God’s Law, Grace, and His Sabbath

By Pastor Aubrey Duncan

The word ‘law’ denotes a legal concept. It is a principle that suggests that someone, generally in a superior position, puts forth certain rules and regulations that another, in an inferior position, is bound to follow. If those rules and regulations are violated, then the law provides for certain consequences or punishments. Law is a universal concept. It is not only the foundation of all human endeavors but also sustains the operation of the natural world. All of our affairs in this life are conducted on the basis of law.

In our homes, there are laws. There are rules established by our local governments. Then there are state laws. In the United States of America, as in all other civilized countries, all citizens are obligated to abide by the supreme law of the land called the Constitution. All other laws of the land are subject to that law. A violation of any of its clauses can result in serious consequences.

No rational person would suggest that the laws governing our temporal lives could be broken without suffering the consequences of their violation. Laws and consequences are the cornerstone of human civilization. It has been that way since creation. This principle has continued throughout the history of mankind and will remain so for as long as we exist. Doing away with or otherwise eradicating those laws results in chaos and confusion. Just take a look around society today.

All laws have within them a common element called a seal. Whether explicitly or implicitly, that seal authenticates the laws that have been laid down. It solidifies and gives validity to the law. The seal identifies the lawgiver. Additionally, the seal always gives the sphere of authority to the lawgiver. In the home, the simple pronouncement from the parent that lets the child know who is in charge constitutes that seal. The parents proclaim who they are: John/Mary (their name), parents (title), and the territory over which they rule (the home).

Governments have laws that become effective by affixing the seal of the ruling authority. For example: Joe Biden (name), President (title), United States of America (sphere of authority). The law, written on paper, signed by the president, and stamped with his seal, then becomes legitimate and enforceable. Anyone who violates that law becomes subject to prosecution.

Now, those are only man-made laws. It follows, therefore, that the God of the universe must also have laws by which his subjects, mankind, are bound to abide. How much more serious can the consequences of a violation of God’s law be? The apostle John explains: “Whosoever committeth sin transgressed also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law” (1 John 3:4). The apostle Paul educates us of the consequences of violating God’s law, which is called sin: “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).

Of all the laws given to man by the Creator God, none is of higher value than His Ten Commandments. This law encompasses all other laws and forms the foundation of God’s government. It is His supreme law by which he intends all men to live. It is God’s constitution. Of such importance was this law that God presented it to the human family in thunderous tones, with lightning flashing and the earth shaking: “And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled” (Exodus 19:16).

The patriarch Moses records the source and nature of the law then presented: “And he [God] gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon Mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God” (Exodus 31:18). God was very particular in identifying His seal: “Wherefore the children of Israel 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 Israel for ever: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed” (Exodus 31:16–17).

Lest anyone be tempted to believe, as many do, that God’s law, particularly His Sabbath, were exclusively for the Jews, the prophet Isaiah dispels that notion: “And He [God] said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6). Yes indeed, as His chosen people, God’s law was given to the Jews, but not for them alone. Their responsibility was to share it with the rest of humanity.

Here are its clauses:

(1) Thou shall have no other god before me.

(2) Thou shall not make unto thee any graven image or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shall not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love Me and keep my commandments.

(3) Thou shall not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that take His name in vain.

(4) Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shall thou labor, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shall not do any work: thou nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days The Lord made heaven and earth, the sea and all that in them is, and rested on the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath-day and hallowed it.

(5) Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land, which the Lord, thy God giveth thee.

(6) Thou shall not kill.

(7) Thou shall not commit adultery.

(8) Thou shall not steal.

(9) Thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

(10) Thou shall not covet thy neighbor’s house. Thou shall not covet  thy  neighbor’s  wife:  nor  his  manservant,  nor  his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor’s (Exodus 20:3-17).

Of this law, the apostle Paul reminds us: “Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good” (Romans 7:12). In essence, God’s law is a transcript of and a reflection of His character, for He is also holy, just, and good.

A Futile Attempt with Deadly Consequences

Nowhere in His word do we find God annulling any part of his law. Not unlike the man-made laws discussed earlier, when we carefully examine God’s supreme law, His Ten Commandments, we find His seal affixed thereto. The Sabbath commandment is that seal. In it we find the name of the lawgiver—the Lord thy God. His title is inscribed Creator. His sphere of authority is explicitly stated—the heaven, the earth, the sea and all that in them is (Exodus 20:8–11). Of all the precepts of God’s law, the Sabbath commandment is the only one in which He admonishes us in a positively emphatic way to uphold: “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8).

Sadly, almost all of the human race has forgotten. So much so that God’s Sabbath, the immutable seal of His law, has been trampled upon, and vigorous attempts have been made at replacing it with another authority. The favorite past time of those who choose to reject God’s Sabbath is to misquote the apostle Paul. They cite: “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for you are not under the law, but under grace” (Romans 6:14). Quite conveniently, they completely avoid the very next Scripture, which says: “What then? Shall we sin (break the law) because we are not under the law, but under  grace? God  forbid”  (Romans  6:15).

A correct understanding of what grace is and how Paul relates it to the law is necessary for properly comprehending what Paul is talking about. Here is an explanation. Being under the law simply means that, as sinners, we are all subject to the penalty and condemnation of the law, which is death. Grace does not annul the law; it simply provides pardon for its transgression and supplies the power to obey it. Grace is a divine endowment that a holy God gives to fallen men so that we may have a chance to return to Him. It’s a holy influence upon the heart, drawing sinful man ever closer to his Creator. It is not, like so many believe and teach, a license to break His law.

Paul asks the question, “What shall we say then? Shall  we continue in sin (continue to break the law), that grace may abound? Then he answers “God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? (Romans 6:1-2). He emphasizes: “Do we then make void the law of God through faith? God forbid, yea, we establish the law“ (Romans 3:31). The law to which Paul is referring in each of these cases is the Ten Commandment law with its seal, the Sabbath commandment.

Indeed, grace is the power to keep us from breaking the law. It is a free gift given by a holy God to an undeserving people. Paul again writes: “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world” (Titus 2:11, 12). Grace is not only pardon; it is power that enables us to live righteously.

Jesus declared to the woman, caught in adultery, who was about to suffer the consequences of her sin, “Neither do I condemn thee: go and sin no more” (John 8:11). This is the epitome of grace. Amazing grace, marvelous grace. Notice, Jesus did not tell the woman to go and commit more adultery because of His grace towards her. He forgave her and then empowered her to sin no more. When Paul declares that we are not under the law but under grace, he is simply saying that we have been pardoned by a merciful God, through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, from the condemnation of the law, which is death. Neither Jesus nor Paul give us the license to sin because God saves us by His grace.

Paul concludes: “But the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23). That is the miracle of the gospel. It is the power that leads us to keep the law, including His Sabbath commandment, through the indwelling of Jesus Christ in our hearts. The law cannot be separated from the gospel. They are indivisible halves of the same whole. Being saved by grace means turning away from sin and walking in righteousness, which is the keeping of God’s commandments, His Sabbath included.

The apostle John counsels us: “My little children, these things write I unto you, that you sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for our sins only, but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:1,2).

Let’s Reason Together

Consider this for a moment. If there is no law, then there must be no sin. For sin is the transgression of the law. (1 John 3:4) If there is no sin, then we have no need for a Savior. Since there is no need for a Savior, we don’t need the gospel. Now that we have no need for the gospel, we certainly have no purpose for a preacher to preach the gospel. Perhaps the next time a so-called preacher or teacher tells you that God’s law is abolished, you can ask him or her why they are preaching and on whose authority they are teaching.

As we considered Jesus and His relationship to the Sabbath, we discovered that He kept the whole law perfectly. He is not only our sinless High Priest, but he is also our example. Peter writes: “For even hereunto were you called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that we should follow his steps” (1 Peter 2:21). If Jesus is our example, and He is; and if He kept the law perfectly, and He did; then we also must, by His grace, keep His law. That law includes the Sabbath commandment that says: “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8).

He beckons us: “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). The question is, do you love Him enough to keep all of His  commandments, including His Sabbath commandment? The apostle John gives us the acid test of our love and loyalty to God, our Creator: “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep his commandments … For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments: and His commandments are not grievous” (1 John 5:2, 3).

God’s moral law, including His Sabbath commandment, was not just for the Jews of old. It is for all men at all times. The Psalmist David recognizes this. He declares: “The works of His hands are verity and judgment; all his commandments are sure, they stand fast forever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness” (Psalm 111:7-8). David continues: “Thy righteousness is  an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is truth” (Psalm 119:142).

What is your standard of righteousness if it is not the law of God? Ponder that thought for a moment. Declaring the moral law of God annulled because of Jesus’ sacrifice on Calvary is to eat of the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil. It is a deception by the devil. As God’s people, we must not only avoid such a teaching; we must vigorously oppose it. Anyone who teaches this is not echoing the voice of God or teaching the word of God. The prophet Isaiah admonishes us: “To the law and the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20). No light means there is darkness.

The teaching that God’s Sabbath law is abolished is not light, but darkness. The apostle John puts it even more forcibly: “And hereby we know that we know Him if we keep His commandments…he that says I know him and keep not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:3, 4). These are not words of condemnation; but rather a call to righteousness and obedience. They are for our edification.

John admonishes us, “He that says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk, even as he (Jesus) walked” (1 John 2:6). And how did Jesus walk in reference to the law? John reports: “If you keep My commandments, you shall abide in My love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in His love” (John 15:10).

Jesus never worshiped any other God besides His Father. Neither should we. He kept the Sabbath holy, and so should we. He never disrespected his parents, and we should not either. He never committed adultery. He never stole. He never lied. He never killed anyone. He never coveted anything that was not His. Anyone who professes to follow Him must do likewise. His mission and His desire are to empower us to keep His law so that we will be fit for heaven, where there is no sin (law-breaking). He came to this earth to save us from our sins, not in our sins. To put it another way, Jesus, by His grace, will empower us to keep His law, His holy, moral Ten Commandments. It includes the Sabbath commandment, enjoining all His people to keep it holy.

The Sabbath is God’s sign to us that He is the only true God, the One who created the world and everything in it. From creation, God blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. All He asks us to do is remember to keep it holy. His Sabbath commandment is that sanctuary in time that He has created for us so that we may enjoy a sweet fellowship and experience sanctified communion with Him. He is patiently waiting for you to respond. Do not deny yourself that rich blessing and deprive your Creator of His heart’s desire.

As the world is increasingly being led to keep another Sabbath, the first day of the week, God is appealing to you today: “Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters” (Revelation 14:7).

Which call will you heed: The Sabbath in God’s Law, or man’s tradition of another sabbath?

About: Follow Pastor Aubrey Duncan at his Unfolding Prophecy Page.