Exodus 31:13 Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you. 14 Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.
This passage of scripture clearly shows that the keeping of the Sabbath day, both in the spirit and in the letter, is a sign of God's redemptive work already taking place in our hearts. The Sabbath was originally given as a memorial of God's creation, but after the fall of man it was also designated as the sign of God's work of salvation, in those who submit to the sacred and necessary process. Thus the Sabbath in our day, and down through the ages, serves a twofold purpose by acknowledging God as Creator and Redeemer, and as we continue to honor Him in these all-important capacities, He promises to bring the work which He has begun to final completion, in time for the second coming of Christ so that we can be saved. Let's read:
Philippians 1:2 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 4 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.
After any major surgery the doctor who supervised the operation always advises rest, as a necessary element in the process of recovery, for whereas the medicines he prescribes do their appointed work, yet if sufficient rest is not given to the body, the healing process can be severely disrupted and forestalled, and if the person in question continues to violate the doctor's orders to rest, then the surgery can be rendered worthless, and the person can suffer very severe consequences as a direct result.
Similarly with Doctor Jesus, who specializes in heart surgery, where arteries that are clogged with the filth of sin, and where valves that palpitate irrationally through fear of the unknown, are submitted to the spiritual, surgical process, and just as it is with our earthly doctors, He stipulates "Rest" throughout the recovery process, and beyond. This rest is of very critical importance for both the recovery and sustenance of man, for most of our problems today in both the temporal and spiritual realms, stem from a lack of rest, as God has ordained in His word.
If we had "Rested" according to the commandment given, there would be no evolutionists to teach that man originated from the lower forms of life, and evolved from apes over millions of years. And there would have been no forgetfulness of God by the human family, which as a rule inevitably results in unrestrained passions and unnecessary blood-letting across the globe. Rest would have assured us of longevity and quality of life that is now unknown to millions, and the stress, fear, and anxiety attacks which afflict millions would have been permanently reversed.
Thus professed Christians, who claim to be involved and benefiting from God's redemptive process, but who continue to violate the Sabbath, either ignorantly or deliberately, are not only robbing themselves blind of one of the essential remedies, but are putting themselves at risk of retrogression, by which all the work that God has done may be reversed through a violation of the basic command to rest on the seventh day of the week. The rest as stipulated in the fourth commandment cannot be transferred to any other day, as is so often claimed, for the seventh day of the week is when The Doctor shows up in the human experience, thus making the Sabbath day holy.
It is therefore our sacred duty and obligation to rest according to the commandment, so that our heavenly Doctor can continue His work in our souls, and bring it to perfection as we endeavor to cooperate with Him. We therefore end with a passage of scripture which includes one of the major promises to those who facilitate His work by resting on the seventh day from all our secular work and material interests. Let's read:
Isaiah 58:13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: 14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
May God add His blessing to the study and practice of His word. "Good night" and God bless!