Exodus 20:8-10 – THE BIG TEN #5 – SUNDAY – THE LORD’S DAY OR “FUN DAY”?
Exodus 20:8-10 – Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
- How has Sunday changed in your lifetime?
- Has this been a good or bad change and why?
- J. I. Packer said, “Matthew Henry says that the Sabbath was made a day of holy rest so that it might be a day of holy work. From this holy work, in our sedentary and lonely world, physical recreation and family fun will not be excluded, but worship and Christian fellowship will come first.” J.I. Packer, The Ten Commandments, (Wheaton, Illinois, Tyndale House Publishers, 1977), pp. 44-45
- How would our church be different if we took what J. I. Packer said to heart?
- “Our freedom from the law as a way of salvation does not mean that we are free from the law as a guide to conduct. The fourth command is as much a part of that coherent ‘family code’ as is any of the other nine.” Alistair Begg, Pathway to Freedom, How God’s laws Guide our Lives, (Chicago, Moody Publishers, 2003), pp. 100-101
For many people Sunday has become “Fun Day”, a day of doing whatever a person wants. However, if we are going to be consistent, we must acknowledge that this command from God is still in effect. There are some things we need to understand about the “Sabbath” as found in the Fourth Commandment.
IT IS THE LORD’S DAY
- The Sabbath was changed to Sunday and called “The Lord’s Day” by the early church. Acts 20:7, 1 Corinthians 16:2, Revelation 1:10
- Rest and worship are still to take place one day in seven. It is the day of the week that has been changed, not the principle.
- Why is it referred to as “the Lord’s Day”? How should that affect our attitude towards that day?
IT IS A DAY OF REST
- What do we learn about God’s “work ethic” from this passage?
- What do we learn about God’s prescribed work ethic for man? How is this work ethic violated besides not observing the Lord’s Day?
- Ephesians 4:28 – Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.
1 Thessalonians 4:11 – And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you;2 Thessalonians 3:10 – For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.
- How is not taking a “day of rest” detrimental? Mark 6:31 – And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.
- How does 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 apply to a day of rest? 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 – What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
- Is it wrong to work on Sunday?
- J. I. Packer said – “Your time is God’s.” Packer, p. 45
Ephesians 5:15-17 – See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.
IT IS A DAY OF REVERENCE OR RESPECT
- What does the word “holy” mean?
- In what ways should we keep the Lord’s Day holy?
- Here are some of my own suggestions for making the Sabbath Day Holy:
- Don’t do anything in the way of work which you don’t have to do.
- Don’t do any chores or shopping which can be done another day.
- Prioritize church attendance by putting it on the top of the list.
- Go to bed at a reasonable time the night before, so you can reverence the Lord’s Day in a good frame of mind.
- Don’t use the excuse, “Sunday is the only day I have to rest or spend time with the family” as an excuse for missing church.
- Don’t miss church for something you wouldn’t miss work for.
IT IS A DAY OF WORSHIP
- It is the Lord’s Day. He is to be worshipped. Hebrews 13:15 – By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.
- What are the advantages of corporate worship?
- What makes a person a good worshiper?
- What are some ways of being disrespectful in a worship service?
- Why is the “Lord’s Table” an important part of worship? 1 Corinthians 11:23-33
IT IS A DAY OF FELLOWSHIP
- What is fellowship? Hebrews 10:24-25 – And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
- Why is fellowship important? John 13:34-35 – A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
- Why do Christians not have as much fellowship as they used to? How can we fix it?
IT IS A DAY OF MERCY
- Why is it important to show mercy on our day of rest? Luke 14:3-5 – And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day? And they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go; And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day?
- Look at Luke 13:10-16. What principles about mercy do we see there?
- What did Jesus mean when he said in Mark 2:27 …The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath?