MAKING GOD SPECIAL IN
OUR LIVES
Exodus 20:8-11,
31:12-16
GOD'S DAY
V:8 "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy."
A. In Genesis Chapter
1, God gave us the order in which He made the
Heavens and the
earth.
1. In six days or
six time periods, God completed His creative process.
2. On the seventh
day, He rested.
B. Prior to the giving of the commandment to Israel ,
they were slaves.
1. God gave His
commands to free people.
2. The commands
were design to teach Israel how to live as free people.
3. I suggest, that
God gave Israel
His commands to keep them free.
C. God's commands are an obligation not an option.
1. They were
commanded to keep the seventh day holy.
2. The word
"holy" is from the Hebrew word "qadesh" which means to set
apart,
separate, or to
be sacred.
3. The seventh day
was a day to set apart or to be different from the other six days.
4. The day of rest was set apart from the days
of labor.
LABOR DAYS
V:9-10. " Six days you shall labor and do all your
work,
10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On
it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your
manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates."
A. Any man or animal that works, need a time to rest and to
recuperate.
1. The Hebrew word
"Sabbath" means intermission, cease or desist.
2. God set aside
the seventh day as a day for us to reflect on Him.
B. It is only by keeping our focus on the Lord's commands that we can continue to
be free:
1. Free from worry.
2. Free from the sins
of the world
3. Free from the
evil desires of the flesh.
4. When we take time
to look back at our previous labors we can see the works of God
in our lives.
C. We are commanded to give those in our charge time to
rest.
1. Without rest,
we will work ourselves in to the grave.
2. When we focus
on God, not only is our body getting rest but also our minds.
D. The seventh day is
a day of peaceful obedience.
1. It is a day of
restful obedience.
2. It is a day of
joyful obedience.
3. It is a day of
profitable obedience.
4. It is a day of
thankful obedience.
5. It is a day of
grateful obedience.
6. It is a day to
focus on God's love for us.
GOD'S CREATIVE ORDER
V:11. " For in six days the Lord made the heavens and
the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day.
Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy."
A. God set the example for us to follow.
1. Not that God
needed any rest, but perhaps He want us see in Him the right way of
operating in
this world.
2. There is nothing
but holiness in the Lord.
3. We being in the
flesh have to learn holiness.
4. We being in the
flesh have to learn the importance of being holy.
B. The Lord blessed the Sabbath day.
1. All of our
blessing comes from the Lord.
2. All of our
labors are blessings to us from the Lord.
3. The Sabbath day
is a day of blessing without any labor.
C. God set the Sabbath day aside for us to reflect on His
righteousness and His goodness.
1. 1/7 equals 14.3%.
2. God demands that
we devote 14.3% of our time to Him.
3. Give God a day of
total obedience and He promises to bless the other six days.
THE SABBATH AN EVERLASTING COVENANT WITH GOD
Exodus 31:12-16
V:12-13. " Then the Lord said to Moses,
13 "Say to the Israelites, 'You must observe my
Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come,
so you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy."
A. The design of the observance of the Sabbath is for us to
know that it is God who
has set us aside
for Himself.
1. The Israelites
under the Law devoted the last day of the week as the Lord's day.
2. Christians under
Grace devote the first day of the week as the Lord's day.
a. Jesus
resurrection on the First day of the week set Sunday as the day
to devote
to the Lord.
3. Notice, God did
not set everybody aside.
a. God set those
aside that He chose to believe in Him.
b. All believer
are adopted into the family of God by our faith in Jesus Christ.
4. To each is given
a measure of faith.
a. Therefore,
even the faith we have is a gift from God.
b. We have been
given the faith to believe in the Word of God.
B. Devoting a day of
our time to God is a sign to the world that He has set us aside
for His own
purpose.
1. Devoting a day
of the week to God is a sign to the world that we have been
chosen by God.
2. No one can come
to Jesus unless he is drawn by the Father.
THE CURSE OF NOT KEEPING THE SABBATH
V:14 "'Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you.
Anyone who desecrates it must be put to death; whoever does any work on that
day must be cut off from his people."
A. The Israelites were given this command to keep the
Sabbath with a promise of
blessings.
1. Disobeying this
command was certain death.
2. To disobey God
is sin.
3. All
unrighteousness is sin.
4. The wages of
sin is death.
B. The law was given to the Israelites not to save them, but
to show their need for a
redeemer.
1. Obedience to the
God commands was a sign of their faith in the Word.
1. God commands are
design to show our dependence on Him.
2. In the flesh, man
cannot keep all of God's commands.
3. But we can do all
things through Christ who strengthen us.
4. Without faith in
Jesus, eternal death is certain.
RESTING IN THE LORD
V:15. " For six days, work is to be done, but the
seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on
the Sabbath day must be put to death."
A. The Sabbath is a type of our eternal rest with God.
1. We labor all
the days of our lives.
2. At the end of
our labor on earth, God has set aside a heavenly rest.
3. Observing God
commands while we yet live provides eternal rest in heaven.
B. Disobeying God
commands while we yet live provides eternal death.
1. The Israelites,
by not observing the Sabbath were eternally separated from God
by death.
2. We enter into
God's Sabbath day by our faith in Jesus Christ.
3. It is faith in
Jesus that sets us aside for God final Sabbath day.
V:16. The Israelites
are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting
covenant.
A. Obedience to God Word is the everlasting covenant.
1. Jesus said, If
you love me keep my commandments.
2. By observing God's
Sabbath, the Israelites were able to keep their focus
on the
righteousness of God.
B. By Grace, Jesus established a new covenant in His Blood.
1. Our faith in the
Word of God is an everlasting sign to the world of our election
by Christ.
2. Jesus was
resurrected on the first day of the week.
a. Jesus death
on the cross fulfilled all the requirements of the Law.
b. Jesus
resurrection on the first day of the week ended the requirement for
recognizing
the Sabbath.
c. Jesus
resurrection on first day of the week, set Sunday as the new holy day of
observance.
3. Everyday is a day
that the Lord has made, and we should rejoice and be glad in it.
4. Everyday is the
Lord's day that we should observe.
5. God made us
special by choosing us for eternal life.
6. We should make God
special by giving God a day of devotion.
DEVOTING OURSELVES TO GOD IS TRAINING FOR HEAVEN
Rev. M. Mitchell
Asst Pastor of
Greater Macedonia Baptist
Church
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