What Day Is Our Blessed Sabbath? Part Two

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What Day Is Our Blessed Sabbath? Part Two by Reuven Ben Gershom

Continuing from Study One -
11… Was Yahushua Resurrected on Sunday?
If you visit a mainstream Christian church and ask members why the day on which they and other people attend worship services is Sunday, a typical response would usually be, “Because the Bible tells us that our Lord was resurrected on a Sunday morning.” But how well does this really bear up under close scrutiny with the Word?

Although I have a complete study on this particular subject, I will provide the basis of it below. See the links at the bottom of the page.

Notice what our blessed Saviour told the Pharisees who were looking for a sign about the Messiah:

“An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and NO SIGN will be given to it EXCEPT the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man will be THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS in the heart of the earth.” Mattityahu - Matthew 12:39-40.

Thus the only sign Yahushua gave to prove that He was indeed the Messiah was that the grave could only hold Him for a preset amount of time, and that would be precisely “three days and three nights,” or to be even more accurate - 72 hours. Of course we know that the churches celebrate “Good Friday” and continue to teach that great untruth that our Saviour died on Friday and rose again on the (pagan) “Easter Sunday.” On this basis, if Messiah was buried just before sunset on the so-called “Good Friday” and was resurrected early Sunday morning that would have been just two nights and one day, or around 36 hours, give or take!

Some will argue the definition of “day,” and Messiah clearly speaking about the 12 hours of daylight that is available. (Yochanan - John 11:9-10). Therefore, when “Easter Sunday” proponents take His remark and conclude that Messiah was in the grave three days x 12 hours = 36 hours, we can see that they are conveniently forgetting the “three nights.” And if we take 12 hours of daylight then there must be 12 hours of nighttime in one 24-hour day! Therefore three days and three nights is definitely 72 hours. But it had to be exactly 72 hours? Yahushua said He would rise “AFTER three days” (Markus - Mark 8:31) i.e. no less than 72 hours. But He also said He would rise “In three days” (Yochanan - John 2:19, 21) i.e. no more than 72 hours. This is absolutely clear-72 hours exactly! And Elohim is always right on schedule.

Because the churches no longer celebrate the anointed Seven Feasts of YaHVaH as given in Vayikra – Leviticus 23, especially “Passover/Unleavened Bread”, which was fulfilled by Yahushua “the Passover sacrificed for us” (1 Corinthians 5:7), they have lost the detail and wonderful understanding of what really happened at the time of our Saviour! We know for a fact that Yahushua entered Jerusalem “riding upon a colt of a foal of a donkey” (Mattityahu - Matthew 21:5-10), which was on the first day of the week, being a Sunday.

He remained in Jerusalem, just like the lamb without spot and blemish in those days in Egypt and the lamb was kept it in the house for four days or in our Redeemers case he remained in Jerusalem on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

On this night Yahushua and His Apostles partook of the pre-Passover meal, which is incorrectly called “the Lord’s Supper.” Sadly this was done by Rome to make A Hebraic Messiah less Jewish, and how sad is that, for during “Christmas,” they will still sing and proclaim Him as the “King of Israel!” However, it is important that we should note that this meal was not taken on the night of the actual Passover, but it was a Passover style meal held on the evening prior to the Passover, which was on the eve on the day known as the “Day of Preparation” when all of Israel would clean their homes from leaven. Thus this was the fourteenth of Nissan. It would be on this night that our beloved Saviour was arrested.

On the next day, Wednesday Yahushua stood before Pontius Pilate and was in due course heading up to Golgotha to be nailed to the stake/tree, and he was placed in the tomb on this the forth day. Yahushua died at the very same (fourth day) time the Passover lambs were slain, and he was placed in the tomb just before the HIGH Sabbath of the FEAST of Passover/Unleavened Bread and NOT the Seventh Day Sabbath!

For a detailed study read – “When was Messiah Resurrected?” See link at bottom of page!

The point is beloved, if you make a very simple calculation from the time our beloved Redeemer’s body was placed in the tomb, just before the High Sabbath would have commenced, let’s say 5PM and add 72 hours, you can work out when He would have been raised by the Father, for the Word only tells us that when it was not yet light they came and He had risen, thus nothing is actually said about the time of the resurrection time, except what Yahushua Himself told us so very clearly and that it would prove Him being the Messiah! Therefore a pagan “first day” morning resurrection could not be the reason for changing the weekly day of worship from The YaHVaH’s Seventh Day (Saturday) to a pagan SUNday. But even had the Messiah been resurrected on the “first day”, why would His disciples who had kept the Seventh Day Sabbath with Him-have abandoned His example of keeping the Ten Commandments and switched to “first day” keeping? And why would they have picked the “first day,” being a day long associated with pagan sun worship? Thus beloved, this was a pitiful and a Satanic attempt to CHANGE Elohim’s Law, and it just does not hold water!

12… Practice of the Original Apostles:
Throughout the book of Acts, we find that the apostles continued to observe the Sabbath regularly. They did this with Hebrews as well as with Gentiles, and-guided by the Ruach HaKodesh – the Sanctified Spirit, the entire early New Covenant Ekklesia continued to meet on the Seventh Day Sabbath for well over hundred’s of years after Yahushua' death. Even mainline Protestant historians acknowledge this fact. In his book, “The Story of the Christian Church.” by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut states;

“As long as the church was mainly Jewish, the Hebrew Sabbath was kept; but as it became increasingly Gentile the first day gradually took the place of the Seventh Day” (1970, p. 36).

Notice that Hurlbut says the first day “gradually” replaced the Seventh Day Sabbath. Did Elohim gradually do away with His law? Ridiculous! As we shall see later deviously and “gradually” DECEIVING millions of professing christians into doing away with not only the Sabbath, but the entire concept of obedience to Elohim’s law!

Obviously, there was never any change during the lifetimes of our Messiah’s original apostles. Even Shaul - Paul, known as the apostle to the Gentiles kept the Sabbath regularly. And he was not even converted to Messiah until well after Yahushua’s resurrection. Notice the account of Shaul and Barnabas in Acts chapter 13.

“But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the Synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down.” Acts 13:14.

However, there are always those who will put up an ongoing argument, regardless of the faithful Word of the Almighty, and no matter what Yahushua, and the apostles said and did, for some have argued, “But Paul was just meeting with those Jews on Saturday since that was their Sabbath!” First thing that I noted was the word used, “those Jews: and “their Sabbath,” sadly in the eyes of Elohim (God) they condemn themselves, for words say a great deal about their thinking and stand, for those words clearly showed an anti-Semitic stance, which by the way was later proved by the individual!! The book of Acts clearly tells us that “when the Judeans went out of the Synagogue, the Gentiles (who were now in faith) begged that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath.” (Acts 13:42). Thus in the Synagogue Shaul would go to worship, and it would also be a grand opportunity to share the Word with both the Hebrews and the Gentiles. Now do you think he may have said, “Well friends, we have a meeting on every first day” of the week, join us.” Well, but did he? On the contrary, the Word very clearly states that on …

“The next Sabbath almost the whole city came together to hear the word of Elohim” Acts 13:44.

The truth of the matter is that neither Shaul nor ANY of the apostles uttered one single word about changing Elohim’s Sanctified Sabbath or any part of the Ten Commandments. Rather, as they had been taught by Messiah Himself, they kept, and always assembled and worshipped on, the Seventh Day!

What about when Paul travelled through predominately Gentile areas? Elohim’s Word tells us;

“Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Synagogue. Then Shaul, as his CUSTOM was, went into them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures.” Acts 17:1-2.

It was clearly Shaul’s "custom" to meet on the Sabbath. Acts 18:4 tells us that “he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded both Judeans and Greeks.” In example after example in the book of Acts, when Shaul or the other apostles met to worship, there is not a single, solitary hint that they ever regularly met on any other day of the week to worship except Saturday, being the Seventh Day Sabbath that they had always observed and that the entire Hebraic community, be they Messianic believers, Gentile believers, or Hebrews were still observing!

In fact, if any of the Messianic or those from the Gentile believers had started teaching on any other weekly day of worship, it would have caused a literal RIOT among all the faithful in Messiah Yahushua! The only major ministerial conference mentioned in the Brit Chadashahh – the New Covenant is described in Acts 15, for there was a controversy regarding whether or not those who were Gentiles and now believers in Messiah and grafted into the Olive tree should be compelled to be circumcised. There were those, as some will know having read chapter 15 that there were those for and against. Some decide to do it as a personal choice and if they did this, but NOT for salvation sake, it is fine, for doing it will certainly not save you! For those who do not do it, is just as good, for it is believing in our beloved Messiah Yahushua, and I DO mean Yahushua who is THE Messiah, and not one who has another name!

However having covered the only New Covenant controversy we know for a fact that neither our loving Saviour Yahushua or the apostolic Fellowship EVER attempted to change the Sabbath. Nor did they never attempted to do away with obedience in love to ANY of the Ten Commandments!

13… Now we come to the question of “Later Apostolic Teaching”:
There is a world of theologians Protestant and others that have been schooled in the theory of “progressive revelation,” or as I call it Satan being very busy at what he is so good at! But we will soon see that this theory is nothing less than a complete perversion of the truth. It conveys the following idea that …

“The ancient prophets were simply Jewish philosophers trying to devise their own concept of a divine being. Then along comes Jesus, a Jewish carpenter heavily influenced by the religion and morals of His time, living and teaching under the Old Covenant. Jesus’ original Apostles (according to this theory), were, likewise, unsophisticated, backward and didn't really ‘understand.’ But, then comes the Apostle Paul the great liberator (as the theory goes-and things begin to get even better). For Paul is willing to break out of the Jewish mould and introduce modern Christianity, a Gentile Christianity that would be more acceptable to the world at large.”

The trouble with the above theory is that it is GROSSLY INACCURATE! For it attempts to completely negate Yahushua’s own command, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by EVERY WORD of Elohim” (Lukas - Luke 4:4). And we must remember that aside from the life and teaching of Yahushua Himself, the only Word of Elohim available to humanity when He made this pronouncement was the Tanach – the Old Covenant. This fact poses a major problem for these so-called progressive theologians. For both the Old Covenant prophets and Yahushua THE Messiah very clearly taught OBEDIENCE to the Ten Commandments-including Seventh Day Sabbath observance. Even many Protestant theologians acknowledge that Yahushua taught and kept the Sabbath day.

And what the "progressive revelation" teachers also cannot explain is that the original apostolic writings very directly and very powerfully uphold the concept of obeying the Ten Commandments as the Christian way of life-once again, including keeping Elohim’s Sabbath.

Ya’akov - James, the brother of Yahushua Messiah, who became the presiding apostle in Jerusalem, wrote;

“For whoever shall keep the whole Law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. For He who said, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ also said, ‘Do not murder’ (Quoting the Ten Commandments). Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the Law. So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the Law of liberty.” Ya’akov - James 2:10-12.

Thus true believer are to keep the “whole Law.” It is a Law with “points” including the commands against murder and adultery. Clearly, this Law is obviously the Ten Commandments. And Ya’akov - James said that if we “stumble” and fail to keep even one point of this law, obviously including the Sabbath, then we will be “guilty of ALL”!

Yochanan - John, the Apostle that “Yahushua loved,” also wrote about Elohim’s Law near the END of the apostolic age. If anyone were to give us a new “progressive” teaching, it would certainly be him. So what “progressive revelation,” did Yochanan - John give us? He was inspired by Elohim to write the following;

“Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” 1 Yochanan – 1 John 2:3-4.

A person may know about Elohim by coming to understand only part of the Truth. But to genuinely and personally “know” Him, Yochanan - John says that we must experience Elohim’s way of life by KEEPING His commandments! For Elohim’s kind of love, His very nature and character is revealed in the Ten Commandments. Again, as Yochanan - John wrote, Elohim’s very LOVE is expressed in the Ten Commandments: “For this is the love of Elohim, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.” (1 Yochanan – 1 John 5:3). And anyone who fails to literally keep the Ten Commandments, including the fourth one, is of course, DISOBEYING his Creator and in fact does not really “know” YaHVaH Elohim, (the LORD God) or their Messiah!

What about Shaul? Did he dismiss any of these Laws? By no means! In Romans 2:13, he wrote, “For not the hearers of the Law are just in the sight of Elohim, but the DOERS of the law will be justified.” And in 1 Corinthians 7:19, he stated, “Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but keeping the commandments of Elohim is what matters.” Again, this certainly includes the fourth commandment concerning the Seventh Day Sabbath!

Furthermore, Shaul is traditionally understood to have written the book of Hebrews-and there is strong evidence to support that tradition. Because of his pharisaic priestly training in the technical intricacies of the Mosaic Law, he was undoubtedly the most qualified of all the apostles to thoroughly explain the Brit Chadashahh – the New Covenant that Elohim was making with all of humanity, the very theme of the book of Hebrews. This book describes how Elohim spoke of the “Seventh Day” as the day of rest (Hebrews 4:4), it goes on to state”

“There remains therefore a Sabbath rest for the people of Elohim.” Hebrews 4:9. NASB.

This is a very interesting passage. Chapters 3 and 4 of Hebrews talk about Elohim’s people, the faithful, entering into “rest.” The Israelites in the wilderness wanted to enter Elohim’s “rest” meaning to finally cease from wandering and settle in the Promised Land. And that did happen in the days of Moshe’s successor, Yahushua - Joshua. Yet also mentioned here is the fact that the Eternal, YaHVaH Elohim later inspired King Dovid to write of entering into Elohim’s rest as something still future. Hebrews also states, “For if Yahushua - Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day.” (Hebrews 4:8). This is obviously speaking of the coming Millennium, that great 1,000 year period of Messiah's rule on earth before the great future “Kingdom of Elohim” when the New Heaven and the New Earth and a New Jerusalem is in place, and that will be the “Promised Land” for those that are true and faithful in Messiah Yahushua and all those faithful saints of ancient Israel!

It is in this context that the book of Hebrews talks about a Sabbath rest remaining for Elohim's people. In almost every case in chapters 3 and 4, the Greek word for physical “rest” - “katapausin” is used for Elohim’s rest. But in Hebrews 4:9, Elohim inspired a different word to be used “sabbatismos.” Many translations render it simply as “rest,” just like they do “katapausin.” But this is very confusing, since it is a totally different word. The New American Standard Bible, quoted above, uses the words “Sabbath rest.” But does this mean literal, weekly Sabbath keeping? The Anchor Bible Dictionary says yes, assuring us that “sabbatismos” refers to “Seventh Day Sabbath. celebration.” Thus, the New Covenant states very clearly that Seventh Say Sabbath is to continue for true believers in Messiah!

A Special Note: Here are the details from 1 … The “Thayers Greek Lexicon”: It is also worthwhile for those that have it to read the Frieberg Greek Lexicon.

Please Note that the Greek & Hebrew fonts has been transliterated, as majority of readers will not have the Bwgrkl font. Although two images of the main words are shown below.

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Left: the Greek “Sabbatismos” – Right: Hebrew “Shabbat”

1 … 4684 Sabbatismos: to, (Hebrew Shabbat), found in the N.T. only in the historical books except twice in Paul's Epistles; Sabbath; i.e.:

Thayers Greek Lexicon clearly states that the seventh day of each week, which was an appointed feast a day on which all the Israelites were required to abstain from all work (Exo. 20:10; 31:13f; Lev 23:3; Deut. 5:14); the word used is a singular Sabbatismon: There are countless Scriptural quotations, but it is best that you look these up for yourself!

“YHVH said to Moshe, ‘Speak to the Israelites and say to them’ - ‘These are My appointed feasts, the appointed feasts of YHVH, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies. There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to YHVH. These are YHVH’s appointed feasts, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed times.

YHVH’s Passover (the day of slaying of the lamb) begins at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month. On the fifteenth day of that month YHVH’s FEAST of Unleavened Bread begins; for seven days you must eat bread made without yeast. On the first day hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work.’” Vayikra -Leviticus 23:1-7. NIV.

Note: The Sabbath is the first of the festivals mentioned in Vayikra -Leviticus 23:1-7, but it is the only feast that is a weekly event, thus it is considered as THE MOST important of all the feasts, for the next feasts, although prophetic and to be fulfilled at that time, the Sabbath was Sanctified from the beginning, and it represented the completion and the arrival of the new heaven and Earth, with the New Jerusalem! Thus it is a representation of the eternal Sabbath we will enjoy when we will live with The Father and the Son! That is why the Sabbath is so very vital to all; believers! Listed thereafter are the Feasts of YHVH to be upheld at their Scriptural “Appointed Times.” Vayikra - Leviticus 23.

As I already indicated, we need to remember that each feast is a prophetic picture of our beloved Redeemer Yahushua, from the Lamb without spot and blemish, without sin, His dearth and resurrection, His ascension, the outpouring of the Sanctified Spirit, and all these prophetic events have been fulfilled! However, there are still four more feasts, such as Trumpets, The Day of Atonement, Tabernacles, and the eighth Day after the seven days of Tabernacles, which is one of the most vital prophetic of days yet to came, yet there are almost no one in the world who understand much about this most blessed of days, because the church has lost the beauty and the prophetic meaning of the feasts and how our blessed Saviour is so deeply involved with them ALL! That is a tragic loss, but again part of Satan’s deception, for the less you know, the further he can lead you astray!

Sadly, some will argue that all this about the Sabbath just means we should simply rest from our sinful works in our new life in Yahushua. But notice what is said in the following verse;

“For he who has entered His “rest” has Himself also ceased from his works as Elohim did from His.” Hebrews 4:8.

Did Elohim "rest" from His work of SIN? No of course not. He rested from CREATING His work as the Creator of the heavens and the Earth and all that it contains. And on what day did YaHVaH Elohim “rest”, thus setting us His example? “Elohim rested on the seventh day from all His works” (Hebrews 4:4). And therefore, so must we, AS DID ALL His faithful servants until Rome intervened in the fourth century! But praise be to the Father, the faithful in Messiah continued to uphold the Sabbath day anyway, even at the cost of their lives, as many were murdered for their faithfulness by the churches and their evil pagan priests, bishops, etc!

However beloved it is interesting to note that, the context of these verses does show that the Sabbath is far more than just a “memorial of the creation.” For it is a TYPE, a PICTURE of something else-and we should observe it as such. But it is looking not into what will happen during our current life, but when Yahushua our beloved Messiah sets up the “Kingdom of Elohim” over the entire earth!

Notice what the Commentary on the Whole Bible by Jamieson, Fausset & Brown has to say about Hebrews 4:9, he states:

“This verse indirectly establishes the obligation of the Sabbath still; for the type continues until the antitype supersedes it.”

As for the coming millennial Sabbath it “will not be until Messiah … comes … the typical earthly Sabbath must continue until then.” Yet, as we will later see, even in the “Kingdom” human beings will continue to keep Elohim's weekly Sabbath Sanctified!

It is all so very clear for here in the book of Hebrews we find a direct New Covenant command for all the faithful in Messiah to “rest” “sabbatismos” on the Seventh Day Sabbath! It was probably given through the apostle to the Gentiles, and that may well have been the very apostle who so many catholic and protestant theologians insist “did away” with Elohim’s Law!

This section found in Hebrews 4 concludes like this;

“Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall after the same example of disobedience” Hebrews 4:11.

The phrase, “the same example of disobedience,” should resonate deeply with students of the Word. For, just as Sabbath breaking and idolatry was a major factor as well as idolatry in the captivity of Israel’s captivity and slavery, these two sins were also major reasons why many of their forefathers died during the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness before inheriting the Promised Land!

The question is … Ask your self – 1. Are you keeping Elohim’s Fourth Commandment, the Seventh Day Sabbath? 2. Who is you Saviour, Yahushua THE Messiah, or the one who has totally foreign name that “Jesus,” which is in no way related to any Hebrew word. But the point is it is NOT a Hebrew name.

Even Strongs will tell you that both Joshua and our beloved Lord and Saviour both had the very same name Yahushua, although Strongs writes as “Jehoshua.” Here is the proof! The following was taken from Acts 7:45. Joshua is also mentioned in Lukas - Luke 3:29 & Hebrews 4:8.

NT:2424: Iesous (ee-ay-sooce'); of Hebrew origin [OT:3091]; Jesus (i.e. Jehoshua), the name of our Lord and two (three) other Israelites:

Although the verse looked up was for Joshua in the New Covenant in the Greek, the amazing thing is that Joshua is not really mentioned, but our “Jehoshua” Lord is, although spelled slightly incorrectly, but that is fine! But the question is, WHY, did the man of the Old Covenant receive a name that is so close to the original, but He who id THE Word, who IS Elohim, the King of kings, end up getting a totally unrelated name? Ask yourself that question, and is no good saying it is a translation. For why then was Yahushua (Joshua) of the Book of that name, given the name “Joshua?” it is as simple as that! Read

14… What is the rule of faith regarding the faithful and the Sabbath?
A rule of faith, as a believer, or a competent leader in Yahushua the Messiah, you must be able to instruct in the Scriptural truths that is necessary for salvation. It is good to teach for all the faith full to read the whole of the Word from Bereshis – Genesis to Revelation in a single year, and we have a easy to follow chart available online! But you may read all the Scriptures yet no one will ever find a single line authorizing the sanctification of a sabbath worship day on the pagan Sunday. The blessed Scriptures enforce the observance of Scriptural, fourth commandment Sabbath that commences PM Friday and concludes PM Saturday, which is a day that the church at large simply refuses to sanctify. Sadly there will be consequences because of thei ongoing disobedience!

You should read Elohim’s indictment given to Israel in Yechehel - Ezekiel 20:10-24. Notice the following verses;

“Also I gave them My Sabbaths as a sign between us, so they would know that I YHVH made them Sanctified. Yet the people of Israel rebelled against Me in the desert. They did not follow My decrees but rejected My Laws, although the man who obeys them will live by them, and they utterly desecrated my Sabbaths. So I said I would pour out My wrath on them and destroy them in the desert.” Yechehel - Ezekiel 20:12-13. (NIV).

Therefore, repeating the inspired instruction from the New Covenant and what is written in the book of Hebrews 10:25, let ALL true believers be careful to NOT follow that “same example of disobedience” by failing to keep Sanctified the only day of the week Elohim made Sanctified-the seventh-day Sabbath!

“… and let us consider one another to provoke unto love and good works; not forsaking our own assembling together, as the custom of some is, but exhorting one another; and so much the more, as you see the day (millennial Sabbath) approaching. For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries. A man that hath set at nought Moshe’s Law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.” Hebrews 10:24-28.

We must “not forsake assembling” on the day that He Who IS THE Word - Elohim has appointed for all man in the beginning, and confirmed at Sinai and again throughout the Brit Chadashah – the New Covenant! We see in Hebrews, that forsaking the Sabbath comes with huge consequences, for it is a “sin” not upholding the Seventh Day Sabbath and that there will be a “judgement” that will “devour the adversaries!”

15… Evil influences come on the scene:
The Brit Chadashah – the New Covenant very clearly states that Elohim’s true Ekklesia would never be large and that it would be persecuted. Yahushua instructed His disciples as follows;

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.” Mattityahu - Matthew 7:13-14. (NKJV).

It is also worth reading Lukas – Luke’s thoughts on this same matter known as “The Narrow Way.”

“Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you, ‘I do not know you, where you are from?’” Lukas - Luke 13:24-26. (NKJV).

But here is the Promise!

“Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.” Lukas - Luke 12:32.

Our beloved Redeemer, Yahushua THE Messiah, as we have seen above, called His faithful the “little flock”. And in His Olivet Prophecy, He warned;

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My Name’s sake.” (Mattityahu - Matthew 24:9).

Sadly dear readers, I have to be very honest here, for those who are in the “mainstream” church will NOT be the ones who are going to be “hated by all nations." Why? Because they fit into the world pretty well, going along with its customs and traditions and so sadly have followed the ways of religious men, who have led them all astray, for even these men were deceived by Satan from the very beginning, yet, the Truth was staring them in the face, but, like I was before 1977, I was blind, but my eyes were opened through a miracle, and ultra orthodox Jew, who hated all believers in Messiah, whose people had suffered in the Holocaust, having come from Europe. Yet, without any ministry from believers, YaHVaH Elohim touched me one night during my prayers and revealed His blessed truth and His Messiah whose NAME was Yahushua! I was instructed not to read any books of men for seven years, only the Word, and soon after Elohim sent me a Greek believer, thus myself having Hebrew knowledge, and now there was Greek knowledge, a perfect harmony in our Saviour!

But back to our study!

Thankfully there was there a faithful and an obedient fellowship of believers such as Yahushua described still in existence long after the apostolic times who faithfully upheld Elohim’s one and only Sabbath day? The truth is that virtually all church historians acknowledge that countless thousands of early believers continued to observe the seventh-day Sabbath for many generations! , and I must point out that they were never “Christians,” for they were the followers of the new religions of Rome and the harlot churches! But the true faithful were known mostly as the “protesters” and they continued to uphold all Yahushua’s and the apostolic teachings, whilst all Christians all turned to SUNday keeping, and I am sorry, but you will just have to face facts and look at you own church today!

This was Jesse Lyman Hurlbut’s statement; “As long as the Church was mainly Jewish, the Hebrew Sabbath was kept.” But were any commentators ever inspired to tell us that the Sabbath was later to be changed? No of course not.

The Head of Elohim’s true fellowship is Yahushua THE Messiah Himself!

And He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.” Colossians 1:18; also see; Ephesians 1:22.

The book of Hebrews tells us;

"Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of Elohim to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct. Yahushua the Messiah is the same yesterday, today and forever.” Hebrews 13:7-8.

There is no doubt whatsoever that throughout the entire Word of YaHVaH Elohim, be it in the Old or the New Covenant, there is only one day that is set apart as the Sabbath, and that is the one on the Seventh Day, the day we now call Saturday!

Below is a quote from Cardinal Gibbons, who was the Archbishop of Baltimore and one of the best known American Catholic leaders in his time. I want you to take careful note what one of the very highest-ranking Catholic leaders of America happened to write about the Seventh Day Sabbath in his famous book, “The Faith of Our Fathers”:

“You may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never sanctify.” (“The Faith of Our Fathers” - 1876).

And notice this statement from The Catholic Mirror, which is the official newspaper of Gibbons’ archdiocese that was under his direction:

“In the Old Covenant, reference is made one hundred and twenty-six times to the Sabbath, and all these texts conspire harmoniously in voicing the will of God, commanding the Seventh Day to be kept” It then states, “Nor can we imagine anyone foolhardy enough to question the identity of Saturday with the Sabbath or Seventh Day, seeing that the people of Israel have been keeping the Saturday from the giving of the Law.” (Sept. 9, 1893).

And look at this from a later article under Cardinal Gibbons' direction:

“God’s written word enjoins His worship to be observed on Saturday, absolutely, repeatedly, and most emphatically, with a most positive threat of death to him who disobeys.” (Sept. 23, 1893).

Now beloved readers, all I can say is this, if a Roman Catholic Cardinal can come to the truth and so clearly declare that; the true fellowship of Elohim would have persisted in keeping His Seventh Say Sabbath from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset!

George Park Fisher, who during his life was a respected professor of ecclesiastical history at Yale University, concurs with Hurlbut in that the early Christians observed the seventh-day Sabbath. Professor Fisher writes;

“The Jewish Christians at first frequented the Synagogues. They continued to observe the festivals appointed in the Law, and only by degrees connected with them Christian ideas and facts. They kept the Sabbath on Saturday, according to the Mosaic commandment.” (History of the Christian Church, 1887, p. 40).

So if the Sanctified Sabbath is so clearly established in His Word and as we can see above that it was certainly kept by Elohim’s true and faithful believers, then where did Sunday come from? Renowned modern historian Will Durant writes,

“The serious temper of the Jewish Sabbath was transferred to the Christian Sunday that replaced it in the second century.” (The Story of Civilization, vol. 3, 1972, p. 599).

But how did this happen? A Roman Catholic study course tells us that “the (Catholic) Church transferred the obligation from Saturday to Sunday.” (Father Smith Instructs Jackson).

The Catholic Mirror agrees: “The Catholic Church … by virtue of her Divine mission, changed the day from Saturday to Sunday" (Sept. 23, 1893). In fact, the Catholic Church’s Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome publishes a book by Dr. Samuele Bacchiocchi, a non-Catholic scholar, which proves this very fact! Its preface is written by Vincenzo Monachino, chairman of the university's Church History department. He writes:

“We (the Roman Catholic Church) GLADLY MENTION the thesis that Bacchiocchi defends regarding the birth-place of Sunday worship: for him this arose most probably not in the primitive Church of Jerusalem, well-known for its profound attachment to Jewish religious traditions, but rather in the Church of Rome. The abandonment of the Sabbath and the adoption of Sunday as the Lord’s Day, are the result of an interplay of Christian and PAGAN religious factors.” (From Sabbath to Sunday: A Historical Investigation of the Rise of Sunday Observance in Early Christianity, 1977, pp. 7-8).

16… Is One Day Better than Another?
There are those who will quote Romans 14:5-6 as proof that it does not really matter on which day we keep as the Sabbath, even if we keep any day at all. But if you read the passage more carefully you will note that the apostle Shaul - Paul states,

"One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it to YHVH; and he who does not observe the day, to YHVH he does not observe it.”

I can hear it already, but is this really talking about keeping the Seventh Day Sabbath? It is time we notice the rest of verse 6, for most christians are so good at reading the bit they find suitable for their needs, and leave out the rest!

“He who EATS, eats to YHVH, for he gives Elohim thanks; and he who DOES NOT EAT, to YHVH he does not eat and gives Elohim thanks.” Verse 6.

The question is, “Well, what is this about?” Romans chapter 14 begins with Shaul teaching the faithful in Rome to receive those who are “weak in the faith, but not to (enter into) disputes over doubtful things” (Verse 1). In other words entering into things that some are not sure about. Then in verse 2, Shaul mentions that some may only eat vegetables for various religious reasons even though the Word shows in many places that it is acceptable to eat clean (kosher – fit to eat) meat. But, we are to be respectful!

In another of Shaul's letters, he explains one particular reason that a number of the believers had become vegetarians because most of the available meat in the marketplace had been offered to idols. Of this Shaul says, “Therefore concerning the eating of things offered to idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no other Elohim but one … However, there is not in everyone that knowledge; for some, with consciousness of the idol, until now eat it as a thing offered to an idol; and their conscience, being weak, is defiled” (1 Corinthians 8:4, 7).

Some new converts thought that eating such meat could mean that you were guilty of participating in idol worship, but they soon understood that most meats were clean and not always offered to idols, for kosher meat was still available in some places, as well as butchers who were just tradesmen, thus they went along with other faithful and ate the meat anyway. But in a way that is the worst thing they could have done. For Shaul - Paul also states in Romans 14 that “he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23). Whether something is inherently wrong or not, if you think it might be and do it anyway, you are sinning!

So to those who thought it was all right to eat meat, Shaul said, “Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat” (Verse 3). But continuing in the same verse, he said, “And let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for Elohim has received him.” Yet Shaul told those who thought it was okay not to flaunt that in front of those who did not (Verses 15-22).

So why did Paul break from his dissertation on eating or not eating meat by mentioning the esteeming of days? Because it involved the same principle! There were some weak new converts who thought certain days were better than others for fasting or eating or abstaining from particular foods. Others thought all days were the same in regard to what could be eaten.

Messiah said that when we fast, it should be to YaHVaH Elohim and without others knowing unnecessarily (Mattityahu - Matthew 6:16-18). But Hebrews and past Gentiles now ONE in Messiah, practiced “semi fasts” on particular days of the week or month. The Pharisees fasted, according to their rabbinic customs, “twice a week” (Lukas - Luke 18:12). And the Hebrews as a people fasted during certain months (Zecharyah – Zechariah 7:4-7). However, the Hebrew religious authorities were divided on some of these matters. The non Hebrews also were divided over when and if to abstain from certain foods (cf. Hasting's Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics).

The only way the Sabbath could have been a factor here is if some thought it could be used as a fast day and others did not. However, that is not stated, and if Paul had been talking about the Sabbath, he probably would have mentioned it by name, just like he did in Colossians 2:16, where non Hebrew converts to Messiah were being criticized for how they were keeping Elohim's Sabbath and other Festivals. Whatever the case, the controversy in Romans 14 about esteeming particular days had practically NOTHING to do with Elohim's Sabbath or His other Sanctified Days!

No, whether or not to keep the days that ELOHIM made Sanctified was not even at issue. This was all about “manmade traditions,” some of which were okay to follow but not okay to impose on others. In Elohim’s eyes, it doesn't matter when we fast (except for “Yom Kippur,” the “Day of Atonement,” on which Elohim commands us to fast). What matters to Him is that we do it with a right attitude, and that we do not judge each other according to our personal ideas.

17… Did the christian church have the right to change the day?
It is so obvious that little by little that Satan was able to influence misguided Catholic theologians to begin introducing the ancient "venerable day of the Sun" in place of the weekly Sabbath. Let’s face it, millions of pagans had always observed that very same day, the day of the SUN as the day of their worship of the sun god itself and of other heavenly bodies. But, these badly influenced and deceived theologians thought that a change to Sunday worship would make it easier for the heathen’s to “convert” to Christianity!

But what was this “Christianity” all about for there was very little about the true Messiah, except for one with a new name, suddenly there where statues erected of this messiah and his mother, who was claimed to be the mother of the very god, thus, were they saying she came before the One and Only Creator of Heaven and Earth YHVH Elohim, and He Who Is THE Word, who was in the very beginning? I doubt that! This new religious denomination together with the Eastern churches did away with Elohim’s Ten Commandments and then go on to water down the entire way of life as taught by our blessed Messiah and the original apostolic fellowship. This new church was a pagan offshoot and a totally corrupt one led by Satan and sadly, it is this church that has gained worldwide strength, for it has had many children, known in the Word as her “harlot daughters,” which are all the churches that have given up the true faith of the Almighty, and rejected the teachings of our beloved Messiah, His apostles, and done away with the Sabbath and upholding the Seven Feasts of YHVH Elohim as found in Leviticus chapter 23!

Beloved, PLEASE I beg you - listen to Yahushua' own words: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the “Kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” Mattityahu - Matthew 7:21.

As I have already clearly indicated, under Satan’s deceptive influence, the vast majority of protestant churches have followed “mother Rome” in rejecting Elohim’s true Sabbath. Though they repudiated some of the Roman Catholic teachings, but the pagan practice of SUN (god) day worship was not one of them. Thankfully, many of the early protestant scholars of the Reformation era were much better informed. They, in fact, knew what the Word actually taught! Notice what Martin Luther wrote: “Indeed, if Carlstadt (one of the few that argued against Sunday observance) were to write further about the Sabbath, Sunday would have to give way, and the Sabbath, that is to say, Saturday-must be kept Sanctified.” (Against the Celestial Prophets). Luther did nothing about returning to the Scriptural Sabbath, it was too Jewish he felt! In addition he was an evil man, and is noted to be partially responsible for the deaths of Jews during the Holocaust. It was Luther’s last book; “The Jews and their lies,” that Hitler used during WWII. Luther’s words were quoted during his propaganda messages to justify the slaughter of millions of Jews. This is officially recorded in the German war memorial and Jerusalem’s Yad VaShem!

The catholic church will “gladly mention” that it changed the day! For it shows that the protestants are certainly not relying on the Word of Elohim as their rule of faith, as they always seem to claim, but are instead acknowledging the “absolute authority" of the Roman church to change Elohim’s law regarding the Sabbath! In another word a Victory! Here's how The Catholic Mirror explains it:

“The Protestant world at its birth found the Christian Sabbath (Sunday) too strongly entrenched to run counter to its existence; it was therefore placed under the necessity of acquiescing in the arrangement, thus implying the Church’s right to change the day, for over 300 years. The Christian Sabbath (Sunday) is therefore to this day the acknowledged offspring of the Catholic Church … without a word of (protest) from the Protestant world.” (Sept. 23, 1893).

To say the least, that is just unbelievable, and I am sure you would agree, and certainly quite a lot of cheek to boot! The Catholics had no “right” of course to change the day. Nevertheless, that is just what they did. And that weak lot, the Protestant churches, have flowed like sheep. Meanwhile, the true faithful followers in Messiah Yahushua continue to keep the Sabbath just as it was in the apostolic times. Before concluding this section let me take one more look at that period. The respected scholar W.D. Davies wrote:

“Everywhere, especially in the East of the Roman Empire, there would be Jewish Christians whose outward way of life would not be markedly different from that of the Jews. They took for granted that the gospel was continuous with (the religion of Moses); for them the New Covenant, which Jesus had set up at the Last Supper with His disciples ... did not mean that the covenant made between God and Israel was no longer in force. They still observed the feasts of Passover, Pentecost and Tabernacles; they also continued to be circumcised, to keep the weekly Sabbath and the Mosaic regulations concerning food. According to some scholars, they must have been so strong that right up to the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 they were the DOMINANT ELEMENT in the Christian movement.” (Judeo-Christianisme - ”Paul and Jewish Christianity,” 1972, p.72, quoted by Bacchiocchi, p. 151).

Thus if the Sabbath keepers were the “dominant element” of believers for some 40 years after the resurrection of Messiah and the coming of the Sanctified Spirit, should that not tell us something? Is it not it obvious that, if Yahushua Himself, Shime’on -Peter, Ya’akov - James, Shaul - Paul and MOST of the faithful Ekklesia of that time observed the Seventh Day Sabbath, then THAT is the day we ALL should to be keeping TODAY? That is the day the original Apostles of Yahushua Messiah kept until they died. How DARE these later theologians of the Dark Ages place the Name of our most beloved Messiah on a day He never kept, and was NEVER sanctified! How DARE they replace Elohim's Sanctified Sabbath with the pagan “day of the Sun SUN-day! How DARE they pervert the very “sign” that identifies our CREATOR and those who worship Him!

18… Statements from Other churches:
Yahushua Messiah said of the Pharisees;

“In vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of Elohim, you hold the tradition of men … All too well you reject the commandment of Elohim, that you may keep your tradition.” Markus - Mark 7:7-9.

But beloved, please notice below what so many other churches actually admit regarding their observance of Sunday instead of Saturday.

ROMAN CATHOLIC:

Stephen Keenan, A Doctrinal Catechism, p. 174:

Question: “Have you any other way of proving that the Church has power to institute festivals of precept?”

Answer: “Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her, she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday, the Seventh Day, a change for which there is no scriptural authority.”

Question: “When Protestants do profane work upon Saturday ... do they follow the Scripture as their only rule of faith?

Answer: “On the contrary, they have only the authority of tradition for this practice. In profaning Saturday, they violate one of Elohim's commandments, which He has never clearly abrogated, ‘Remember thou keep Sanctified the Sabbath.’”

The Convert’s Catechism of Catholic Doctrine, 3rd ed., p. 50:

Question: “Which is the Sabbath day?”

Answer: “Saturday is the Sabbath day.”

Question: “Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday?”

Answer: “We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church, in the Council of Laodicea [c. 363] transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday.”

Catholic Press, Aug. 25, 1900

“Sunday is a Catholic institution, and … can be defended only on Catholic principles … From beginning to end of Scripture there is not a single passage that warrants the transfer of weekly public worship from the last day of the week to the first.”

ANGLICAN:

Isaac William, D.D., Plain Sermons on the Catechism, vol. 1:

“Where are we told in Scripture that we are to keep the first day at all? We are commanded to keep the seventh; but we are nowhere commanded to keep the first day … The reason why we keep the first day of the week Sanctified instead of the seventh is for the same reason that we observe many other things, not because the Bible, but because the Church, has enjoined it.”

METHODIST:

Charles Buck, A Theological Dictionary, “Sabbath”:

“Sabbath in the Hebrew language signifies “rest,” and is the Seventh Day of the week ... and it must be confessed that there is no law in the New Covenant concerning the first day.”

Clovis Chappell, Ten Rules for Living, p. 61:

“The reason we observe the first day instead of the seventh is based on no positive command. One will search the Scriptures in vain for authority for changing from the Seventh Day to the first.”

PRESBYTERIAN:

“The Christian at Work,” April 19, 1883, and January, 1884:

“Some have tried to build the observance of Sunday upon Apostolic command, whereas the Apostles gave no command on the matter at all ... The truth is, so soon as we appeal to the litera scripta (literal writing) of the Bible, the Sabbatarians have the best of the argument.”

EPISCOPAL:

Philip Carrington, Toronto Daily Star, October. 26, 1949:

“The Bible commandment says on the Seventh Day thou shalt rest. That is Saturday. Nowhere in the Bible is it laid down that worship should be done on Sunday.”

BAPTIST:

Harold Lindsell, Christianity Today, November, 5, 1976:

“There is nothing in Scripture that requires us to keep Sunday rather than Saturday as a Sanctified day.”

Beloved, they all know the TRUTH as you have clearly seen, but, under the powerful influence of Satan the Devil, he “who deceives the whole world” (Revelation 12:9), they have continue to uphold the day of the SUN god, and refuse to return to the Commandment as etched in stone, a commandments that was given for all eternity, the fourth commandments, “You shall keep the Sabbath Sanctified unto YHVH.”

Obviously, then, to really follow what the Scripture teaches, you MUST observe the Sabbath-from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset. But if you are willing to COMPROMISE on the very commandment that points out the true YaHVaH Elohim and He who is the Word who was in the Beginning, who was Elohim, then you might very well end up observing the “day of the Sun” right along with the vaunted majority-the countless millions that prophecy shows will soon be subjected to the greatest TRIBULATION in human history because of their rebellion against the true Elohim! Mattityahu - Matthew 24:21-22.

19… In Conclusion:
Remember what we read earlier, if we break one point of the Decalogue, Ya’akov - James says, we are guilty of violating the whole of it! If we neither kill nor commit adultery, but we do not uphold the Seventh Say Sabbath, then we are guilty of breaking His Law, and thus we are not only transgressors and sinners. But, instead we are grieving YaHVaH Elohim who loved us so much that He sent His Only Begotten Son, and even though Yahushua taught all the faithful to uphold the blessed Sabbath, we only seem to listen to men, who are being guided by the evil one! He who said, “Do not commit adultery!” and “Do not kill!” also said, “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it Sanctified!”

Some, however, insist that the Fourth Commandment is the one commandment of the Decalogue that has been abolished. But notice that the Sabbath is called a “perpetual covenant,” meaning a continuing and everlasting without end covenant between Elohim and His people, and that is you and me! Not one Word in the entire Scriptures even remotely suggests that the perpetual Sabbath covenant was to come to an end with the advent of christianity.

In fact, the prophet Yeshayahu - Isaiah gives us good reason to believe that the Sabbath covenant will continue into the Millennium. Speaking of that period, he writes,

“‘And it shall come to pass That from one New Moon to another, And from one Sabbath to another, All flesh shall come to worship before Me,’ says YHVH.” Yeshayahu - Isaiah 66:23.

The phrase “all flesh” indicates that Yisroel as well as the Gentile nations will be keeping the Sabbath. This concurs with Zecharyah – Zechariah’s prophecy concerning the same period. The prophet writes,

“And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, YHVH of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.” Zecharyah (Zechariah) 14:16.

With two prophecies of inspired Scripture positively confirming the fact that all nations will observe Elohim’s weekly and annual Sabbaths during the Millennium, how can anyone claim that these observances are not for the faithful in Him today?

Summary.

Those who reject the Sabbath would do well to carefully consider the following summary of scriptural facts:

The Sabbath was made at Creation; it was made for man.

The continuing cycle of Sabbaths, occurring every seventh day, was never lost. It was carefully preserved by both Hebrews and the faithful in Messiah Yahushua.

The Sabbath was to be a sign between Elohim and His true people. That is the faithful today!

The Sabbath was to be a perpetual covenant.

The command to keep Sanctified the seventh day is found in the Decalogue, alongside commandments against idolatry, blasphemy, murder, adultery, and so on.

The importance of keeping the Sabbath (from Elohim’s perspective) is seen in the punishment Sabbath-breaking brought upon Yisroel.

The prophets tell us that both Israelites and Gentiles will keep Elohim’s weekly and annual Sabbaths during the Millennium.

When we add to the above the fact that Yahushua the Messiah kept the Sabbath, the fact that all the apostles and the early believers upheld the Sabbath and all of the Feasts of YHVH (Vayikra - Leviticus 23), and the fact that both Messiah and the apostles upheld the Tanach (Old Covenant, because there was no other Scriptures at that time. Thus, the only conclusion we can come to is that we should all be keeping the Sabbath for as we have clearly learned in this study the Brit Chadashahh, the New Covenant has also taught it!!

Contrary to what you may have been told, the Sabbath day is not a burden; it is certainly no “yoke of bondage”; and there countless “Mosaic” commandment that no longer apply today any way, thus we have the Ten Commandments. But the Sabbath is a most wonderful and a joyous day!

The Sabbath was made for mankind, and eventually it will be for all mankind!

But right now, it awaits you, and I know that you will be richly blessed!

“Come out of her, My people, that you be not partakers of her sins, and that you receive not of her plagues.”