16. Remember the Sabbath

Hymns: RHC 30 When This Passing World Is Done, 227 Until Then O Glorious Day, 136 Come, Ye Thankful People

PSALM 92

1 A Psalm or Song for the sabbath day. It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: 2 To shew forth thy loving-kindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night, 3 Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound. 4 For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands. 5 O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep. 6 A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this. 7 When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever: 8 But thou, LORD, art most high for evermore. 9 For, lo, thine enemies, O LORD, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered. 10 But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil. 11 Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies, and mine ears shall hear my desire of the wicked that rise up against me. 12 The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. 13 Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. 14 They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing; 15 To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him. 

Remember the Sabbath

OUTLINE

(1) Come in thanksgiving (v 1-3 ) 

(2) Come personally (v 4-6 ) 

(3) Come despite opposition (v 7-11 ) 

(4) Come and be richly blessed of God (v 12-15 ) 

INTRODUCTION

The Bible says in Genesis 2:2 ,when God finished creating this universe, in particular planet earth, populating it with life all manner of fish, birds, beast, cattle, and all manner of herb bearing seed and fruit yielding trees, and created man in God’s image to have dominion over all His creation, “2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.” 

The word “rest” is the word “shabath” or “Sabbath” where we saw God rested on the 7th day from all his work which he had. The Bible also says, in Genesis 1:3 ,”3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified (set apart, consecrate, sanctify, make it holy, set as sacred) it: (what was the reason?) Because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.” Gen. 2:2 KJV) 

When God created the nation of Israel, He gave to them the 10 commandments. The 4th commandment reminded them to continue to keep this 7th day a day of rest, consecrated for Him. 

“8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy (sacred). 9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: 10 But the seventh day is the sabbath (rest) of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: 11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed (set apart as holy) it. Ex 20:8-11 (KJV)” 

Christ resurrected on the first day of the week, on Sunday, therefore Sunday became the Lord’s Day” (Rev. 1:10 ). It became the Christian Sabbath and replaced the Jewish Sabbath as a “holy” day, a day of rest and worship. Christians regarded the first day of the week as the appropriate day for Christian assembly is clear from the New Testament (1 Cor. 16:1-2 ). [Theology for Every Christian, 182] 

The Westminster Shorter Catechism, the most succinct expression of our faith in the English language, says, “From the beginning of the world to the resurrection of Christ, God appointed the seventh day of the week to be the weekly Sabbath; and the first day of the week ever since, to continue to the end of the world, which is the Christian Sabbath.” 

And on the Sabbath, we remember the LORD. That He is our God and that He has saved us for all eternity and we will be with Him one day in heaven. 

Psalm 92 is the only psalm written for the Christian to delight in the Sabbath. 

(1) Come in thanksgiving (v 1-3 ) 

It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD – Remember on the 6th day, God saw His creation and pronounced it is very good. Why did the psalmist say it is good? I believer it is to because God has created His representative, in His own image to have dominion over His creation, to enjoy His creation – Man is the only creature with a body and has breath that is capable of praising and give thanks to God. 

And thus the psalmist says we are “to sing praises unto the name of the most High God.” And this is none other than our Lord Jesus Christ, the second person of the Godhead. 

Why do we come in thanksgiving? To show forth His loving-kindness (to remember Jesus’ love for us) in the morning, and His faithfulness (to remember His unfailing care upon us) every night, and how do we praise Him? 

Not any how but reverently, “3 Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound.” 

The psalmist begins with the call to come in thanksgiving, in grateful acknowledgement of all the good that we have received from the most High God, and therefore if is good to give thanks to Him by setting the Sabbath aside as a day of worship. 

“A believer shares about the daily struggle of human life when he asked this question, “What comes from humans because it is impossible for the Lord to experience it? The answer is, ‘Worry’.” And by faith, he asked another question, “What comes from God for it is impossible for humans to manufacture it? ‘Wisdom'” Finally, he asked, “And what is it that brings wisdom and dispels worry? ‘Worship'” There he concludes his assessment of the blessed Christian life when he said, ‘Let nothing frighten you…nothing from yesterday’s past, today’s present, or tomorrow’s future.” Our heavenly Father will take care, are we looking to Him?” 

Testimony 

When I visited our brother in his home some years ago, I met his parents, especially his father before he went home with the Lord. And he testified to me. Before I came to Jesus and become a Christian, I work 7 days a week, no rest. But after I came to know Jesus, I do not work on the Lord’s Day but go to church to remember Jesus. And his friend says to him, “so foolish, you will lose one day of income.” His father testified, “But the Lord blessed me and I earned more in the six days than in the seven days I work.” 

Remember when Israel was in the wilderness, God gave them a double portion of manna on the 6th day so that on the 7th day, they need not go out to gather food? This is the same God, Jesus, we worship! He was faithful then, He is faith now. 

Jesus has kept you safe through the week, you want to come on the Lord’s day to thank Him, to remember and honour Him. 

(2) Come personally (v 4-6 ) 

4 For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands. 5 O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep. 6 A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this. 

Come personally with your testimony of the LORD’S goodness in your life. The “LORD” speaks of a personal relationship that the psalmist has with His God. And He has made Him glad, happy by what He has done for him. Therefore, the psalmist is coming personally to remember all that God has done in His life. 

A foolish man, man described as a brute beast, not better than an animal, one who does not know God will not understand the worth of what we are doing. We are made for God’s glory and our purpose is to enjoy Him. When we missed out the purpose of our creation, we are of all men most miserable, grouping in the dark. 

(3) Come despite opposition (v 7-11 ) 

7 When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever: 8 But thou, LORD, art most high for evermore. 9 For, lo, thine enemies, O LORD, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered. 10 But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn (wild ox or bull): I shall be anointed with fresh oil. 11 Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies, and mine ears shall hear my desire of the wicked that rise up against me. 

The hymn writer Issac Watts gave a good summary of this portion when he wrote. 

“When as the grass the wicked grow, 

When sinners flourish here below, 

Then is there endless ruin nigh, 

But Thou, O Lord, art throned on high; 

Thy foes shall fall before Thy might, 

The wicked shall be put to flight.” 

This world seemed to be moving toward self destruction and we try in vain to warn them of the coming perils. All with does not acknowledge the living and true God will perish. Man seems to be becoming more and more sophisticated with his inventions. But look at just one volcanic eruption causing the entire western Europe to come to stand still when thousands of flights are cancelled. 

The believer who trusts in God will be cared for by the Almighty God Himself. This is contrasted with the self-sufficient man who will not flourish! The word “iniquity” is from the root word “crooked”, a crooked life. His presence and dominion is as grass. 

The “exalting of the horn” speaks of God’s favour for us in our lives. The horn is a symbol of power, strength, we will yet triumph through Christ while the wicked cut off. The unicorn or ox is prized for its great strength. Not our way, but God’s way, as Jesus did in His first coming as a suffering servant. 

The anointing of oil is spiritual refreshing that God gives to us to continue on this pilgrim journey to our eternal rest. 

(4) Come and be richly blessed of God (v 12-15 ) 

12 The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. 13 Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. 14 They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing; 15 To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him. 

When we are faithfully worshipping Jesus and remember Him on the Sabbath, He will bless us in ways we cannot imagine. Here we are speaking of spiritual blessings though it does not preclude physical blessings. 

Verse 14 is a promise to you shall still bring forth spiritual fruit in old age – love, joy, peace…(Gal. 5:22-23 ), you shall be spiritually healthy and prospering. 

The LORD is a rock signifying stability and safety in the midst of turmoil, shelter and protection in times of danger. The LORD is upright, the word is “straight”. No twisting and turning, but totally truthful and honest, most reliable and trustworthy companion. 

Why so? To testify of the faithful of Jesus in your life so that others who see will ask, who is this God that you worship, can you introduce to me, I would like to follow Him too! 

CONCLUSION 

The blessings of God’s children who honour Him by setting aside the Lord’s Day for spiritual and physical rest and worship must be experienced. May you too experience the delight of the Sabbath, as we look for the eternal Sabbath where we will ever be with the LORD of eternal rest.