Are Christians Required To Keep The Sabbath?

Q: Are Christians required to observe a literal weekly Sabbath? How should Christians think about the Sabbath? Should we set aside a day every week when we rest from any work and make it a holy observance of God, as described in Exodus 31? Hebrews 4:9 also promotes having this day of rest.

Hebrews 4:9-10 – There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.

Colossians 2:16-17 – So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.

A: Paul wrote to the Colossian believers, “Don’t let anybody judge you regarding a feast or a new moon or Sabbaths.” (see Colossians 2:16-17) We are not under the same Sabbath obligation as Israel was under the Old Covenant. It doesn’t mean we have no obligation to the Sabbath. Because the Sabbath is fulfilled by the perfect work of Jesus Christ, He brings His people into His rest. It’s not that we don’t believe in the Sabbath as New Testament believers. We believe every day is a Sabbath. Every day is a day of rest in Jesus Christ.

As a follower of Jesus, you have the freedom to observe the Sabbath as you believe God is leading you to do it. So, pray about it. If you think it’s the right thing for you and your family to observe a more formal 24-hour Sabbath, you have freedom in Christ to do that. Seek the Lord about it and walk in the freedom that Jesus Christ has given you. He has given you the freedom to not observe the Sabbath after the same pattern given to Israel in the Old Covenant. But you also have the freedom to mark the Sabbath in a way that that is meaningful to you, in a way that you think God would want you to do.

However, be careful not to think that practicing the Sabbath makes you any more right with God. This is where problems arise. If a person says, “I’m going to start observing the Sabbath, and I’m going to do it like the Jews did. I’m going to do it from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday, and I’m not going to do any work, and I’m going to be very scripted about it.” Okay, that’s great if you feel led to do that, and God bless you. The trouble comes when a person starts thinking, “This makes me more right with God than other people.” The problem is that person is now basing their righteousness on their own works. They are no longer basing their righteousness on the finished work of Jesus Christ.

Believer, take the freedom that Jesus Christ won for you on the cross and use it in a way that glorifies Him. But realize that your standing with God is not based on your Sabbath observance; your standing with God is based on the wonderful work of Jesus Christ. You stand in grace. 

Many people who regularly practice a weekly Sabbath have found that they end up being more productive in six days than if they work seven days consistently. I think that wisdom might compel somebody to do exactly that. But it is not the command of the law, it’s an invitation to which a believer can respond.