Sabbath Day holy?     Remember the wages of sin is still death!!!!