5 Things The Messiah Taught About the Sabbath

These are some of the things the Messiah said about the Sabbath day. Religious leaders were often upset with his actions on the Sabbath, not because he was breaking God's laws about the set apart day, but because he was setting aside the tedious manmade rules they had made up. Jesus was always in favor of going back to the simplicity of what Scripture instructs, so that keeping the Sabbath is doable for all of God's people.

The Messiah always kept and honored Shabbat. We see him eating in someone's home, instead of buying food in the marketplace. We see him teaching, in place of doing his carpentry work. We see him going to congregation, as opposed to working at home. He walks with his disciples, instead of saddling up a horse or hiring a chariot for transportation. All of those things he did to honor YHWH's set apart day. He also talked about the Sabbath.

Here are five things the Messiah taught about the Sabbath day:

1. "Shabbat was made for mankind." -Mark 2:27
Yes, YHWH created Shabbat for us. not for his own benefit. Not for the angels. Not just for the sake of having rules. Not only for the people who lived 3,000 years ago. He made it for us, as a gift. A custom gift; this is not like trying to squeeze into your little sister's jeans. This is a tailor made jacket that fits perfectly. It suits us. Yahusha taught that the Sabbath was a gift from YHWH especially for us.

2. "The son of man is master of the Sabbath." -Luke 6:5

Yahusha chose to describe himself in relation to Shabbat, and that shows us part of his identity that he values. Mastering something doesn't make it null and void. On the contrary, when someone says they have mastered something - whether that's organic chemistry, croissant baking, or a second language - it means they have purposefully spent a lot of time on it and it's important to them. Why would we treat the Messiah's declaration of Shabbat differently? He was speaking of the Sabbath because it's something he cares about.

3. He made a practice of teaching people on the Sabbath. -Luke 4:31

Many of us have been told  that it doesn't matter what day of the week we worship YHWH, but isn't it worthwhile to see that our Savior made it a point to do this on the seventh day of the week? He didn't limit himself to teaching one day a week but his habit was teaching on Shabbat. Yahusha organized his life with respect to this day. We can also see that he expects his people to learn on Shabbat.

4. "It is permitted in Torah to do good deeds on Shabbat." -Matthew 12:12

Many have taken the accusations of the Pharisees to mean that the Messiah violated the Sabbath. Truthfully they were only accusing him of breaking their own traditions, not commandments of YHWH. Yahusha teaches that it's okay to disregard manmade rules or expectations for what the Sabbath day looks like, as long as we honor YHWH's instructions. He also tells us here that Shabbat contradicts nothing that YHWH has said because we are free to keep all of his commandments on this day.

5. People get healed on the Sabbath. -Mark 3:5
Whoa. The number of times Yahusha healed someone on Shabbat show that YHWH is trying to communicate something with us. While healing is certainly possible any day of the week it is worth noticing that the Messiah consistently healed those who came to him on Shabbat.

This list is not exhaustive but we can see that Shabbat was something important to both the Messiah and to the writers of the Gospels. Many teachings recorded in Scripture were spoken by the Messiah on the Sabbath and then reiterated by Paul and others on later Sabbath days. We can now make the same choice to honor YHWH's set apart day.

More on the Sabbath:
What to Do on the Sabbath
Sabbath in the New Testament
Why I'm Still Keeping the Sabbath

Sabbath Was Made For You

I'm looking forward to the Sabbath, but I've got a fair amount of things to do before then because, honestly, taking a day of rest can be a lot of work. It takes thought and preparation to arrive at the seventh day with your immediate needs provided for. Making sure your fridge is stocked, the clothes you need for the day are washed, and clearing your schedule is work. It's easy for Friday afternoons to become a whirlwind of stress and the the frantic pace of trying to get everything done. The to-do list overflows into the seventh day and many of us find ourselves working to get everything done, even on the Sabbath. When you're striving for perfection it's easy to enter Shabbat feeling exhausted and anxious.

However, this is not what our Creator had in mind when he gave us the joy of a day of rest. Sabbath is not a reward for checking off our to-do list. He does not say to rest if we have everything done.

He just says to rest.

The first Sabbath we see in Scripture was taken by YHWH himself.


On the sixth day YHWH ended his work that he had made; and rested on the seventh day from all his work that he he made. -Genesis 2:2

I find it interesting that YHWH still had quite a bit of things to do. In six days he formed most of Creation, but he had yet to make Adam and Eve. We can look further into his schedule to know that he would be making clothes for them very soon, and that he needed to give Noah instructions for the ark, break down the tower of Babel, appear to Abraham, free the Israelites from slavery, give them Torah, guide them as the pillar of cloud/fire, speak through the prophets, send Yahsuha into the world, and on and on. YHWH wasn't resting because he was finished working.

I think we have certain expectations for what a day of rest looks like: sunny and peaceful, delcious meals waiting for us in the fridge, a pristine home, and the to-do list so checked off that not a single chore crosses our minds.

While that sounds lovely we are going to become frustrated and disappointed if we look at Shabbat as something we do once we've completed all our work. No matter how much you've accomplished this week there will be plenty to do next.

Sabbath rest is not negotiable. It's not a reward for getting everything done. We don't rest because we have finished working. We rest so that we can keep working.

It's okay to rest even if the kitchen is a mess. It's okay to rest even if you have a big paper due on Monday. It's okay to rest when there remains work to be done.

"The Shabbat was made for man, and not man for Shabbat." -Mark 2:27

In other words - Shabbat was made for you to rest, not for you to get everything perfect for. The Messiah's statement here reminds us that there aren't complicated rules to the Sabbath. He does not require that we light candles or bake challah bread. He does not ask that our homes be immaculate or that everything be in order. He tells us that he made Shabbat for us so that we could rest, no matter how hectic the rest of the week was or will be.

"Six days you shall labor, and do all your work: but the seventh day is the Shabbat of YHWH your Elohim." -Exodus 20:9-10

This Shabbat give yourself permission to rest. Even if there's still stuff to do. Even if you don't' feel ready. Give yourself permission because YHWH does.

More on the Sabbath:
Six Reasons Believers Should Keep the Sabbath
Why I'm Still Keeping the Sabbath
What to Do on the Sabbath