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Deuteronomy chapter 5. Deuteronomy 
chapter 5 as we continue our study in the Ten Commandments. 
We're in the fourth commandment, verses 12 to 15. We started that 
last week. We're going to continue tonight 
and God willing finish it up next week. But I do want to read 
this section. beginning in chapter five, beginning at verse one. And Moses called all Israel and 
said to them, hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which 
I speak in your hearing today, that you may learn them and be 
careful to observe them. The Lord our God made a covenant 
with us in Horeb. The Lord did not make this covenant 
with our fathers, but with us, those who are here today, all 
of us who are alive. The Lord talked with you face 
to face on the mountain from the midst of the fire. I stood 
between the Lord and you at that time to declare to you the word 
of the Lord, for you were afraid because of the fire and you did 
not go up the mountain. He said, I am the Lord your God 
who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of 
bondage. "'You shall have no other gods 
before me. "'You shall not make for yourself a carved image, 
"'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. "'You shall not bow down to them nor serve them. "'For 
I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, "'visiting the iniquity 
of the fathers upon the children "'to the third and fourth generations 
of those who hate me, "'but showing mercy to thousands, "'to those 
who love me and keep my commandments. You shall not take the name of 
the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless 
who takes his name in vain. Observe the Sabbath day to keep 
it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. Six days you shall 
labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath 
of the Lord your God. "'In it you shall do no work, 
you nor your son, "'nor your daughter, nor your male servant, 
"'nor your female servant, nor your ox, "'nor your donkey, nor 
any of your cattle, "'nor your stranger who is within your gates, 
"'that your male servant and your female servant "'may rest 
as well as you.' And remember that you were a slave in the 
land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there 
by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm. Therefore, the Lord your 
God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day. Honor your father 
and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, that 
your days may be long and that it may be well with you in the 
land which the Lord your God is giving you. You shall not 
murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, 
you shall not bear false witness against your neighbor, you shall 
not covet your neighbor's wife, and you shall not desire your 
neighbor's house, his field, his male servant, his female 
servant, his ox, his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's. 
These words, the Lord spoke to all your assembly in the mountain, 
from the midst of the fire, the cloud and the thick darkness 
with a loud voice. And he added no more. And he 
wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me. Amen. Well, last week we looked at 
the exposition of the commandment. Notice first in verse 12, the 
positive aspect you are to observe. It's observed here in Deuteronomy 
and Exodus 20. It's remember, observe the Sabbath 
day to keep it holy as the Lord, your God commanded you. And then 
it's followed up with a prohibition. Six days you shall labor and 
do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord 
your God. In it you shall do no work. So 
you've got the positive aspect, to keep the day holy, remember 
it, observe it, to keep it holy. And then the prohibition, make 
sure that you do no regular work on that particular day. And then 
we see the comprehensiveness of it. All of the animals, the 
beasts of burden, the servants, whether they're male or female, 
you're supposed to keep the day, you're supposed to give them 
that day of rest as well. And then the reason or the rationale 
here in verse 15 is, remember that you were a slave in the 
land of Egypt. and the Lord your God brought 
you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm. 
Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day." 
So redemption is the rationale for Sabbath keeping there in 
Deuteronomy. Remember last week we saw that 
in Exodus chapter 20, creation is the rationale for Sabbath 
keeping. So in Exodus 20 at verse eight, 
remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. six days you shall labor 
and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of 
the Lord your God." Continues on with the prohibition, and 
then in verse 11, the rationale, for in six days the Lord made 
the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, 
and rested the seventh day, therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath 
day and hallowed it. So creation and redemption are 
the arguments or the reasons why persons are to obey this 
Fourth Commandment. We dealt with a lot of possible 
objections to obedience to the Fourth Commandment. Some come 
from what's called dispensational theology. They don't believe 
that the Ten Commandments are for the Church today. They think 
they're specifically for the Jews as Jews, and they're no 
longer binding upon us. Hopefully, we showed last week 
that that's not the case, that the Ten Commandments transcend. 
Whatever covenant you're in, whether you're in the Old Covenant, 
whether you're in the New Covenant, God's moral law binds all men 
in all ages. It doesn't matter whether you're 
a Jew or a Gentile, doesn't matter if you're black or you're white, 
doesn't matter if you're Canadian or African, what matters is that 
you're a creature under God and you owe him obedience to that 
moral law. So it's unchanging, it's trans-covenantal, 
and we saw that as we moved through the scriptures. We look then 
at the Sabbath in the Old Covenant. We started at creation, Genesis 
chapter 2 verses 1 to 3. That's the primary foundation. 
God created the earth and all things in it by the word of his 
power in the space of six days and all very good. And on that 
seventh day, he rested. On that seventh day, he sanctified 
it. That seventh day, he blessed it. And that rest there is not 
a cessation of labor because he was tired, but he was rejoicing 
and reflecting upon the good things that he had made. We then 
move to Genesis chapter 4. We see Cain and Abel present 
sacrifices at the end of days, at the end of the days of the 
week. They had learned about sacrifice from Adam, who learned 
about it from God, and then Adam taught them the specific day 
upon which they were to offer that sacrifice. We saw that. 
Then we looked at Exodus chapter 16, a Sabbath that was in play 
prior to the giving of the Ten Commandments at Sinai in Exodus 
chapter 20. Remember the instructions for 
gathering manna. They were supposed to gather 
up double portion on the sixth day so that they could rest on 
the seventh day. And then of course in Exodus 
20 we see the giving of the law. not a brand new law, they were 
already told in Exodus 20 to remember that which had already 
been in place, established by God in Genesis, observed by Cain 
and Abel in Genesis, observed by the Israelites in Exodus chapter 
16, and then in Exodus 20 they're told to remember it. We then 
looked at the Sabbath in the prophet Isaiah. specifically 
in chapters 56 and 58, prophecies concerning the New Covenant and 
the Messianic reign of our Lord Jesus Christ. And you see specifically 
Sabbath-keeping mentioned there in a favorable and positive light, 
both in chapters 56 and then again in chapter 58. And then 
we looked at Jeremiah 31 for the last text. And you can turn 
there because we're going to have cause to reflect upon it 
a bit more tonight. But Jeremiah chapter 31, it's 
an Old Covenant prophet prophesying concerning new covenant reality. So in Jeremiah 31, 31, he says, 
behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make 
a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house 
of Judah, not according to the covenant that I made with their 
fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them 
out of the land of Egypt, my covenant, which they broke. So 
that's one of the first distinctions between the old and the new covenant. 
You could break the old covenant. The land would vomit out its 
inhabitants if they were unfaithful in that land. If they did not 
abide by God's law, and they transgressed his covenant, then 
they would end up exiled from the land. And that's specifically 
what happens in the Old Testament. Deuteronomy 28 and Leviticus 
chapter 26 promised blessings for obedience and then curses 
for disobedience. So of course they disobey and 
they are cursed by God and they are ultimately exiled. So you 
could break the old covenant. But if you are truly in Jesus 
Christ, you're a believer in Jesus Christ, you cannot break 
that covenant. You are safe and secure, not 
because of what you have done, but because of what Christ has 
done. And He is the mediator of the new covenant, and as the 
Apostle says in Hebrews 7, He's the surety of a better covenant. So then he goes on to say, though 
I was a husband to them, says the Lord, verse 33, but this 
is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after 
those days, says the Lord. I will put my law in their minds 
and write it on their hearts, and I will be their God and they 
shall be my people. No more shall every man teach 
his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord. 
For they all shall know me, from the least of them to the greatest 
of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, 
and their sin I will remember no more." So these are essential 
features in New Covenant religion. If you are not forgiven of your 
sins, if you do not have an experiential knowledge of the Lord, if you 
don't have God's law internalized in your heart, then you're not 
a member of the New Covenant. In order to be a member of the 
New Covenant, you need to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ by God's 
grace. It's a gift given by Him. Trusting 
in Jesus, you receive the forgiveness of sins, you receive that imputed 
righteousness, and all the benefits that are specified here. So if 
you don't have this, you're not a part of the New Covenant. But 
if you do have this, you're in the New Covenant. And as I said, 
that New Covenant is inviolable or unbreakable. And then, as 
I pointed out, when he says, I will put my law in their minds 
and write it on their hearts, he's not speaking about a brand 
new law. He's speaking about the Ten Commandments. 
We know that because when we move to the New Testament, Jesus 
and the apostles treat the Ten Commandments differently than 
they treat the judicial law and they treat the ceremonial law. 
They treat the moral law as abiding and as valid and as applicable 
to all men in all ages. For instance, when the apostle 
wants to illustrate what love looks like in Romans chapter 
13, he doesn't develop a new law. He simply goes back to the 
10 commandments. If you want to love your neighbor, 
don't murder him. If you want to love your neighbor, 
don't commit adultery with his wife. If you want to love your 
neighbor, don't steal from him. And then in Ephesians chapter 
6, he tells children, obey your parents and the Lord, for this 
is right. And then he says, honor your father and your mother, 
which is the first commandment with promise. So the Lord Jesus 
and the apostles treat the moral law differently than the ceremonial 
or judicial law, and they demonstrate that it does have trans-covenantal 
utility. In other words, it's applicable 
to all men in all ages. Irrespective of who you are or 
where you are in the continuum of time, you are subject to God's 
moral law. So that was our quick trip through 
the Old Testament. Now we turn to the Sabbath in 
the New Covenant. And there's a few things to consider 
here. First, we'll look at the ministry 
of Jesus Christ. Secondly, the resurrection of 
Christ. And then thirdly, the teaching 
of the apostles. We may not get through all of 
this, but we will try. But with reference to the ministry 
of our Lord, you can turn to Matthew's gospel, Matthew chapter 
5. Matthew chapter 5, a passage that is very important for understanding 
the Lord Jesus Christ and his relation to the law. And I think 
that's why he says what he says in verses 17 to 20 in Matthew 
5. His fame had gone out. People 
are now attracted to hear, want to hear what he is teaching. 
And probably the question has arisen, does he teach differently 
than what we have in Moses? Or is he consistent with Moses? So notice in 5, 17 to 20, and 
I think this is his hermeneutics or his approach to interpreting 
the Old Testament law, the law of God as given by Moses. So 
in verse 17, it says, do not think that I came to destroy 
the law or the prophets. I did not come to destroy, but 
to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, 
till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by 
no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore 
breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches men 
so shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever 
does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom 
of heaven. For I say to you that unless your righteousness exceeds 
the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no 
means enter the kingdom of heaven." So his doctrine concerning the 
law, I want to consider his work. the work of the Lord Jesus Christ, 
his life, death, his resurrection, the work that he accomplished, 
the fulfillment of all that was written in the law and the prophets 
came to pass in our Lord Jesus. If you think about Old Testament 
prophecy and Old Testament passages, You see how they are fulfilled. 
So when he says, don't think that I came to destroy, but I 
came to fulfill, a lot hinges on this word fulfill. That's 
why I'm kind of dealing with it in some detail. So this idea 
of fulfill, we see the fulfillment of all that was written of him 
in the prophets. Deuteronomy 18, Moses or God 
through Moses promises that he's going to raise up a prophet like 
Moses, but not like Moses. And we know from the New Testament, 
specifically Acts chapter 3, and I would argue Matthew 17, 
that Jesus is the fulfillment of that Deuteronomy 18, 15 promise. That prophet that would be raised 
up is going to be the Lord Jesus Christ. So he fulfills that. 
2 Samuel chapter 7, the Davidic Covenant, we see that Jesus fulfills 
that as well. Isaiah 9, we're all familiar 
with that at Christmas time. 6 and 7, it describes the Messiah 
and it describes His kingdom. Well, we know that that applies 
to the Lord Jesus Christ. Jeremiah 23 speaks of the Lord, 
our righteousness. Daniel chapter 9, the 70 weeks 
of Daniel. Jesus fulfills that. Micah 5, 
another incarnation text. Micah 5, 2. That refers to the 
Lord Jesus Christ. So in that sense, he fulfills 
all that was written of him in the prophets. When he says, do 
not think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I did 
not come to destroy, but to fulfill. He fulfills everything that was 
prophesied of him in the old Testament. But as well, it points 
to his active obedience. And I think that we would hopefully 
all know what that means. Christ's obedience to the father's 
law in his life. As a man, as the mediator of 
the new covenant, he obeyed perfectly. He is our representative. He 
is our federal head. In fact, you can turn back to 
Matthew chapter three, where you see something of that in 
verse 13. Then Jesus came from Galilee 
to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent 
him saying, I need to be baptized by you. And are you coming to 
me? But Jesus answered and said to him, permit it to be so now, 
for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. 
Then he allowed him. And in many respects, that statement 
is a program in terms of how Jesus conducts himself. He always 
obeys the father. My meat is to do the will of 
him who sent me. So much so that Paul the Apostle 
can say in Romans 519, for as by one man's disobedience, speaking 
about Adam, many were made sinners, so also by one man's obedience, 
many will be made righteous. So Christ fulfills the law by 
being that which was prophesied in the Old Testament. Christ 
fulfills the law through his act of obedience in his life. Everything he does, he does in 
obedience to the Father's law. and then the fulfillment of even 
the ceremonial law in the sacrifice of himself. Again, his relation 
to the ceremonial law isn't to say it's bad, but it's to fulfill 
it in such a way that it's no longer binding. So we're not 
under that Old Covenant ceremonial law, where we have tabernacles, 
where we have temples, where we have priests, where we have 
sacrifices, where we have all those things that were part and 
parcel of Old Covenant worship. As Spurgeon says, he is himself 
the fulfillment and substance of the types and prophecies and 
commands of the law. So when he says, do not think 
that I came to destroy the law or the prophets, I did not come 
to destroy but to fulfill. We see that in his work. Again, 
Old Testament prophecy, his active obedience, and his fulfillment 
of the ceremonial law. But also in his doctrine, when 
he says, do not think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets, 
I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. Whatever fulfill 
means there, it cannot mean get rid of. Whatever fulfill means 
there, it cannot mean that no longer does Christian or do Christian 
people have anything to do with the law of God. Because if it 
did, it would make no sense in the context. Because beginning 
in verse 21, he goes on to expound the law. He goes on to expound 
its right interpretation. So if he means I came to fulfill 
so that it no longer obliges, then this makes no sense whatsoever. So the doctrine of Christ is 
that he fulfills the law and the prophets in that he teaches 
consistently with the law and the prophets. He doesn't undo 
what they said, he doesn't stand it on its head, and he doesn't 
say that after I die and after I'm raised again you no longer 
are obliged to the moral law. So you go right ahead and commit 
idolatry, go ahead and blaspheme, go ahead and break the Sabbath, 
go ahead and be insubordinate, go ahead and murder, go ahead 
and commit adultery, go ahead and commit theft, That's the 
reductio ad absurdum. That means to reduce an argument 
to absurdity. If we conclude that what Jesus 
means in verse 17 is that he gets rid of the Christian obligation 
to the law, then we have to get rid of a lot of Bible, and we 
have to get rid of a lot of sense and smarts, because that certainly 
is not what's happening. The emphasis in this section 
is on Jesus' relationship to the law, And in a doctrinal sense, 
he is going to correct misinterpretation in verses 21 to 47. We call these 
antitheses. Why? Because he says, you have 
heard that it was said to those of old, but I say to you. So that's an antithesis. You've 
heard that it was said to those of old, but I say to you. So 
he's correcting. But he is not correcting Moses. 
He's not correcting the original intent. He is not correcting 
in such a way as to suggest that Moses was somehow haphazard in 
his application of the law. He is dealing with the Pharisees. 
In fact, if you look at verse 20, I say to you that unless 
your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes 
and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. 
That's his target. It's not Moses. Moses gave the 
law as he received it from the father, and he published it to 
Israel. That law always specified that 
it was both external, you couldn't actually stop a man's heart from 
beating, but it was also internal. You weren't supposed to hate 
your neighbor. You weren't supposed to despise him in your heart. 
You weren't supposed to wish ill upon him. Same with adultery. The law not only spoke to the 
external act, don't go into your neighbor's wife, but it also 
spoke to the internal man. You're not supposed to have lust, 
or a woman. You're not supposed to do that. 
And the Old Testament is filled with that. So the antitheses 
show that Christ is interpreting the law, and its original intent 
is given by God through Moses to Old Covenant Israel. But in 
that period of time between Moses and Jesus, you had a lot of people 
that messed up the teaching of the law. not haphazardly the 
scribes and the Pharisees. They emphasized that as long 
as you kept the external, it really didn't matter about what 
was going on in your heart. So he's not elevating the law. 
He's not making it spiritual. It was already elevated. It was 
already spiritual. He's simply clearing away that 
misinterpretation. So the Lord fulfills the law 
in that regard. Again, listen to Spurgeon. Our 
king honors his father's law. He took care to revise and reform 
the laws of men, but the law of God he established and confirmed. Our king has not come to abrogate 
the law, but to confirm and reassert it. And I would suggest that's 
what he means there with reference to his doctrine. So in his work, 
he fulfills it by who he is and what he does. In his doctrine, 
he fulfills it by confirming and by restating and by clearing 
away misinterpretation so that people understand the truth of 
the law as it was always intended, both the outer and the inner 
man, both the external act, no adultery, but also the internal 
act, no lust in your heart after her or after him. So that's what's 
happening here in Matthew 5. And again, we put it in its larger 
covenantal context. When Jeremiah promises what Jeremiah 
promises, it's part of, or rather, it points to the new covenant. And if you look back at Matthew 
chapter 1, You should read verse 1 not only as introductory to 
the book, but as covenantal in terms of the connection to the 
rest of Scripture. Notice in Matthew 1.1, the book 
of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, notice the son of David, the 
son of Abraham. So in just those brief words, 
what Matthew is showing is that all that God promised to Abraham 
and to David has come to fulfillment in the one who is God's Son. He is Jesus Christ, he is connected 
to David, and he is connected to Abraham. In other words, it's 
a covenantal context. Turn to Matthew chapter 26 and 
you see the giving of the supper. We read this when we take the 
Lord's Supper. And he says specifically in verse 
28, for this is my blood of the new covenant, that new covenant 
that Jeremiah prophesied. So for Jeremiah to prophesy what 
Jeremiah prophesied and for the Lord Jesus to invoke this language 
when he inaugurates this covenant in his blood, it's very significant 
and it's very powerful. And what he says in Matthew 5, 
17 to 20 indicates that he is not getting rid of the Ten Commandments, 
but rather he is confirming, he is clearing away the misinterpretation, 
and he's applying it to those who hear him. So not only his 
doctrine concerning the law, but turn to Matthew 12 with reference 
to his specific attention to the Sabbath. His specific attention 
to the Sabbath. Notice in Matthew 12 at verse 
1. At that time, Jesus went through the grain fields on the Sabbath 
and his disciples were hungry and began to pluck heads of grain 
and to eat. And when the Pharisee saw it, 
they said to him, look, your disciples are doing what is not 
lawful to do on the Sabbath. But he said to them, have you 
not read what David did when he was hungry? He and those who 
were with him, how he entered the house of God and ate the 
showbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, not for those 
who were with him, but only for the priests. nor for those who 
are with him, but only for the priests? Or have you not read 
in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane 
the Sabbath and are blameless? Yet I say to you that in this 
place there is one greater than the temple. But if you had known 
what this means, I desire mercy and not sacrifice, you would 
have not condemned the guiltless. For the Son of Man is Lord even 
of the Sabbath." Notice what he says before we continue in 
verse six. There is one greater than the temple. One greater 
than the temple. Now, I mentioned dispensationalism 
earlier, and again, whether you know what that means or not, 
I'm going to tell you something that they believe. They believe 
that some of the next big events mean, in terms of what's going 
to happen in God's providence and according to prophecy, is 
that there's going to be a rebuilt temple. It's going to be a rebuilt 
temple, there's going to be a rapture of the Gentile church, and then 
a Jewish sort of golden age. But at this rebuilt temple, they're 
going to have animal sacrifice. That is to go exactly backwards 
in redemptive history. Jesus is greater than the temple. 
That means that Jesus is the reason why the temple existed. It's not that Jesus steps out 
of the way and then the temple comes and then sort of this Jewish 
golden age. That's not it at all. Jesus is 
the reason, not for the season, but Jesus is the reason for the 
temple. It was a type, it was a shadow, 
it prefigured, it pointed forward. The whole idea behind tabernacle 
and temple is dwelling. That's what John says of Jesus, 
the word became flesh and did what? He dwelt among us and we 
beheld his glory. So if the son of God came and 
dwelt among us, we by God's grace believe in him. We are now in 
union with Him. All that the temple signified 
has come to pass. Why would we need a rebuilt temple? 
Why would we need a revived Roman Empire? Why would we need this 
sort of Jewish Golden Age? What we have in Christ is fulfillment. He's greater than the temple. 
But then notice, continuing in verse 9, Now when he had departed 
from there, he went into their synagogue, and behold, there 
was a man who had a withered hand. And they asked him, saying, 
Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, that they might accuse him? Then 
he said to them, What man is there among you who has one sheep? 
And if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold 
of it, and lift it out? of how much more value then is 
a man than a sheep. Therefore, it is lawful to do 
good on the Sabbath. Then he said to the man, stretch 
out your hand, and he stretched it out, and it was restored as 
whole as the other. Then the Pharisees went out and 
plotted against him how they might destroy him." Now, before 
we look at some specifics with reference to the Sabbath, you 
probably heard us, either Kam or I, speak of Jesus as a prophet, 
priest, and king. a prophet, priest, and king. 
And sometimes people outside of the Reformed world say, well, 
that was something that was invented by the Reformers and by the Puritans, 
and they sort of imposed that on Scripture. It's all over Scripture. It's specifically here in Matthew 
12. Look at verse 6 again. Yet I say to you that in this 
place there is one greater than the temple. So if Jesus transcends 
the temple, and Jesus is the reason why the temple was, then 
I take that as a reference to not only temple, but priest. 
Jesus is that high priest that transcends any earthly priest. But then look over at chapter, 
or continuing in chapter 12, notice in verse 41, the men of 
Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn 
it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and indeed 
a greater than Jonah is here, Christ's a prophet. Verse 42, 
the queen of the south will rise up in the judgment with this 
generation and condemn it for she came from the ends of the 
earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon and indeed a greater than Solomon 
is here. So in Matthew 12 he says he's 
the great high priest, in Matthew 12 he says he's the king that's 
greater than Solomon, and in Matthew 12 he says he's the prophet 
that's greater than Jonah. And I mean, Jonah had some issues 
to be sure. Jonah definitely struggled. I'm 
not sure if we were given who's your top five in terms of prophets, 
we'd all pick Jonah. But in terms of what Jonah accomplished, 
being in the belly of a whale and then ending up in Nineveh, 
great prophet. So prophet, priest, and king 
motif is all over Matthew chapter 12. It's not an imposition by 
the Westminster Confession of Faith. It is what scripture teaches 
concerning our Lord. But in Matthew chapter 12, we 
notice specifically that he says that the works of necessity are 
not at odds with the Sabbath. So in Matthew 12, 1 to 8, the 
Pharisees, the religious leaders, they're upset because Jesus' 
disciples are picking the heads of grain. Jesus says, no, you're 
not supposed to be upset by that. These men have to eat or they'll 
die. These men have to eat. That's 
a necessity. Works of necessity don't invalidate 
the Sabbath. The point is, is that he's clearing 
away not just the bad doctrine of the Pharisees and scribes 
in Matthew 5, 21 to 47, where they emphasize the external but 
neglect the internal. Here, he's attacking their practice. Now, for these Pharisees, they 
thought in terms of Sabbath breaking, and it is bad, but they set up 
things so that you wouldn't break it. You can walk these many steps, 
you can do this much, insofar as you don't break the Sabbath. 
I mean, look at how they even, they phrased the question. When 
the Pharisees saw it, verse two, they said to him, look, your 
disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath. 
Really? Jesus is the law giver. Jesus 
is the confirmer, Jesus is the interpreter, Jesus is the one 
who, according to his divinity, spoke this law to creation. And here they want to correct 
him on what proper practices on the Sabbath? The point is, 
is that he's taking time to correct their application of bad doctrine 
that they have built up and to purify the truth of Sabbath keeping. Then notice in verses 9 to 14, 
he says, the works of mercy are not at odds with the Sabbath. 
Works of necessity, works of mercy. So for your work of necessity, 
you've got, you know, certain occupations, yeah, you gotta 
have a doctor, you gotta have a you know, policemen. You've 
got to have military. You can't, you know, shut a country 
down, turn the lights off, and hope your enemies don't attack 
you. So, you know, the works of necessity. And I think that's 
what he's pointing to in verse 5. Have you not read in the law 
that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath 
and are blameless? Well, they're working. That's 
their job. That's what they have to do. 
But are they resting? No, they're actually working. 
He says that doesn't violate the command. That is built in 
by God with reference to the observance of the command. So 
then in verses 9 to 14, he says that works of mercy are not at 
odds. Notice, again, verse 11. What 
man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into 
a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out? 
Now, obviously, they'd all say, well, we would, right? I mean, 
unless they're absolute horrible people, if your sheep falls into 
a pit, you'd pick it out. And look at his argument of how 
much more value then is a man than a sheep. Therefore it is 
lawful to do good on the Sabbath. Then he said to the man, stretch 
out your hand. He stretched it out and it was 
restored as whole as the other. Then the Pharisees went out and 
plotted against him how they might destroy him. Interesting, 
huh? How they might destroy him? He 
just healed a man with a withered hand, and that's your response? How do we kill this guy? I think 
you'd say, boy, this fellow's quite handy to have around, no 
pun intended. He heals withered hands and everything. 
He's good to have around. But they want to kill him. Why? 
Because they disagreed with him on the Sabbath, and they didn't 
like the way that he was interpreting it. The abiding Sabbatarianism 
is evident in his ministry. And here's the quote I at least 
referenced last week by a fellow named James Gilfillan. He says, 
Christ was careful to clear it, the Sabbath, from Jewish corruptions. And if there was any precept 
more particularly vindicated by him and honored than another, 
it was that requiring the Sabbath day to be kept holy. Now listen, 
he says, it is not the practice of a wise man to repair a house 
which he is about to pull down. I think that's a powerful argument. Why would Jesus debate so frequently 
with these Pharisees on Sabbatarianism if Sabbatarianism was going to 
be pulled down? He could have just said, well, 
wait, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna be raised again, and then you're 
gonna be in the new covenant era where there's no Sabbath. 
That would have solved all the issues, that would have solved 
all the problems, that would have just dispensed with every 
bit of dispute and debate that they had with him over the Sabbath. 
No, I think Gilfillan's right. It is not the practice of a wise 
man to repair a house which he is about to pull down. So when 
we see Jesus in his earthly ministry upholding the law, And then we 
see Jesus in His earthly ministry applying the law, and when we 
see Jesus in His earthly ministry correcting the misinterpretation 
of that law, both in doctrine, Matthew 5, 21 to 47, and in practice, 
Matthew 12, in terms of these Sabbath wars, we conclude that 
He didn't come to abolish, He didn't come to abrogate, but 
rather He came to fulfill the law. And then if we ask the question, 
well, which ones of the law? Well, all 10 commandments. Remember, 
the moral law binds all men in all ages. It's a package deal. 
In fact, when Paul says, honor your father and your mother, 
which is the first commandment with promise, First commandment 
with promise seems to indicate a series of commandments, and 
I would argue 1 Timothy 1, 8-10, the Apostle Paul there cites 
the Ten Commandments. He does so in shorthand form, 
but he does so nonetheless. And so we don't pick and choose 
which commandments we're going to have. Again, I mentioned dispensationalism 
last week, and basically they say, unless something is repeated 
in the New Testament, then it's no longer binding upon us. And 
of course they find nine of the ten commandments in the New Testament, 
but they don't find the fourth commandment. That's why outside 
of the Reformed churches, most evangelicals and all the other 
types of churches, they're not Sabbatarian. In fact, they might 
think I'm Judaizing us and placing us under the Old Covenant and 
placing us under bondage when the Bible doesn't authorize that. 
Well, we've seen the promise of the prophet Jeremiah in the 
New Covenant, the law be written on your heart. What law is that? 
It's the moral law of God. How do we know that? Because 
Jesus says, don't think that I've come to abolish it. I've 
rather come to fulfill it. And then we see Jesus and the 
apostles deal with that moral law over and over and over again, 
only ever favorably. Now, in context where it's speaking 
of justification by law, you can get some pretty contrary 
law statements from the apostle Paul. But remember, it is not 
for justification. He says in 1 Timothy 1.8, We 
know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully. So if somebody 
uses it unlawfully, yeah, he's going to attack it. But he says 
in Romans 3, do we abolish the law? No, we affirm it. So this idea that somehow law 
in the New Covenant connected to the Ten Commandments is somehow 
bad or Judaizing or Old Covenant-ish is simply incorrect. That is 
a bad way to read scripture. Read the scriptures, see the 
threefold division of the law, see the three uses of the law, 
and see how Jesus and the apostles used the law. So in his, the 
ministry of Christ, we see his doctrine and we see his specific 
attention to the Sabbath. Then secondly, resurrection. 
Look at Matthew chapter 28. Matthew chapter 28, we'll bring 
this to a conclusion here and pick up the teaching of the apostles 
next week, but look at the emphasis on the resurrection of our Lord. 
Matthew chapter 28 verse 1, now after the Sabbath, as the first 
day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other 
Mary came to see the tomb. Well we know what happened, they 
found an empty tomb. Why? Because Jesus had risen. When did Jesus rise? Now, after 
the Sabbath, that would have been Saturday, as the first day 
of the week, that's Sunday, began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the 
other Mary came to see the tomb. Notice in Mark's Gospel, Mark 
16, it's a parallel passage, but when all four authors of 
the Gospels indicate this, We should probably listen. Mark 
16 at verse 1. Now, when the Sabbath was passed, 
Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome brought spices 
that they might come and anoint him. Very early in the morning, 
on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the 
sun had risen. There's your doctrine of early 
rising too. You're never supposed to sleep in. The Bible says Jesus 
rose very early. You need to get out of bed very 
early. You know I'm kidding, right? That would be a very weird 
interpretation. That's not the point. Very early 
in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to 
the tomb when the sun had risen. What did they discover? They 
discovered an empty tomb. Why? Because he has risen. Notice 
in verse 9, verse 9, now when he rose early on the first day 
of the week, he appeared at first to Mary Magdalene. Then over 
in Luke's gospel, Luke chapter 24, Luke chapter 24, again parallel 
passage, But that same emphasis, Luke 24, one, now on the first 
day of the week, very early in the morning, they and certain 
other women with them came to the tomb, bringing the spices 
which they had prepared. But they found the stone rolled 
away from the tomb. What did they find? They found 
that he had risen. He was raised from the dead. And then turn 
to John's gospel, John chapter 20. John chapter 20. Specifically at verse one, now 
the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early 
while it was still dark and saw that the stone had been taken 
away from the tomb. Look at verse 19 in John 20. Then the same day at evening, 
being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut, where 
the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, Jesus came 
and stood in the midst and said to them, peace be with you. When 
he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then 
the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. And then again 
in verse 26, and after eight days. Now, if we count inclusively, 
this would bring us again to the first day of the week. So, 
and after the eight days, his disciples were again inside and 
Thomas with them, Jesus came, the doors being shut and stood 
in the midst and said, peace to you. Then he said to Thomas, 
reach your finger here and look at my hands and reach your hand 
here and put it into my side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing. As our confession says, and I 
think it's a great summary statement of what the scripture teaches 
with reference to the Christian Sabbath, or we might call it 
the Lord's Day. It says, as it is the law of 
nature that in general a proportion of time, by God's appointment, 
be set apart for the worship of God, so by his word, in a 
positive, moral, and perpetual commandment, binding all men 
in all ages, he hath particularly appointed one day in seven for 
a Sabbath to be kept holy unto him. which, from the beginning 
of the world to the resurrection of Christ, was the last day of 
the week, or Saturday, and from the resurrection of Christ was 
changed into the first day of the week, or Sunday, which is 
called the Lord's Day, and is to be continued to the end of 
the world as the Christian Sabbath, the observation of the last day 
of the week being abolished. So that's the argument, and I 
think it's very cogent, and I think what we find here in chapter 
22, paragraph 7 is very biblical and theologically sound. So just 
by way of a review or reminder with reference to this statement, 
it says, as it is the law of nature that in general proportion 
of time by God's appointment be set apart for the worship 
of God, So basically what that clause is saying is that God 
in the created order has revealed himself. Paul tells us this in 
Romans 1. We can look at the effects all around us and argue 
to the cause. God has made himself known through 
the created order. So that knowledge of God is in 
the hearts of all men. Now Paul goes on to say they 
suppress that truth in unrighteousness, they don't like it, they don't 
like to retain the thought of God in their heart, but God in 
general revelation, God in the created order, God to His image 
bearers, those men created in His image, has revealed that 
He is. And so nature, light of nature, 
general revelation, whatever we want to call that, basically 
tells us that there is a God, and that God should be worshipped, 
that God should be feared, that God should be revered. Now, left 
to ourselves, we would botch that up, we would twist it, we 
would distort it, we would be all kinds of foolish. That's 
why the confession goes on to say, so by his word, or rather, 
by God's appointment, be set apart for the worship of God, 
so by his word. So he reveals to us the specifics. When are we supposed to gather 
for worship? And it goes on to tell us in 
a positive moral and perpetual commandment. Now, remember, positive 
law is something that God institutes for a time, for a specific purpose. For instance, positive law in 
the Garden of Eden. You're not supposed to eat from 
the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It's a positive 
law. It's not like there's certain 
trees that morally it's just wrong to eat from. The ceremonial 
law in the Old Covenant was positive law. It was imposed by God for 
a time on a people for a specific purpose. So positive law includes 
sacrifice, It includes temple, it includes tabernacle, it includes 
priesthood, it includes calendar, what days you're supposed to 
observe. It includes menu, what foods you're supposed to eat. 
It includes clothing, what, you know, fibers you're not supposed 
to mix. There's no morality or no ethics 
or no goodness per se in not eating bacon or not eating shellfish. That was to distinguish the nation 
of Israel from the Gentile nations around them. Same with, you know, 
not combining fibers and all of that. And, you know, the various 
aspects of positive or ceremonial law that you see there. So positive 
law refers to the day on which we worship God. And positive 
law, as you might guess, is conditioned by the covenant you find yourself 
in. So if you're in the old covenant, 
the positive law stipulates that you meet on Saturday. But then 
it goes on to say moral. That highlights the reality that 
no matter what covenant you find yourself in, no matter who you 
are in the continuum of time, you are duty-bound and obliged 
to God to give Him a day that is set apart for worship, for 
praise, and for adoration. So the moral principle is, one 
day out of seven, you worship God. The positive law is conditioned 
by the covenant. Old covenant, Saturday. New covenant, 
Sunday. How do we know that? Because 
the resurrection of Christ. And God willing, next week we 
will see specific texts by the apostles that deal with that. 
And just to give you a bit of a roadmap as to where we're going 
to go, Hebrews chapter 4, very important for a study in the 
Christian Sabbath, because Hebrews 4.9 says, therefore, there remains 
a Sabbath rest for the people of God. I don't know how much 
clearer it could be. In fact, I'll quote A.W. Pink 
on that verse. He says, Here then is a plain, 
positive, unequivocal declaration by the Spirit of God. There remaineth 
therefore a Sabbath keeping. Nothing could be simpler, nothing 
less ambiguous. The striking thing is that this 
statement occurs in the very epistle whose theme is the superiority 
of Christianity over Judaism. written to those addressed as 
holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling. Therefore, 
it cannot be gainsaid that Hebrews 4 and 9 refers directly to the 
Christian Sabbath. Hence, we solemnly and emphatically 
declare that any man who says that there is no Christian Sabbath 
takes direct issue with the New Testament Scriptures." And as 
we'll see when we look at that particular passage, The apostle 
uses the word rest over and over and over and over and over and 
over and over again in Hebrews 3 and 4. And he uses the same 
word until verse 9. And that's when he says, there 
remains therefore a Sabbath rest, literally a Sabbath keeping for 
the people of God. So it's inescapable. And then 
I'll argue that 410 legitimizes the day change from Saturday 
to Sunday. But then after that, we'll look 
at Acts 20. and the worship service in Troas, the collection in Corinth 
in 1 Corinthians 16, 1 and 2, and then the Lord's Day, Revelation 
chapter 1 and verse 10. So if any of those texts intrigue 
you, and you wonder how they work in Christian Sabbatarianism, 
then I would encourage you to come back next Wednesday night. So I'll pray, and then if there's 
any questions on any of the material that we looked at tonight, we 
can deal with those. Our Father, we thank you for your word. We 
thank you for its consistency. We thank you for your wonderful 
law. We know that we're not saved by keeping it, but we are saved 
by grace through faith in our Savior and the Spirit guides 
us according to that revealed law. And we thank you for it. 
We praise you and bless you for so great a salvation through 
Christ our Lord. We do long to follow him wherever 
he bids us in a way that is consistent with our calling in the gospel. 
We ask that you would continue with us, be with us in the remainder 
of this week, be with all our brothers and sisters in our church, 
bring us together on the Lord's day that we may worship you in 
spirit and truth, and we pray through Christ our Lord, amen. 
All right, any questions on the ministry of Christ?