12. Sabbath: Experiencing and Living the Character of God
Introduction:
Human beings had been given the special day - the Sabbath as memorial of Creation. This week's lesson will direct us to the privileges God has given to humankind - a long journey that reminds us of the origin of man, where they are now and what will be their future. Below are the subtopics that will be consider in this SSLesson.
A. A Time to Learn
B. A Time to Rediscover
C. A Time to Prioritize
D. A Time to Know Him
E. A Time to Share
Memory Verse:
And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:
Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath. {Mark 2:27, 28}
Prayer Thought:
You must make decided reforms in your own customs and practices, conforming your life to the saving principles of the law of God. When you do this, you will have the righteousness of Christ which pervades that law, because you love God and recognize His law as a transcript of His character. True faith in the merits of Christ is not fancy. It is of the highest importance that you bring the attributes of Christ into your own life and character, and educate and train your children with persevering effort to be obedient to the commandments of God. A "Thus saith the Lord" should guide you in all your plans of education. . . . {CG 69.2}
A. A Time to Learn
“Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.” (Genesis 2:3)
- A Necessity to Learn
We see by this that everything strange is not always wrong to teach. The Jews in Christ's time had not learned the things humanity needed then to learn. Let us pray that this afternoon we may learn more about the things we need to learn.
Eccles. 9:10, 11 -- "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest. I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all."
- Redeem the Time
"...now time is almost finished, and what we have been years learning, they will have to learn in a few months. They will also have much to unlearn, and much to learn again." -- Early Writings, p. 67.
"Time is short, and what you do must be done quickly. Resolve to redeem the time. Seek not your own pleasure. Rouse yourself! Take hold of the work with a new purpose of heart. The Lord will open the way before you. Make every possible effort to work in Christ's lines, in meekness and lowliness, relying upon Him for strength. Understand the work the Lord gives you to do, and, trusting in God, you will be enabled to go on from strength to strength, from grace to grace. You will be enabled to work diligently, perseveringly, for your people while the day lasts; for the night cometh in which no man shall work . " -- Testimonies, Vol. 9, p. 200.
Take Note the following:
The first full day of Adam and Eve together was an especially blessed day. The Creator Himself sanctified the seventh day with His presence.
On that day, they learnt more about their Creator and the creation around them. By the end of the day, they were invited to spend another full day with God on the next Sabbath.
We still receive the same invitation every Sabbath. An invitation to spend a full day learning about our wonderful Creator.
B. A Time Rediscover
“See! For the Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.” (Exodus 16:29)
- The Story of Man
"...What is the story of Man? It is that men die, Man survives. Now men are measurably nearer the most terrible of all the climaxes they have brought upon themselves in their long history of struggle. If the climax comes it will change life and change the world. But it will not end life, it will not destroy the world. In this utmost climax, or perhaps in its prospect, men may at last find the secret of peace and the way to live without destruction. That is a hope. The certainty is that Man will be on earth, making a world." -- Life, Oct. 3, 1949, p. 22.
- Everything there is Season
So every true Christian will, in foul weather or in fair, learn to lead others to Christ, remembering that "to everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; a time to kill and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace." Eccles. 3:1-8.
Reminders!
The people of Israel had been forced to work on Sabbath under the yoke of Egypt.
After liberating them, God wanted them to rediscover the Sabbath. He wanted them to rediscover who He is, how much He loved them, and the plans He had for them.
God used manna to teach them about the Sabbath. He performed a weekly double miracle:
(1) He sent twice the usual amount of manna on Friday, and nothing at all on Sabbath.
(2) The manna that the people cooked on Friday was still good on Sabbath. However, the manna they tried to keep other days bred worms.
God is inviting us today to rediscover Him every Sabbath, to understand His character better, and to have a strongest relationship with Him.
C. A Time to Prioritize
“If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable, and shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, then you shall delight yourself in the Lord; and I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth, and feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father.
The mouth of the Lord has spoken.” (Isaiah 58:13-14)
- Remember the Time Element
If earth, through its constant movement and change of location in the universe, represents time, then everything might represent time. Plants represent time, for you can tell by its size how old a plant is. In another form human beings represent time. Trees represent time by their growth. The Bible represents time, for it took time for man to live the history It records, to write It, to print It, to manufacture the paper on which It is printed and the machinery that prints It, to grow and process the material for Its cover, -- it all represents time. The workman's wages represent time paid in money. Neither gold or diamonds are obtained without the representation of the time element being present both in the commodities themselves and again in the money that people give in exchange for them. Through this discussion you can see that time is vitally connected with material though it is invisible. It is far more important to save time, for time is priceless; it is just like salvation. But the sad fact is that but few people realize how valuable time is. In view of the great value of time what sin it must be to waste it! Yet to all are given time and chance. {11SC No. 4.7}
- Don't Waste Time
"Let no more time be lost in dwelling on the many things that are not essential, and which have no bearing upon the present necessities of God's people. Let no more time be lost in exalting men who know not the truth; 'for the time is at hand.' There is no time now to fill the mind with theories of what is popularly called 'higher education.' The time devoted to that which does not tend to assimilate the soul to the likeness of Christ, is so much time lost for eternity. This we cannot afford, for every moment is freighted with eternal interests. Now, when the great work of judging the living is about to begin, shall we allow unsanctified ambition to take possession of the heart, and lead us to neglect the education required to meet the needs in this day of peril?"--Test., Vol. VI, p. 130. {PH124 40.2}
Consider these points:
In Isaiah 58, God called His people to reconsider their priorities. They fasted and asked God to make them prosper, but they were also exploiting their workers and oppressing the defenseless (v. 1-5).
God explained that the right approach is the opposite. We should take care of others and help those in need first, then we will prosper (v. 6-12).
This comes with a call to enjoy the Sabbath in the company of God, leaving our self and our business aside (v. 13-14).
The Sabbath helps us to put God first and to give everything else its right priority.
D. A Time to Know Him
“And He said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.’” (Mark 2:27-28)
- Knowing Him More
"Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me?" These words are applicable to very many in our own day. Many do not know him, tho he has been lifted up for us and crucified. They do not know him, tho a mighty angel from heaven parted the darkness from his track, and rolled back the stone from the door of the sepulcher, and Jesus, the Lord of light and glory, came forth from the rent sepulcher proclaiming himself the resurrection and the life. {ST, February 27, 1896 par. 14}
- Abide in Him
We have a most decided work to do to prepare for the judgment. The great question is, "How is it with my soul? Have I followed the light that God has given me?" If you have faith now to grasp the promises of God, you will have faith when greater trials come. The present time is all-important time to us. Now is the time to know that Christ is formed within, the hope and glory. We must abide in Christ. Says the Saviour: "I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit; for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." But if we abide in him, we may ask what we will, and it shall be done. {RH, March 19, 1889 par. 1}
Things to be considered:
The Law was read and interpreted every Sabbath in the synagogues. They wanted to understand the will of God better.
However, they tried to describe in detail what could and couldn’t be done on Sabbath in order to fulfill the Law. This way they turned the Sabbath in a burden.
Jesus used His actions and words to remind them of the true purpose of the Sabbath. It was made to become a blessing for us and for those around us.
We are encouraged to meet the Lord of the Sabbath more intimately on Sabbath. Our obedience should be the result of our gratitude for all He has done for us.
E. A Time to Share
“So when the Jews went out of the synagogue, the Gentiles begged that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath.” (Acts 13:42)
- Transforming Power of Christ
The Lord's time was not their time. Had they cleared the way, the Lord would have given them an experience of the highest value. But we know that souls have accepted the truth who have never felt the transforming power of the grace of Christ. We hope that this will not be the last invitation of the Spirit of God to them. We did all that we could for these dear souls. We did not cease to warn and entreat them, and we spent many hours in prayer for them while others were sleeping. If those who let that golden opportunity pass, had taken their position decidedly for the truth, determined to share with the church the warfare, the self-denial, and the reproach, and to share the final victory, there would have been a revival whose influence would have been far-reaching outside the church. {HS 218.4}
Take Note the Following thoughts:
The first Christians shared the gospel in their Sabbath meetings. They proved that Jesus was the Messiah with the Scriptures and their personal testimony (Acts 13:14-45; 16:13-14; 17:1-5; 18:4).
We have the opportunity to share what we know about the Scriptures and Jesus during the Bible Study in our Sabbath School classes.
Besides, the fundamental truths of our faith can also be shared during the public biblical preaching on Sabbath.
From the Pen of Inspiration:
“God teaches that we should assemble in His house to cultivate the attributes of perfect love. This will fit the dwellers of earth for the mansions that Christ has gone to prepare for all who love Him. There they will assemble in the sanctuary from Sabbath to Sabbath, from one new moon to another, to unite in loftiest strains of song, in praise and thanksgiving to Him who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb for ever and ever.”