The New Testament shows in seven places that Jesus Christ is the Creator. (Joh. 1,1-3 + 14; Hebr. 1,1.2) Col. 1,15.16 says: „All things were created through him and for him.“ What is the relationship between Jesus as Creator and the Sabbath?

Genesis 2:2,3 gives us the answer: „And so on the seventh day God finished his works which he had made, and on the seventh day he rested from all his works which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on it he rested from all his works which God had created and made.“

Ps. 111:4 points this out: „He has established a memorial of his miracles, the gracious and merciful Lord.“

The Sabbath is not a human invention, but a thought of our Creator and Saviour Jesus Christ. This is why Jesus was able to declare to the Jews that he is the Lord of the Sabbath (Mark 2:27, 28).

After six days of creation, creation was celebrated on the seventh day. The creation of the world was completed on the Sabbath.

The Sabbath cannot be explained by astronomy or ethics. The only reason for the Sabbath and the existence of the seven-day week is that it was instituted by the Creator. Without him, there would be no Sabbath. Since the Sabbath is the memorial day of the creation accomplished by Christ, it is a sign of Christ's love and power for all people.

The apostle John points out that God claims a certain day. He says according to Revelation 1:10: „The Spirit came upon me on the Lord's day ...“

Which day is John referring to? The only day referred to in the Bible as God's day is the Sabbath. This is stated in the Ten Commandments: „But on the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God.“ (Exodus 20:10) Through the prophet Isaiah, God speaks of the Sabbath as „my holy day“. „The Lord says: “Honour the Sabbath as the day that belongs to me! Do not dishonour it by going about your business. Do not desecrate it by travelling or working or doing any kind of business. Honour it as a day of joy! Then I myself will be the source of your joy. I will make you triumph over all obstacles ..." (Is. 58,13.14 GN)

The apostle Paul explains in 1 Cor. 10:4 that it was Christ. He says: „The spiritual rock that followed was Christ.“

Christ led God's people out of Egypt through the desert to Canaan in a pillar of cloud and fire. What is the relationship between Jesus Christ, the leader of God's people, and the Sabbath?

Almost nothing grows in the desert. This is why Christ provided the people with manna every day for almost 40 years. This is reported in detail in Exodus 16. The manna had to be consumed every day. What was not eaten would spoil by the next morning. On the sixth day, however, they had to gather double the amount because no manna was given on the Sabbath. But from Friday to the Sabbath, the collected manna did not spoil. This incident shows that Christ practised the Sabbath with them for forty years through the manna.

Why did the Son of God do this? Let's read his reasoning in verse 4:
„Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather daily what they need for the day, that I may test them to see whether they walk in my law or not.“
The Son of God tested his people by keeping the Sabbath day holy to see whether they would keep his law, i.e. whether they would trust and obey him. V. 27.28 said:
„But on the seventh day some of the people went out to gather and found nothing. Then the Lord said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and instructions?"
Jesus Christ did not ask, "How long do you refuse to keep the Sabbath? He tested their entire relationship with him, whether they trust and obey him, by whether they keep his Sabbath holy.

Who wrote the commandments with his own finger on tablets of stone? According to 1 Cor. 10:4, it was Christ who accompanied God's people in the pillar of cloud and fire. He also led them out of Egypt (cf. Exodus 20:2 and Jude 4b:5). This means that the Son of God is the divine lawgiver. He himself wrote the Ten Commandments on tablets of stone and handed them over to Moses.

God entrusted the complete Bible to people to write. But not the Ten Commandments. He wrote them himself. When Moses smashed the stone tablets in anger because of the dance around the Golden Calf, he was commissioned by Christ to prepare two new tablets. However, God did not entrust Moses with the writing this time either. Christ wrote the Ten Commandments himself for the second time on tablets of stone and ordered them to be kept in a special ark in the Holy of Holies of the sanctuary. (see Exodus 32:16 and Deuteronomy 10:1-5) An astonishing process: God wrote the Ten Commandments himself.

The writing material - stone - indicates permanence. You don't write on stone with the intention of changing it later.

Therefore Christ says of this law:

„Until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or speck of the law will pass away.“ (Matth. 5,18)

This law will be the basis of the Last Judgement. James mentions the Ten Commandments „the royal law“, „the law of freedom“.“ (Jam. 2,8.12)

Christ, the divine lawgiver, says: „If you love me, you will keep my commandments.“ (Joh. 14,15)

With this statement, he is not only referring to his commandments in the Gospels, but also to the Ten Commandments. In them, the Sabbath is justified by creation. This means that the person who keeps the Sabbath recognises God's sovereignty and the Creator's right to rule.

Jesus calls the day of rest „Sabbath of the Lord your God“ (Exodus 20:10). Although Jesus declares that the Sabbath was made for the sake of man (Mark 2:27), it remains the property of God. Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath, not us. This means that the Sabbath has its holiness through the presence of God. The Sabbath is a gift from our Creator to protect and maintain our relationship with God. Those who do not enter into communion with God have missed the essence of the Sabbath.

Christ formulated the Sabbath commandment as the most comprehensive commandment of the Decalogue (Exodus 20:8-11). In this commandment we learn that the LORD (Yahweh) is the Creator of heaven and earth.

Only this commandment contains everything that is required for a law to come into force; the name, office and domain of the legislator: „Yahweh, Creator of heaven and earth“. Every signature that brings a law into force contains the same markings, e.g. „Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of the Federal Republic of Germany“. The Ten Commandments were formally put into force by the Sabbath commandment. The Sabbath is the signature of God, the seal of God, under his law.

I asked myself why the divine gift of the Sabbath is also a commandment. I found the following answer: God has done this to preserve this gift for us. Otherwise we would do what we want with the Sabbath. We can see that this often happens despite the commandment.

We have thus established another relationship between Christ and the Sabbath. As the divine lawgiver, He anchored the Sabbath commandment in the Ten Commandments and gave it the character of a signature, a seal.

The Ten Commandments are repeated in Deuteronomy 5. The content of the Sabbath commandment is reproduced in full detail in verses 12-15.

In Exodus 20, the Sabbath observance is justified with reference to creation. In Deuteronomy 5, the Sabbath is justified by the liberation from slavery in Egypt (V. 15).

The reference to the exodus from Egypt provides a further reason for keeping the Sabbath holy. This shows that The Sabbath has a broader meaning than just being a day of remembrance of creation. In the Bible, Egypt is the house of service or slavery from which the Lord liberated his people. (Exodus 20:2; cf. Rev 11:8) The liberation from slavery, the exodus through the blood of the lamb (Passover), the rescue from the overwhelming power of the enemy and the departure to the promised land symbolise the redemption from the slavery of sin and death. This means that every Sabbath is also a reminder of redemption through Jesus Christ.

Of course, both justifications for the Sabbath are important: if Christ were not the Creator, there would be no resurrection to eternal life. But without the crucifixion, without Jesus' act of redemption, we could not be saved from the slavery of sin either.

The Sabbath connects us with Christ, the Creator and Redeemer.

The relationship of the Sabbath to redemption is also shown in another way. It is a sign of the covenant between God and his children. God wanted the celebration of the Sabbath to mark them as his worshippers.

According to Exodus 31:13, God demands: „Keep my Sabbath, for it is a sign between me and you from generation to generation, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you.“

The Sabbath is a sign that the Lord sanctifies us. The holy people from Exodus 19:5.6 are referred to the New Testament church in 1 Peter 2:9. Christ was made us for sanctification and redemption.

Ezekiel 20:20 justifies the keeping of the Sabbath with the words: „so that you may know that I am the Lord your God“. This is a reference to creation. Jesus gave us the Sabbath as a sign of his work of creation and redemption.

Are there statements from the prophets about the Sabbath? There are many. Let's look at two examples:

Through the prophet Jeremiah, Christ sent the following warning to his people (Jer. 17:27):

„But if you do not heed my command to keep the Sabbath day holy and not to carry a burden through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, I will kindle a fire in her gates that will consume the fortified houses of Jerusalem and will not be quenched.“

17 years later, this word became a bitter reality. According to Jer. 52:12.13, the house of the Lord and all the great houses in Jerusalem were burnt down by the Babylonians.

Jesus Christ, the divine commissioner of the prophets, emphasised the Sabbath. Through Jeremiah, Christ emphasised the external circumstances: on the Sabbath, they should not carry a burden or do any work, because external rest is the prerequisite for spiritual rest and refreshment on the Sabbath.

Through the prophet Daniel, Christ foretold that someone would come who would „subordinate“, to change God's law. This has to do with the Sabbath. In Daniel 7:25, this power is symbolically described as a „little horn“.

„He will blaspheme the Most High and destroy the saints of the Most High, and will presume to change the feast times and the law. They will be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.“

What has been changed in the law of God? Comparing the Ten Commandments in the Bible with catechisms shows us:

1. The commandment forbidding the worship of images was removed from the Ten Commandments.
2. The Sabbath was changed to Sunday. This changed the festive time in the Ten Commandments - the Sabbath.
3. So that there are ten commandments again, the last one was divided into two commandments.

The Apostle Peter says (1 Pet 2:21), Christ has left an example, „that you should follow in his footsteps“. The apostle John emphasises (1 John 2:6): „He that saith he abideth in him shall walk even as he walked.“ Jesus' life on earth should be a role model for us.

Jesus attended the Sabbath service and took an active part in it: „And he came to Nazareth, where he was brought up, and went into the synagogue according to his custom on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.“ (Luk 4:16)

Jesus walked through nature with his disciples on the Sabbath:

„At that time Jesus was walking through a cornfield on the Sabbath; and his disciples were hungry and began to pluck ears of corn and eat.“ (Matth. 12,1)

Jesus did good on the Sabbath: „Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.“ (Matth. 12:10-13, v. 12b)

Visiting the sick and hospitality on the Sabbath are very important: „And immediately they went out of the synagogue to the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John. And Simon's mother-in-law was lying down with a fever.“ (Mark 1:21-29, esp. 29.30) Jesus healed them.

Jesus, the divine lawgiver, kept the Sabbath holy as a man on earth: He did not adhere to the human statutes of the Jews.

As „Lord of the Sabbath“ (Mark 2, 28 EB) Jesus gives guidelines that show how we can experience the blessing that he wants to give us on this day in particular. The Sabbath is a blessed day, a holy day and a day of rest.

Jesus „blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on it he rested from all his labours.“ (Genesis 2:3)

The Sabbath, the day of Jesus Christ, the Christian Sabbath, is a joy for all who are in Christ. We should make it a „Lust“ see Isa 58:13.

Jesus said to his disciples that he was their master (Joh. 13,13) and they are his friends. „You are my friends if you do what I command you.“ (John 15:14)

What did they learn from Jesus about the Sabbath? Luke 23:54 to 24:1 tells us: „And it was Preparation Day (today's Friday), and the Sabbath (Saturday) began.“ (According to the biblical calendar, the Sabbath begins at sunset: Genesis 1:5; Leviticus 23:32; Neh. 13:19; Luke 4:31, 40).

„But the women who had come with him from Galilee followed him and looked at the tomb and how his body had been laid. But they turned back and prepared spices and ointments. And on the Sabbath they kept silence according to the law. But on the first day of the week (Sunday) very early they came to the tomb, carrying the spices they had prepared.“

The disciples had learnt from their Master and friend. They themselves honoured the Sabbath under the pressing need to prepare Jesus' body for burial. At the end of the Sabbath, they went to work and arrived at the tomb with the spices early on the first day of the week.

„But when Jesus was risen early on the first day of the week ...“ (Mark 16:9)

The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is a great event. Without it, our faith would be in vain. (1Co 15:17,18) Should we therefore celebrate Resurrection Day?

In the 10 Commandments, the Sabbath is the day of remembrance for the creation accomplished by Christ (Exodus 20:11). It is also a day of remembrance for the liberation of the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt (see Deuteronomy 5:15), which was carried out under the leadership of the Son of God. The Sabbath is the memorial day for all the deeds of power of the Son of God in creation and redemption. What Jesus Christ did for us on the cross and completed in the resurrection belongs together. The death on the cross without the resurrection could not help us. And neither could the resurrection without the sacrifice on the cross. The two are inseparable. And the day of remembrance for both is the Sabbath.

„Ask God that you do not have to flee in winter or on a Sabbath.“ (Matth. 24,20)

Did the Christians remember Jesus' words during the siege of Jerusalem by the Romans in 66 AD? They certainly did! How did the Lord answer their prayer? The flight of the Christians took place (according to our calendar) on 19 Oct. 66, just before the onset of the rainy season. If they had to flee, then this was a favourable time of year.

How was the other part of the request to not have to flee on the Sabbath fulfilled? The Romans withdrew from Jerusalem on Thursday, 16 October 66 AD. Jesus had made it extremely urgent for them to flee immediately. Why did they not flee immediately?

Friday was too short to flee, as the Sabbath began at around 6 pm. According to Jesus' instructions, they were to flee to the mountains, i.e. to the East Bank. The journey there was too far until the beginning of the Sabbath. They did not flee on the Sabbath, but kept this day holy according to Christ's commandment. They fled on Sunday 19 October to the small town of Pella on the East Bank.

According to this, 35 years after Jesus' death, the church in Jerusalem was unaware that the Sabbath had been moved to the first day of the week in honour of his resurrection.

When Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist in the Jordan, John revealed who Jesus was through the Spirit of God: „Behold, this is the Lamb of God who bears the sin of the world.“ In the Book of Revelation, which has the name „Revelation of Jesus Christ“ (Rev 1:1), is said of the redeemed: „These ... follow the lamb wherever it goes.“ (Rev 14:4). In the following verses we find God's last message to mankind. The first angel calls us to worship the Creator (Rev 14:7). The worship of the Creator is closely linked to the Sabbath. In the same chapter (V. 9 + 11) it speaks of those who worship „the beast“. It urgently warns against accepting the „mark of the beast“; those who accept it will be lost. The mark seems to be a counter-sign to the Sabbath. V. 12 says of the saved that they „keep the commandments of God and have faith in Jesus.“

Revelation 12 speaks of those who have overcome the accuser „through the blood of the lamb“ (v. 11). They are also characterised by the fact that they „Keep God's commandments and have the testimony of Jesus“. (V. 17)

The Lamb of God clearly attaches great importance to the worship of God, the keeping of God's commandments and thus also to „the Sabbath of the Lord“.

Jesus promised according to Joh. 14,3: „I will come again and take you to myself.“ Revelation chapter 14 is remarkable in this context, as it contains God's last message to mankind before Jesus' return. In verse 14, Jesus Christ is shown as the coming King who is coming for the harvest. In verse 12, those waiting for him are characterised as follows: „Here are those who keep the commandments of God and believe in Jesus.“ In verse 7, the words „Worship him who made heaven and earth and sea and the fountains of waters“ reference is made to the Sabbath commandment. This shows that The Sabbath also has a special meaning for Jesus in the time before his return.

In Jam. 4,12 it is said: „One is legislator and judge.“

The name is not mentioned there. We only learn that the lawgiver and judge are one and the same person. In Rev 19:11-13, the one who judges is called the „Word of God“ called. This is a designation for Jesus. John 5:22 says that the Father has given all judgement to the Son. According to which law will he judge?

Ecclesiastes 12:13, 14 says that „his commandments“ are the basis. James 2:8-13 shows that it is about the Ten Commandments. The Sabbath is part of the Ten Commandments.

Jesus concludes the Sermon on the Mount with an unmistakable word that we all want to take to heart. He says in Matthew 7:21: „Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but those who do the will of my Father in heaven.“ In Psalm 89:35 the Lord says: „I will not profane my covenant, nor change the things that have proceeded out of my mouth.“

The Bible gives us a clear answer to this in Isaiah 66:23: „And all flesh shall come one new moon after another, and one Sabbath after another, to worship before me, saith the Lord.“ The redeemed will also worship their Creator and Saviour every Sabbath on the new earth. The core of true worship here and on the new earth is obedience of heart. This is what we ask our Lord for every day, „equip me with a willing spirit.“ (Psalm 51:14)

The sanctification of the Sabbath on the new earth testifies that it is the memorial day of the completed redemption and the new creation of man and the earth.

Jesus Christ gave us the Sabbath as a gift. The Sabbath was so important to him that he practised it with the people of God for 40 years through the Manna miracle. Jesus commanded the Sabbath in his divine basic law of the Ten Commandments.

He has also redeemed me through his blood and brought me out of the bondage of sin. If he has chosen the Sabbath as a sign of the covenant for his children, then I too will gladly bear this sign. Through his life on earth, Jesus is the example I want to emulate through the power of the Holy Spirit. By God's grace, I want to be one of those who follow the Lamb wherever he goes; who worship God Sabbath by Sabbath on the new earth.

I want to be among those to whom Jesus will say: „Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.“ Matth. 25,34