Tag Archives: Sabbath

The Feast Days in the Messianic Age/Millennium

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The following is a list of the scriptures that prophesy that YHVH’s people would observe the weekly Sabbath and biblical feasts during the church age and into the Millennium or Messianic Age.

  • Ezek 45:17 — The Sabbaths (plural, includes the weekly and annual Sabbaths; i.e., Holy Day festivals) and solemnities (moedim) or appointed times (see also v. 9).
  • Ezek 45:21 — Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread
  • Ezek 45:25 — The Feast of Tabernacles
  • Ezek 46:1 — The weekly Sabbath
  • Ezek 46:9 and 11 — solemn or appointed times (moedim) and feasts (Heb. chag meaning “pilgrimage feast, festival, celebration, holy day, time of dancing, cyclical/yearly seasonal event; i.e., the feast days”)
  • Zech 14:16,18,19 — The Feast of Tabernacles

As you read these passages, you will see that it was not only Israel, but the nations of the world (i.e., the Gentiles) who would be celebrating YHVH’s appointed times.

It is curious to me how church leaders have told us for nearly 1900 years that the “Jewish” feasts were for the Jews only and not for the Christians. So let me get this straight: YHVH expected his people—ancient Israel—to celebrate the feasts, Yeshua celebrated them as did the early church and the apostles, yet when the Gentile church came along, they no longer had to do them, but then when Yeshua returns, YHVH will expect his people along with all the nations of the world to celebrate them, and if they don’t he will punish them for their disobedience? Something doesn’t add up here, and it’s not the Word of Elohim that’s off!

At this point, I’m reminded of the words of Yeshua in Mark 7:13, where when speaking to the religious hypercritical leaders of his day, he accused them of making of no effect the word of Elohim by their religious traditions.

 

There’s No Shalom Like Shabbat Shalom!

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I just got this email question from someone:

I was wondering where it is stated in the Bible that the Sabbath is to be a day of shalom?

This was my response:

I don’t know if it’s explicitly stated anywhere in the Scriptures, but it’s certainly implicit. Here are scriptural reasons that immediately come to mind:

  • YHVH sanctified the Sabbath, which means his blessing (including his shalom) is on it.
  • It’s a moed or a divine appointment (Lev 23:1), which means YHVH will show up to fellowship with his people on this day. With him comes his love, joy and peace.
  • Because it’s a day of rest and no work, then it naturally follows that with rest comes peace.
  • For those of us who have walked in the Shabbat for a long time (and who have done Sunday as well), we know from experience that there is a special blessing of peace on the Sabbath like no other day. There is no shalom like Shabbat shalom!
  • The Sabbath is a picture of Eden, and a prophetic picture of the Millennial kingdom  of Yeshua when peace will reign on this earth. The weekly Sabbath is a foretaste of that peace that once was and is yet to come

There are probably some other examples that I could give, but this is what comes to mind  quickly. Can you think of any biblical reasons that imply that the Sabbath is a day of peace? If so, please share.

 

The Sabbath—A Rest Area Sign

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Exodus 31:13–17, My Sabbaths you shall keep. Note that Sabbaths is plural—a reference to not only the weekly Sabbath, but to the feast day Sabbaths as well. However, the seventh day Sabbath remains central to YHVH’s spiritual economy for his people. Why did YHVH designate it as a sign (“signal, distinguishing mark, banner,” Exod 31:12) between him and Israel? By keeping the Sabbath, from whom was Israel distinguishing itself? As YHVH’s set-apart people, Israel was distinguishing itself from the surrounding nations who did not keep the Sabbath.

What distinguishes us as YHVH’s set-apart people from the non-believing heathen around us?

Certainly our love for one another is a distinguishing mark, according to Yeshua (John 13:35). Yeshua also said that if we love him we will keep his Torah commandments (of which the Sabbath is the fourth of the ten commandments, John 14:15; Exod 20:8).

John was inspired to write that those who say they know Elohim and don’t keep his Torah-commandments (of which the Sabbath is a foundation stone) are liars and the truth is not in them (1 John 2:3–6). And finally, Yeshua told those who were Torahless (i.e., workers of iniquity or lawlessness) to depart from him, that he didn’t know them even though they claimed to be his followers and had done many religious works in his name (Matt 7:21–23). Although the Sabbath may not be the sign of the Renewed Covenant, it is a foundation stone of the Torah, and the keeping of it remains to this day for the saints of Elohim (Heb 4:9).

The ArtScroll Stone Edition Tanach translates verse 15 as follows:

For six days work may be done and the seventh day is a day of complete rest, it is sacred to [YHVH] … (emphasis added)

What is complete rest? What is the connection between “complete rest” and the idea of sacredness or being set-apart or kadosh? The people of YHVH are called to separate the kodesh from the common or profane:

Her priests have violated my Torah, and have profaned my set-apart/kodesh things: they have put no difference between the kodesh and profane [common, polluted] neither have they showed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my Sabbaths, and I am profaned among them. (Ezek 22:26)

 

And [the priests] shall teach my people the difference between the kodesh and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. (Ezek 44:23)

What is common or profane? It is that which is commonly done on the other six days of the week. Have you made this complete separation in your life so that you can completely rest on the Sabbath? If not, what are the excuses you use? What does YHVH think about your reasons for not obeying him in light of his clear commands?

 

Did Yeshua Break the Sabbath?

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John 5:18, [Yeshua] … broke the Sabbath. Listen to an interesting and sad, but true story. About ten years ago, I was in a meeting where a Bible teacher was giving a message on the end times. In the middle of his teaching and totally out of context, he quoted this passage from John and claimed that Yeshua broke the Sabbath. There was a rustle in the audience of about 300 people. A little later, he made the same statement again and began to deride the Sabbath. This time there was an audible moan from some in the audience—many of whom were Sabbath keepers. I felt like he had hit me in the gut. A little later, he made the same statement again, and continued to bash Sabbath observance. This time, I could hold my peace no longer. I stood up and challenged him in the middle of the meeting. To say that Yeshua had broken the Sabbath was to call Yeshua a sinner, and that Yeshua had not broken the Sabbath, but some Jewish legal traditions (or halakhah) pertaining to the Sabbath. The speaker was flustered and had no response, and the host of the meeting decided to take an intermission.

A year later, this Bible teacher had suddenly and unexpectedly dropped dead in the pulpit while preaching. I can’t help but wonder…. Had this false teacher simply pulled down a concordance from his bookshelf and looked up the word broke in the Greek, and had read John’s statement in verse 12 in the context of verses 8–10, he wouldn’t have been teaching this blasphemous heresy about our Master and Redeemer!

Here is the explanation of this passage:

The word broke is the Greek word luo meaning “to loose, untie someone or something bound, to dissolve, destroy.” According to The Theological Dictionary of the NT, luo means “to free from prison, open something closed; destroy fetters, foundations, walls; to release.”

What Yeshua was breaking was the Jews’ extra-Torah legal traditions that made the Sabbath a burden by prohibiting the alleviation of human suffering and need on this day (John 5:8–10). He was in no way violating the Torah, since there is no Torah prohibition from healing on the Sabbath or carrying one’s bed roll.

In attempting to follow the Torah through men’s traditions, many of the Jews of Yeshua’s day had actually omitted the weightier matters of the Torah (justice, mercy and faith, Matt 23:23), and had forgotten that YHVH is more concerned with heart issues rather than religious legalism, since he desires mercy over sacrifice, and the knowledge of Elohim over burnt offerings (Hos 6:6).