Learn about the Jewish sabbath and its observances. Includes a description of a typical sabbath and a recipe for cholent, a traditional Jewish sabbath dish.
— Read on www.jewfaq.org/m/shabbat.htm

“We are commanded to remember the Shabbat, but remembering means much more than merely not forgetting to observe Shabbat. It also means to remember the significance of Shabbat, both as a commemoration of creation and as a commemoration of our freedom from slavery in Egypt.”.. slavery from our current world!”

“In Exodus 20:11, after the Fourth Commandment is first instituted, G-d explains, “because for six days, the L-rd made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and on the seventh day, he rested; therefore, the L-rd blessed the Sabbath day and sanctified it.”

‘By resting on the seventh day and sanctifying it, we remember and acknowledge that G-d is the creator of heaven and earth and all living things. We also emulate the divine example, by refraining from work on the seventh day, as G-d did. If G-d’s work can be set aside for a day of rest, how can we believe that our own work is too important to set aside temporarily?”

“In Deuteronomy 5:15, while Moses reiterates the Ten Commandments, he notes the second thing that we must remember on Shabbat: “remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the L-rd your G-d brought you forth from there with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm; therefore the L-rd your G-d commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.”

“What does the Exodus have to do with resting on the seventh day? It’s all about freedom. As I said before, in ancient times, leisure was confined to certain classes; slaves did not get days off. Thus, by resting on Shabbat, we are reminded that we are free. But in a more general sense, Shabbat frees us from our weekday concerns, from our deadlines and schedules and commitments. During the week, we are slaves to our jobs, to our creditors, to our need to provide for ourselves; on Shabbat, we are freed from these concerns, much as our ancestors were freed from slavery in Egypt.”

“We must remember two meanings of Shabbat when we recite kiddush (the prayer over wine sanctifying Shabbat or a holiday). Friday night kiddush refers to Shabbat as both zikaron I’ma’aseih v’rei’shit (a memorial of the work in the beginning) and zeikher litzi’at Mitz’rayim (a remembrance of the exodus from Egypt).”

So, who is Moses speaking to? To the Israelites and the ‘mixed multitude.’ Everyone stood there listening and said, “We will do it.”

Who was the foreigner standing there with the Israelites? The Gentiles as they came from foreign nations and the Israelites god was foreign to them. These people wanted the Hebrew’s ‘true and living’ G-d.

The stranger was those that were ‘strange’ to the covenants of God. They did not understand about a covenant god. The Hebrew stood there who had not experienced this living God. The Lord’s Feasts were not observed but they helped the Egyptians serve their gods.

Adonai did not lie when he told Moses to tell Pharaoh that He wanted his people to come into the desert in order to worship Him. There was no ‘Sabbath’ rest in Egypt. Rest has to be intentional….just as we go to bed ‘intentionally’ to rest. And, if you do NOT give your body rest…it will get use to not sleeping. The body is made to rest to rebuild it’s cellular structure. If you are not sleeping…your body is really starting to shut down…just like a person who gets a burst of energy before they breathe their last breath.

Hmm… Does forsaking The Sabbath bring you to an early physical death? We know that The Feasts (which The Sabbath is the greatest one) are connected to blessing. “If you do this, then I will do this.” ‘If you don’t do this, then this won’t happen either’ is God’s theme for a happy life on the earth.

In fact, because we don’t function well in His ways on the earth, most people who have have ‘death’ experiences return and speak of ‘doing’ more for God. They thought they were good Christians or Jews, but found that observing Torah was the closest things to His heart.

Why is Torah so close to God’s heart? Because it was built around His Son, Yeshua Jesus. The Torah points to His coming, suffering, death and resurrection. The Torah continues to prove Yeshua is Messiah as He filled it up completely proving He was The Messiah. He does not quit filling anything up, but continues to prove his position by filling up more prophecy about Himself. If we don’t see him completing and not violating one prophecy that pointed to Him, then why would we be looking for more prophecy to be filled up by Him?

He will continue to draw men to Himself with The Bible, the Sabbath, and Th Torah. Loving God and your neighbor more than yourself…points to the rest of The Torah that can be lived out even though there is no Temple today. We are the living temple…it is His spirit that dwell in us. Let us rest to find His Spirit that wants to grow in us.

The Nation of Israel is only 70 years old. Israel returned from Babylon after 70 years. They did not have adequate leadership as the leader dispersed into other nations. That is the same today as Christians see The Messiach and take his blood to The Nations. But, what about The Jew’s salvation through Him?

G-d told us how it would work. The Hebrew was given The Instructions (Torah) first. They are still the ones responsible for giving it to The Nations. The Jew has been shy because they are either killed, jailed or called, “Dirty Jew.”

The Nations are not ready because they call Jesus, “our Jesus.” The Christians claims that the Jews killed their Jesus. The Christians claim that the Jews changed Torah. The Christians claim that the Jews have us on the wrong calendar…and some still argue for the English language.

So, how does the Gentile make the Jew zealous for their own Torah? By understanding the Hebrew calendar which is understanding The Lord’s Feasts. By participating in The Lord’s Festival to the best they know how until The Jew will help them participate. The Jews has the way of worship and the Gentile sees their Messiah.

Interestingly, they are the one and same. Yeshua prayed the prayers The Jews pray today, in The Siddur. Yeshua participated in The Lord’s Feasts…not The Jew’s Feasts.

From Creation the Sabbath was set in place and resounds throughout our history. Even Enoch noted that he was the Seventh in that first generation. Enoch 92 shows us ten generations of 700 year each. Did he write his own words…No, it says that Enoch was the first to write what ADONAI told him to write. ADONAI was showing The Sabbath even in those ten generations that run through year 7000.

If we remove the Sabbath we don’t see the end of the world as we’ve known it. It is the Sabbath (7) that point and points to show mankind the future. It is those that just want this life to be over…that don’t want to hear this. Just give me heaven now. Well, what about those young people who aren’t even married yet? Don’t they deserve to have children and have a live a life unto The L-rd?

How terrible to thank G-d for creating all of this and then to just want to ‘get out’ quick. We are still a stubborn-hearted people that need forgiveness. We are still looking for miracles where our shoes do not wear out and we don’t have to work. There, I said it…WORK. If you are tired of working…then rest! But, why not do it on the day that Yeshua observed it. What did Jesus do? He did what Yeshua our savior did…He rested in the hands of The Father’s loving arms. He submitted to being an example to the world even knowing He was God…and yet humbled himself to become flesh…to save man from the penalty of sin.

When Yeshua lived, he observed all of The Lord’s Feasts. They all pointed to Him, The Prince spoken of in Ezekiel 9:1. Aren’t we glad The Great Assembly including Ezra, Nehemiah, Mordecai allowed that book to be part of our Bible? Their spirits told them that the ways of the temple would change with that prince coming. It was torn down and the gold on it’s stones burnt off to pay Roman solders their wage.

Our stony heart needs to become a living stone…that anchors to the cornerstone, Yeshua. The Sabbath is not for stony hearts but for those that want to REST in His ways…because those that gave us the oral Torah from Moses when they returned after 70 years of Babylon are still with us today. Israel is 70 years old and still reads the Oral Torah spoken by The Great Assembly of which Ezra, Nehemiah, Mordecai and Daniel were all part of.

Let us reconsider the path we walk and not throw out The Jew of whom has the responsibility of bringing The Torah back to the earth in it’s correct form…with no high fences…but the original.