The Sabbath in the Law of Moses #2

In this part of the sermon: Martin expounds Exodus 31:12-17, highlighting that while the Sabbath remains a holy day of rest rooted in creation, it also serves as a sign of the Mosaic Covenant. He clarifies…

Martin uses circumcision as a sign of the Abrahamic covenant, which was not a new institution but an existing practice given new meaning, to counter the argument that the Sabbath must be new if it's a sign of the Mosaic covenant.

Now, some have argued that if the Sabbath was a sign of the covenant made at Sinai, then it must have been a new institution established there for the very first time. But that doesn't follow. God, we know, made circumcision the sign of His covenant with Abraham. And yet, circumcision was not something new.

12:18 - 12:40 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin expounds Exodus 31:12-17, highlighting that while the Sabbath remains a holy day of rest rooted in creation, it also serves as a sign of the Mosaic Covenant. He clarifies…

Baptism, existing before Christ made it a sign of the New Covenant, is used to further illustrate that covenant signs need not be new institutions, supporting the argument for the Sabbath's pre-Mosaic origin.

And therefore, circumcision, the sign, the token of the Abrahamic covenant, was not new. But it nevertheless, by God's appointment, became a very special token, a very special, a sign that had special meaning for the Israelite, a meaning that it had for no one else. Likewise, baptism was a right in existence for generations before Christ made it the sign of union with Himself under the terms of the new covenant. And therefore, to say that, well, if the Sabbath is the sign of the Mosaic covenant, it must be something new.

13:07 - 13:44 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: This section addresses the death penalty attached to Sabbath profanation under the Mosaic Law, as seen in Exodus 31:14 and illustrated in Numbers 15:30-36. Martin argues that this…

The account from Numbers 15 of a man being stoned to death for gathering sticks on the Sabbath is used as a concrete example of the civil penalty for Sabbath-breaking under the Mosaic Law.

the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks upon the Sabbath day. And they that found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation, and they put him in ward, because it had not been declared what should be done to him. And the Lord said to Moses, The man shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him with stones without the camp. And all

18:05 - 18:32 Read in full sermon

The point: Be refreshed on the Sabbath by meditating on God's works, especially the finished work of Christ and the great works of God under the new covenant.

The phrase 'and was refreshed' regarding God's Sabbath rest is analyzed, with an analogy to human weariness, to explain God's delight in His finished creation and apply it to believers' refreshment on the Sabbath.

I've often been intrigued by those words. And God was refreshed. How did God refresh himself on that first Sabbath? The word literally means to take one's breath or to catch one's breath.

25:47 - 26:03 Read in full sermon

The point: Obey God's command to rest on the Sabbath even in busy seasons, leaving the results of your obedience to God's providence.

The example of farmers during plowing and harvest times, facing narrow windows of opportunity and inclement weather, illustrates the strong temptation to neglect Sabbath rest due to perceived necessity.

No seasons are busier for farmers than the times of planting and harvesting. The windows of opportunity are narrow. If there's inclement weather, the window of opportunity is even narrower.

30:56 - 31:11 Read in full sermon

The point: Obey God's command to rest on the Sabbath even in busy seasons, leaving the results of your obedience to God's providence.

Jesus' teaching on rescuing an animal from a pit and Owen's example of saving a harvest from fire are used to distinguish between presumed necessity and absolute necessity, clarifying when work on the Sabbath might be permissible.

At this point I would direct your attention to the teaching of Jesus. Because Jesus does teach us that though that is the general rule that there are circumstances where absolute necessity does come to bear. As Jesus teaches us the spirit of the law did not forbid men so as to did not bind men so as to forbid working that might be not just presumed necessary but which was in fact without dispute absolutely necessary on the day. For example, an animal fallen into a pit was to be rescued.

32:59 - 33:35 Read in full sermon

The point: Ensure that women in the household receive Sabbath rest from their labors, particularly cooking, by preparing meals on the sixth day.

The arduous nature of cooking in ancient society without modern conveniences (microwaves, mixers) is used to highlight the significant burden on women and explain why the prohibition against kindling fire on the Sabbath was a provision for their rest.

Now that may seem like a very simple interpretation but I think it's the correct one. I think we see in this provision a provision designed to secure that women who had to give a considerable portion of their work day on the other six days to this task of cooking. And remember the society in which they're living. There are no microwaves.

38:12 - 38:36 Read in full sermon