Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland

Reformed in Doctrine, Worship, and Practice

“Thou hast given a banner to them that fear thee, that it may be displayed because of the truth.” Psalm 60:4

  • Contact Us
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Who We Are
    • What We Contend For
    • What We Believe
    • How We Worship
    • How We Are Organised
    • Important Documents
    • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Articles
  • Publications
    • Free Presbyterian Magazine
    • Young People’s Magazine
    • Gaelic Supplement – An Earrann Ghàidhlig
    • Synod Reports
    • Religion and Morals Committee Reports
  • Audio
    • Sermons
    • Theological Conferences
    • Youth Conferences
  • Congregations
    • Places of Worship
    • Current Ministers
    • Galleries of FP Churches
  • International
    • Zimbabwe Mission
    • Other International Congregations
    • Translation Work
    • Metrical Psalms in Various Languages
  • History
    • History of the FP Church
    • Congregational Histories
    • Deceased Ministers and Probationers
    • Obituaries and Synod Tributes
    • Moderators of Synod etc.
  • Spiritual Help
    • How to Find Spiritual Help
    • How may a sinner be saved?
    • How may someone know if they are truly saved?
    • Spiritual Mindedness
    • Scripture and Catechism Exercises 2020-21
  • Bookshop
Home / About Us / What We Contend For / The Sabbath / Why the Sabbath should Still be Kept

Why the Sabbath should Still be Kept

One Day in Seven

For the vast majority of people today Sabbath-keeping is a thing of the past. Large numbers, even among evangelicals, join with the world to deny the continuing authority of the Sabbath. But what does the Bible have to say on the matter? In other words, what does God say on the matter? In the face of so many claims that the Sabbath institution was purely for Old Testament times, what is the evidence that assures us that the Sabbath is just as binding today as ever it was?

It is a remarkable fact that the Fourth Commandment is one for which we have God’s own example. We read that He “rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made” (Gen. 2:2,3). God was thus setting apart the seventh day in every week as a day for man to rest from his ordinary toil, and a day when he could have the opportunity of thinking on the ways and works of God, including the work of creation.

We should therefore not be surprised to find that, when God gave the Ten Commandments to Israel on Mount Sinai, the Fourth Commandment was put in the form of a reminder, not as something completely new: “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy . . . “. So we should be very much on our guard against any suggestion that the Sabbath was purely a Jewish institution. Indeed, even before the Ten Commandments were given, God made clear to Israel that Sabbath-breaking was a sin. When manna was first given for food to Israel, just after they crossed the Red Sea, they were told, “Six days shall ye gather it, but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, in it there shall be none” (Ex. 16:26). And, after some people went out to gather manna on the Sabbath, there came a rebuke from God Himself: “How long refuse ye to keep My commandments and My laws? See, for that the Lord hath given you the Sabbath; therefore He giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day” (Ex. 16:28,29).

At this point it might be asked, Does the New Testament not make clear that Christians are free from all such restrictions? Does Paul not say, “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath days; which are a shadow of things to come” (Col.2:16,17)? Of course he does – and he speaks in a similar vein in other places also – but the question is, what does he mean in such passages by days and, in particular, by Sabbath days?

We must remember that a change took place in the worship of the Church of God after the resurrection of Christ. One aspect of that change was the substitution of the first day of the week for the seventh day as the day to be kept holy to God. But how were believers to treat the seventh day of the week after God instituted the Christian Sabbath – or the Lord’s Day, as John calls it in Revelation 1:10, echoing the expression My holy day in Isaiah 58:13? The answer was that first-generation Christians were free to keep holy the seventh day of the week in addition to the first day, but no one had any right to judge those who did not keep the seventh day as well as the first day. God had changed the particular day of the week which was to be kept holy, but the Sabbath institution remained absolutely unchanged. The principle remained the same: that “a due proportion of time be set apart for the worship of God; so . . . He hath particularly appointed one day in seven for a Sabbath, to be kept holy unto Him” (Westminster Confession of Faith 21:7).

There can be no doubt that the first day of the week was the day set apart in the early New Testament Church for the worship of God. It was “upon the first day of the week when the disciples came together to break bread” in Troas, “and Paul preached unto them” (Acts 20:7). It was on the first day of the week also that the collection for the poor saints of Jerusalem was to be taken in the Corinthian Church (see 1 Cor. 16:1,2). The change of day took place in order that the Christian Sabbath might be a memorial of the resurrection, which, of course, took place on the first day of the week. So it need be no surprise to find the Saviour on the evening of the Resurrection Day appearing where the disciples were meeting together, and coming to them again eight days later (that is, exactly one week later, for the Jews counted both the first and the last days of any period as full days). Christ honoured their gatherings with His physical presence just as He has honoured many other such Sabbath gatherings since then with His spiritual presence. And how wonderfully He honoured the preaching of the gospel on the Day of Pentecost (which was always the first day of the week) when 3000 souls were brought into His kingdom!

How then is the Sabbath to be kept in New Testament times? We cannot give a better reply than by quoting again from the Westminster Confession of Faith: “This Sabbath is then kept holy unto the Lord when men, after a due preparing of their hearts and ordering of their common affairs beforehand, do not only observe a holy rest all the day from their own works, words and thoughts about their worldly employments and recreations, but also are taken up the whole time in the public and private exercises of His worship and in the duties of necessity and mercy” (21:8). We should note how not only our outward activities, including our conversations, are to be regulated by the Fourth Commandment, but even our thoughts, which no one else – except God Himself – can possibly know about. These are God’s requirements, not man’s. The whole of our time is to be given up to worshipping God, except when we must turn aside to activities which are genuinely necessary or merciful.

We are not to think of the Fourth Commandment as simply imposing restrictions on our freedom for, in the words of the Saviour, “the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). He is telling us that the Sabbath is given as a benefit to man – and an inestimable benefit it is. It is an opportunity for us to lay aside, as far as possible, our worldly duties and give our attention to our spiritual needs in a way that is not normally possible on a weekday. If we have any sense of the value of our souls, and of our need to learn of God and to worship Him, then we will value the Sabbath as God’s provision so that we may give ourselves to the Word of God and prayer, and to whatever else will contribute to our spiritual well-being. A proper outlook will bring us to concentrate, not on what we are held back from doing if we keep the Sabbath as God has ordained, but on the freedom we will then have to attend to our spiritual needs.

Surely a well-kept Sabbath is the closest we can get to heaven in this world. In the world of spirits temporal needs and blessings will have lost their relevance, and the glorified saints will be continuously occupied with spiritual activities as they serve God “day and night in His temple”. Our willingness to keep the Sabbath, not only outwardly but inwardly also, is a test of our spiritual state, for the natural heart has no love for spiritual things. How can we expect to feel at home in heaven unless in this life we can enjoy a Sabbath which is consecrated to the worship of God?

Is there a blessing in keeping the Sabbath? We can be sure that there is a blessing in keeping each of God’s commandments, but He specially assures us that He will bless those who keep the Sabbath: “Blessed is the man that doeth this and the son of man that layeth hold on it, that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it” (Isa. 56:2). It is interesting to note that the previous verse states, “My salvation is near to come and my righteousness to be revealed”, and Matthew Poole comments, “My salvation: that eminent salvation by the Messiah. . . . My righteousness: the same thing which He now called salvation and here calleth His righteousness, because it is an evident demonstration of God’s righteousness . . . in the salvation of sinners upon just and honourable terms.” Could the Sabbath possibly be spoken of in such a context if it was not to survive into New Testament times?

And God says again through Isaiah, “If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable, and shalt honour Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words, then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord, and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father, for the mouth of the Lord bath spoken it” (Isa. 58:13,14). The heritage which God had given Jacob included the promise, “I am with thee and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest” (Gen. 28:15), and it is therefore a promise which forms part of the blessing that belongs to all who have a heart-love to the Sabbath. This promise of God’s continual presence is all the richer a blessing because it will never come to an end. All who love the Sabbath are assured of a safe entry to heaven, where with perfect heart they will relish the opportunity of worshipping God with all the fulness of their being, and absolutely without interruption.

Let us then seek that new heart which is essential if are to love the Sabbath sincerely. And let us seek grace to observe that holy day consistently, according to the will of God as expressed in the Fourth Commandment.

About Us

  • Who We Are
    • The Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland – Why It Exists Today
    • The Free Presbyterian Church Catechism
      • A Catechism of the History and Principles of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland – PDF
      • 1. Origins of the Free Presbyterian Church (1-13)
      • 2. The Westminster Confession of Faith (14–22)
      • 3. The Declaratory Act and the Free Church (23–53)
      • 4. The Infallibility of Scripture (54-67)
      • 5. Erroneous Doctrines (68-77)
      • 6. Innovations in Worship (78-93)
      • 7. Church and State (94-104)
      • 8. Church office-bearers (105-130)
      • 9. Church Courts (131-140)
      • 10. Church Unity (141-149)
      • 11. Modern Religious Cults (150-159)
      • 12. Modern Errors (160-170)
      • 13. Evolution (171-175)
      • 14. Christ’s Second Coming (176-179)
      • Appendix 1. Deed of Separation 1893
      • Appendix 2. Free Church of Scotland Declaratory Act 1892
      • Appendix 3. FP Synod Resolutions
      • Appendix 4. Questions put to Office-bearers and Formula to be signed by them
      • Appendix 5. Memorandum on the Church of Scotland Enabling Bill 1920
    • The Declaratory Act Controversy
      • Declaratory Act – Reasons for Separation
      • How the Declaratory Act changed the Constitution of the Free Church
      • Explanatory Criticism of the Declaratory Act
      • The Consequences of the Declaratory Act
      • The Declaratory Act and Admission into Office in the Free Church
      • The Constitutional Aspects of the Declaratory Act
      • A Brief History of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland
  • What We Contend For
    • Our Free Presbyterian Heritage
    • The Authorised Version
      • The Importance of the Authorised Version for the Church in Britain
      • 2015 Synod Resolution on Versions of the Bible
    • Evangelical or Reformed
    • A Protestant Witness
      • The Pope and the Constitution of the United Kingdom
      • The Pope as the Head of a False Religion
      • Papal Infallibility
      • The Pope in Scripture
    • The Five Points of Calvinism
      • The Canons of Dort
    • The Free Offer of the Gospel
    • Resolution on Creed Subscription
    • Church Discipline
      • The Purposes of Church Discipline
      • The Church’s responsibility to administer Biblical discipline faithfully
      • The benefits of exercising Church discipline
      • Accusations Levelled against a Church Exercising Discipline
    • Baptism
      • Subjects of Baptism – by Rev. William MacIntyre
      • Mode of Baptism – by Rev. William Macintyre
      • Should Infants be Baptised?
    • The Lord’s Supper
      • Why do the minister and elders interview intending communicants?
      • Restricted Communion
      • Fencing the Table
        • The Origins of Fencing the Table
    • Our Separate Stance
    • The Sabbath
      • Why the Sabbath should Still be Kept
      • How the Sabbath should be Kept
      • Sabbath or Lord’s Day – not “Sunday”
      • What about using Public Transport on the Sabbath?
        • Synod’s Statement in Reference to Church-going by Public Conveyances on the Sabbath
        • Historical Controversy over Using Public Transport on the Lord’s Day
    • Family worship
      • Family worship – a recent overview
      • Family worship – a recent address to young people
      • Family worship – a convicting appeal from C H Spurgeon
      • Family worship – a wartime appeal from more than a century ago
      • Family worship – a review
      • Family worship – another wartime appeal
      • Family worship – an illustration of its power
    • Distinctions between Male and Female
      • Men and Women Equal in Value
      • The Distinct Roles of Men and Women
      • Can women lead in public prayer?
      • Distinct Clothing for Men and Women
      • Long hair for women and short hair for men
        • If a Woman have Long Hair, it is a Glory to Her
  • What We Believe
  • How We Worship
    • Order of Service
    • The Right Way to Worship
      • Standing for Prayer
      • The Charismatic Movement – The Gifts have Ceased
    • The Regulative Principle of Worship
      • Does the Bible tell us how we are to Worship?
      • The Importance of the Regulative Principle for Today
      • The Regulative Principle as defined by the Scottish Reformers and others
    • Exclusive Psalmody
      • Does the Bible tell us What to Sing?
      • Why Psalms Only
    • No Musical Instruments
      • Musical Instruments in Worship
    • No Christian “Festivals”
      • Should Christians Celebrate Christmas?
  • How We Are Organised
    • Church Courts
    • Scripture does teach the right form of Church Government
    • The Apostolic Church – Which Is It?
      • Statement of the Question
      • Meaning of the word Church
      • Government of the Church
      • Apostolic Principles
      • The First Principle
      • The Second Principle
      • The Third Principle
      • The Fourth Principle
      • The Fifth Principle
      • The Sixth Principle
      • Application of the Test
      • Application of the Test to Prelacy
      • Application of the Test to Independency
      • Application of the Test to Presbytery
      • Application of the Test – Result
  • Important Documents
    • The Scots Confession
    • The First Book of Discipline
    • The Second Book of Discipline
    • The National Covenant
    • The Solemn League and Covenant
    • The Westminster Confession of Faith
    • The Larger Catechism
    • The Shorter Catechism
    • The Directory for Public Worship
    • The Form of Presbyterial Church Government
    • The Sum of Saving Knowledge
    • The Directory for Family Worship
    • The Claim Declaration and Protest
    • The Protest
    • The Deed of Separation 1893
  • Frequently Asked Questions

Calendar

  1. 29 Jan - Meeting of Presbytery: Asia Pacific
  2. 24 Feb - Meeting of Presbytery: Southern
  3. 9 Mar - Meeting of Presbyteries: Western and Northern

View All Events

Latest Articles

  • Approaching Judgments – Part 2
  • The Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland
  • Approaching Judgments – Part 1

Recently Added Audio

  • Direction for Joshua 4 Oct 2020
  • God pleased to use preaching 4 Oct 2020
  • Enduring by faith 27 Dec 2020
  • I was brought low 3 Jan 2021
  • Jesus in the midst 3 Jan 2021
  • The Father calling sinners to Christ 22 Nov 2020
  • The Day of Salvation 27 Dec 2020
  • Jesus standing still 8 Nov 2020
  • Then cometh the end 27 Dec 2020
  • Christ will still build His Church 10 Jan 2021

View All Sermons

Download Latest Issues:
The Free Presbyterian Magazine
Young People’s Magazine

Free Presbyterian Places of Worship

Browse the Church Bookshop

Solitude Improved by Divine Meditation by Nathanael Ranew, £11.99
The Priesthood of Christ by Peter MacBride, £6.36
None Other Name: Daily Devotional Readings by 19th Century Scottish Ministers compiled by L J van Valen, £11.79
Thoughts on Religious Experience by Archibald Alexander, £12.49
William Farel by Frances Bevan,  £12.49

Back to top

Website Contact

Rev Keith M Watkins
[email protected]

Moderator of Synod

Rev J Bruce Jardine
FP Manse, Tarbert
Isle of Harris, HS3 3DF
UK

Clerk of Synod

Rev Keith M Watkins
Free Presbyterian Manse, Ferry Road, Leverburgh, Isle of Harris, HS5 3UA, UK.
[email protected]

General Treasurer

Mr William Campbell
133 Woodlands Road, Glasgow,
G3 6LE, UK.
[email protected]

Copyright © 2021 Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland · Log in · Subscribe via RSS · Privacy Notice

This site uses cookies to improve your experience. Read more.