Avoiding Legalism in Our Sabbath-Keeping

The position of Day One¹ regarding the abiding validity of the fourth commandment is essentially the position of the Westminster Confession of Faith, which states that God, 'by a positive, moral and perpetual commandment binding men in all ages . . . has appointed one day in seven for a Sabbath, to be kept holy unto him' (WCF 21.7). This day of rest and worship was, in the Old Testament, appointed on the last day of the week, but is now, by virtue of Christ's resurrection, appointed on the first day of the week.

This position recognises that some things did change from Old to New Testaments, while other things remain the same. Jesus did not come to abolish the law, but to fulfil it, and to keep it, and to set us an example in keeping it too. The new birth results in a new heart, on which the commandments have been written, and in which there is a new impulse to obey God out of a willing love and in devoted service.

Now what . . .?

 
Not everyone agrees with this position, of course, but let's leave that for the moment. Even when we have granted the principle that the fourth commandment continues to be relevant, and that the Lord's Day is God's new holy day, how are we keep it holy? And how are we to avoid the peril of legalism in deciding what may or may not be done on the Lord's Day?

I suspect that for most Christians, this is the most challenging issue. Much of what Jesus said about the Sabbath he said in the context of arguing with the Pharisees who had become over-scrupulous in their attempt to keep the commandments. As a result, they accused Jesus of breaking the Sabbath when he healed, or when he performed some other miracle.

The question for us then becomes - how can we ensure that our Sabbath-keeping is like that of Jesus, and not like that of the Pharisees? How can we avoid being legalistic and Pharisaic in our Sabbath observance?

Defining legalism

 
Perhaps we need to begin with definitions. If something is 'legal', that means either that it concerns the law or that it is permitted by the law. 'Legalism' is the term that is used when someone is more concerned about the strict letter of the law rather than its spirit.  Continue at Iain D. Campbell

10 Simple Ways to Encourage your Pastor

Truth: “Hey preacher man, good sermon!” is nice…but come on, we can do better than that, right?

We can do better than the shoulder squeeze with the solemn look in the eye. Better than the slow head nod of approval. Especially when we remember that our pastor spends hours each week pouring out their heart on stage, ministering to and in our communities, and shepherding hard-heads like us.

The work of a pastor is often lonely, difficult work…we need your encouragement.

Encouragement isn’t that difficult, but it takes being intentional.

10 Ways to encourage your pastor:

 

1. Appreciate the work they do throughout the week, not just on Sunday. You know that being a pastor is more than a Sunday gig, right? We don’t love that you-only-work-one-day-a-week ribbing, by the way.

2. Take notes on Sunday. This is a great way to encourage your pastor…at least act like you’re going to work diligently to remember and apply their teaching.   Continue at Ben Reed

It's Friday... But Sunday's a Coming

Sports and the Lord’s Day

Note: This is a follow-up to “The Christian and Sports” which I posted on James Faris’ page before I got my own!

 Our love for sports as both participants and spectators can swerve into idolatry in many ways.  Perhaps none is more obvious than the effect that sports can have on the Christian observance of the Lord’s Day.  I suppose I should not have been surprised when I received an email through the Christian-based basketball league one of my daughters was participating in this winter inviting her to come to a basketball clinic hosted by the Indiana University women’s team at 9:30 AM on a Sunday morning.  After all, college athletics misuse the Lord’s Day nearly as much as the professional leagues do today.  Still, I found it hard to believe that the good folks at I.U. would send an invitation to an explicitly Christian basketball league for a Sunday morning clinic.  But, of course, the reason the marketing people at I.U. thought that was a good idea is doubtless because it has worked in the past.  Christians, by and large, show little commitment in honoring the fourth commandment which requires us to cease from our regular work in order to rest and worship for an entire day every week.

My thoughts on this issue have evolved over the last several years, but I have come to the conclusion that participating in or even watching organized athletics is not a good way to honor God on the Lord’s Day.  There is a real danger that efforts to “honor the Sabbath Day” will degenerate into man-made lists of approved and unapproved activities.  This was one of the besetting sins of the Pharisees, and Jesus was not shy about condemning this approach to the fourth commandment.  On the other hand, this does not mean that we are all left to “do our own thing” on the Lord’s Day.  One of the key principles regarding our approach to the Lord’s Day comes from God’s words through the prophet Isaiah: “If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the LORD honorable, and shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, then you shall delight yourself in the LORD; and I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth, and feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father.  The mouth of the LORD has spoken” (Isaiah 58:13-14, NKJ).  These words challenged me to seriously question the source of my delight on the Lord’s Day.  Is it in the Lord or is it in my own pleasures, words, and soccer games?  Continue at Gentle Reformation