Wherefore the children of Y’isra-el shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Y’isra-el for ever: for in six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed. Exodus 31:16-17
There is something very important to glean from this passage, and it really settles the argument regarding whether christians are to rest and assemble together on the Sabbath. Notice who Yah said were to keep His Sabbath—the children of Y’isra-el.
The issue then becomes a simple definition of who the children of Y’isra-el are, for Yah said that the Sabbath is a sign between Him and them as a perpetual covenant. Yes, the commandment to honor the Sabbath is part of the physical covenant (old). It was written directly by the hand of the Holy Spirit, and it was a physical foreshadow of HIM. Now, in what year do you suppose the Holy Spirit changed? (hint: He hasn’t)
So, claiming that the fourth commandment was somehow altered or deleted is purely heresy—a blatant lie about the very nature of the Holy Spirit. He never changes, and the ten commandments are just a physical shadow of Him.
But, again, who are the “children of Y’isra-el”? Paul explained that in Romans 2 & 11, Galatians 3, and Ephesians 2. You see, the old covenant (ten commandments) was physical—a foreshadow of a future-revealed spiritual real substance. So, those to whom the physical covenant was given are also a physical foreshadow of a future-revealed people.
The ancient physical Jews were just a shadow (picture, or representation) of a spiritual real substance, which are those who have received the spiritual covenant. Paul tells us in Romans 2:29 that the real substance of the name “Jew” (yahudiy) is a person whose heart is circumcised—which has nothing to do with anything physical. The heart is circumcised by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, who is the spiritual covenant. The old was physical, the new is spiritual. One was just an object lesson of the other.
The physical Jews were the physical descendants of Abraham. But, Paul explains in Galatians 3:28-29 that the real substance of Abraham’s descendants are those who have received the Holy Spirit, as His seal is the new covenant—a spiritual covenant given to a spiritual people. It is not based on anything physical.
So, the real substance of “Jew” being the same people who are the real substance of Abraham’s descendants, they are called Y’isra-el, the spiritual real substance of what was foreshadowed by the physical earthly nation.
And, as Paul explained in Ephesians 2, the physical Gentiles were foreigners to Y’isra-el, kept separated by a barrier, which were the clean vs. unclean laws. But, through Messiah, the barrier was broken down (the clean vs. unclean laws), and the two groups were brought together as one—the foreigners were made “fellow citizens” of Y’isra-el.
And as he taught in Romans 11, it is the Gentiles who are grafted into Y’isra-el, not the other way around. And, that which is grafted into Y’isra-el BECOMES Y’isra-el! THAT is Messiah’s bride.
As Yah clearly stated that His Sabbaths are given to His children—the children of Y’isra-el, and they being the true Jews in the eyes of the Father, His Sabbaths are, thus, given to them as a sign between Him and them perpetually (they have never ended).
There has never been any change in the day of Yah’s weekly Sabbath. It was christianity, the counterfeit of the true faith, that changed the day of the week, and that is really no different from the “sin of Jeroboam.”
The other part of this important truth (that the Sabbaths are given to Y’isra-el, and spiritually, that is comprised of those who have the Holy Spirit—Messiah’s bride) is that christianity is the spiritual real substance of Babylon in prophecy; thus, one cannot be both a part of Y’isra-el, and also a part of Babylon. The two are diametrically opposed.
The Sabbaths being a family sign given ONLY to Y’isra-el, they are not given to Babylon (christianity). As such, it really doesn’t matter which day of the week those who have not been made a part of Y’isra-el rest and assemble, for Yah’s Sabbaths are given only to those who ARE a part of His family.
However, and this truth is just as vital—for those who have believed in Messiah Yahoshua, but who have not yet received the direct confirmation of the Holy Spirit that they have been made Yah’s children (Y-isra-el), a deliberate choice NOT to identify with Yah’s family shows a rebellious spirit, which is the opposite of enduring in belief.
Those who are being led by the Holy Spirit on the path to salvation (from Egypt to Mt. Sinai, from the Outer Courtyard to the Holy of Holies), and who desire to be made a part of Yah’s family, should also desire to identify with Yah’s family—and the sign of family identification the Father gives His family is His Sabbaths.
If one is being led on the path to receiving the covenant, which do you think shows a desire to be added to Yah’s family—identifying with the things of His family, or identifying with the things of Babylon (christianity)? The desire to identify with Yah’s family is definitely a part of “enduring in belief,” as choosing to identify with Babylon (christianity) is incongruous with the family sign of identification Yah gives to His children.
Look at it this way: if a child is going through the process of adoption, but in that process, he rejects the traditions that identify the family he would be adopted into, would that show a desire to be part of the family, or to remain outside the family?
So then, those who are being led on the true path to salvation SHOULD make a conscious choice to identify with the family they desire to be adopted into, and that means honoring the traditions of that family (rather than rejecting them—as most christians do).
In the end, teaching the Sabbaths to christians as something they are supposed to do misses the whole point, as the Sabbaths were never given to christians. They are given to Yah’s children—those who are led by the Holy Spirit. And, the seal of the Holy Spirit is the new covenant that is given to Messiah’s bride.
Thus, christians may rest and assemble on any day of the week they choose, for they are not part of Y’isra-el, and the family traditions of Y’isra-el apply only to those who have been adopted (or who are in the adoption process, which is the path to salvation).
For more information: Circumcision and Spiritual Reproduction