By Ivor Myers

he stated ideals of America seem to fall in line with the very heart of the Sabbath commandment. The principles espoused in the Declaration of Independence are noble, setting America aside as a truly great nation. Among those who flocked to America were those who escaped religious and monarchical tyranny and oppression. Just as ancient Israel had been delivered from bondage and oppression to a land of promise, so America was to be a beacon of light for those fleeing persecution. Above all nations, young America professed Christian roots and a recognition of God’s commandments. It would seem that our nation would have embraced, particularly, the fourth commandment in celebration of deliverance from former persecution.

Instead, just as church in Europe had done before us, we too neglected this commandment and opted for the man-made version of it. The commandment, designed to remind us of liberty for all, according to Deuteronomy 5, was neglected. The neglect of this commandment allowed this nation that professed to be founded on Judeo-Christian values to actively engage in the buying and selling of human souls in the slave trade.

Delivered into Rest

In Egypt, the deliverance of Israel was initiated by the Passover Lamb (see Exodus 12). The Sabbath was to be a reminder of their freedom from captivity and their oppressors—their freedom from slavery. For the Christian, this is significant. Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). We understand this to be rest from the labor or bondage of sin. The Bible tells us that “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36). Jesus began His ministry on the Sabbath. The Bible records the event with these words:

“And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord” (Luke 4:16-19).

The gospel delivers us from the works, or “labor,” of the flesh. Paul tells us,

“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1-2).

For the Christian, then, the Sabbath is the symbol that Jesus has set us free from the bondage of sin. The Sabbath is the anti-bondage commandment. Thus, God instructed Israel:

• “Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt,” (Exodus 23:9).
• “And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him. But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God,” (Leviticus 19:33-34).

What Could Have Been

Since the gospel is a call to freedom, then the Christian—himself freed from bondage—would seek to deliver other captives from bondage, so that they, too, could keep the Sabbath. Why? For the simple reason that slaves cannot keep the commandments while in slavery.

Had the true Sabbath commandment been observed in America, slavery would never have been permitted or endured. Oppression would not have been tolerated. Instead, Christians would have fought for the freedom, liberty, and justice for all, not some.

The breach between North and South would never have existed had the professed Christians of this nation truly observed the biblical Sabbath. In forgetting this commandment, Christians were able to claim love for God (the commandments in the first table of stone), while treating their neighbor worse than beasts and justifying it in their own minds (second table of stone).

To this day, America still suffers as a result of this breach of the law of God. If those who champion liberty would exalt this forgotten commandment, the changes in our nation would be dramatic.

In the book of Hebrews, the author makes an important statement regarding the nature of heaven. He writes:

“There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief” (Hebrews 4:8-10).

What Real Rest Looks Like

The context of the statement points us back to Old Testament Israel. They had been captives in Egypt for 400 years. Through a mighty intervention, God delivered the children of Israel through the hand of Moses. They left Egypt headed for the “promised land,” or Canaan, the land where God had promised them “rest.”

Paul here is making an analogy, a comparison between the land of “rest” that the Hebrews entered in the Old Testament and the heavenly land of rest that Christians are journeying on. And just as many of the Israelites, through murmuring and unbelief, never made it to the promised land of Canaan, so, he warns, that many Christians, through the same unbelief, may be at risk of losing out on heaven.

The Greek word Paul uses for “rest” in Hebrews 4:9 is “sabbatismos,” and according to Strong’s Bible Dictionary it means, “a “sabbatism,” that is, (figuratively) the repose of Christianity, (as a type of heaven) rest.”

In his commentary on the Bible, Presbyterian Scholar Albert Barnes (1798-1870) addresses the use of the word “sabbatismos” in Hebrew 4:9.

“It means here ‘a resting’ or an observance of sacred repose—and refers undoubtedly to heaven, as a place of eternal rest with God.” The Jamieson Fausset-Brown Commentary describes it as, “[r]est from weariness, sorrow, and sin; and rest in the completion of God’s new creation” (Revelation 21:5).

It is clear, then, that rest, or “sabbatismos,” is a reference to heaven. Heaven is the land of rest. In the Old Testament, the land was said to be “at rest” when everything was peaceful and there were no wars.

• “And the land had rest from war” (Joshua 14:15).
• “And he built fenced cities in Judah: for the land had rest, and he had no war in those years; because the LORD had given him rest” ( 2 Chronicles 14:6).

We understand, therefore, that heaven is a place of rest because everything there is submitted to the will of God. There is no war there. It is a place of law and order, peace, and happiness, of “sabbatismos.”

Angels in heaven kept the commandments of God.

“Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word” (Psalms 103:20).

Rest and Love

These commandments were, in essence, laws of love. As the book of Matthew puts it, “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (Matthew 22:37-39). The book of Romans expresses the same thought: “Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law” (Romans 13:10).

The law in heaven then, the commandments of God, could be summarized in one word— love. As long as angels loved God and loved one another, all was “sabbatismos.” This law of love was an everlasting and unchangeable law. “The works of his hands are verity and judgment; all his commandments are sure. They stand fast for ever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness” (Psalms 111:7-8).

Love for neighbor. Love for God. These were the elements of law and order. These are the elements of law and order. The reason our nation has never experienced true rest, is because we have never honored the commandment that surrounds the issue of rest.

Ignore this command that ties God and man together, and the result will be political, civil and social unrest. The longer the spirit of oppression manifests itself in America, the closer we get to God Himself doing to this nation what He did to ancient oppressive nations.

To be continued. . .

IVOR MYERS is a pastor, author and Bible teacher. You can learn more about his ministry at www.powerofthelamb.com