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[apologies, but we have not yet included the footnotes]  

Answer: We believe the best way to teach correct Sabbath observance is to simply emphasize four areas:

1. We should make sure that we have a good, strong, saving relationship with Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath. Let us pray to Him and read the Gospel accounts about His life, death and resurrection. We should let Him be our Lord and counselor. We need to seek His guidance in everything and trust His promises no matter what.

2. We should guard the edges of the Sabbath. This means being properly ready for the Sabbath’s start, and finishing it on a good note. It is so easy in this busy world to "rush" into the Sabbath or not be sincerely ready for its beginning. Let us remember that the Bible calls the day before the Sabbath "the preparation" day (Matthew 27:62; Mark 15:42; Luke 23:54; John 19:31, 42).

3. Let us read, meditate on and do our best to prayerfully follow the main Bible passages about Sabbath observance:

8 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.

9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:

10 But the seventh day is the Sabbath 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 it (Exodus 20:8-11).

Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the Sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings (Leviticus 23:3).

13 If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:

14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it (Isaiah 58:13, 14).

11 And He said unto them, What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the Sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out?

12 How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath days.

13 Then saith He to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, like as the other (Matthew 12:11-13).

4. We need to also carefully consider what the Bible says about the purposes of the seventh-day Sabbath:

a). Worshipping God as our Creator.

b). Worshipping God as our Redeemer.

c). Exercising faith in God.

d). Meeting together with fellow believers.

e). Learning not to please ourselves but to delight in the things of God, draw near to Him and receive special blessings from Him.

f). Acknowledging that God alone can sanctify us.

For more details about the purposes of the seventh-day Sabbath please see the answer to Question 13.

Allow me now to break in with a personal note and share my Sabbath-keeping experience. Sometimes a testimonial can help others get a better idea of what it is like to observe this special day.

Close to my 16th birthday I was converted from secularism to Christianity. Then, a few weeks into Bible study, I was introduced to the seventh-day Sabbath. It was a surprise to find out that Saturday was the seventh day of the week as I had always considered the week to begin with Monday. But a glance at a dictionary soon convinced me otherwise. After being convicted of the obligation to observe the Sabbath there came the challenge of behavior modification! I had a job delivering newspapers each morning, except Sundays. The Saturday morning paper was the biggest and most important delivery of the week. I asked my boss if I could get someone else to do the Saturday morning delivery while I continued with the rest. This was not acceptable, so I quit the job. Actually it did not seem much of a sacrifice at the time. Maybe this was because I was single and had no dependents. Whatever the case may be, I must testify that the Lord has been good to me through the years. Jobs have come my way that avoided Sabbath work and money hassles were not a big issue in my student days, despite having parents unable to support me much in this area. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t a perfect Christian specimen! But God does help those who are serious about His commandments. One text that has been a source of strength to me in Sabbath-keeping is "them that honour Me I will honour, and they that despise Me shall be lightly esteemed" (1 Samuel 2:30).

Being the only Sabbath-keeper in my family was a challenge. I tried to be with my parents and brothers on family outings and sometimes these were on the Sabbath. Mostly our excursions were into nature, so there was little problem apart from the challenge of keeping my conversation appropriate. But sometimes things were more complicated. My parents were kind and tolerant, but just didn’t seem to grasp my absolute unwillingness to do shopping or attend things like amusement parks on the Sabbath. This made watchfulness and prayer all the more essential. On one Sabbath I spent hours walking along a country road while my family and friends played and swam at a "holiday park" (it wasn’t a "holy day" park!). As a youthful son living at home it was a challenge to both honor my father and mother and also to keep holy the Sabbath day. Though I am sure that I let Him down many times, the Lord was always faithful in helping me. Prayer was essential.

Study, study, STUDY was the cry that constantly rang in my ears while at university. Books, lectures, seminars, deadlines, exams, rushing hither and thither! Every spare moment was precious and it was so easy to feel guilty if I did not have my nose in a book. Amid the mad pace of university life the Sabbath was an oasis of tranquility and rest, a real delight. It was especially a rest for my conscience because I could take a deep breath and say, "Hallelujah, I can take a break from study and not feel guilty! God has commanded me to keep this Sabbath and study must be put aside!" God’s command was like a cry of freedom for me. I was so glad to have that Sabbath command. I was so glad that it was not an optional thing that I had to decide about. If it had been optional then my Sabbath-keeping would have been in ruins during my university years and maybe I would have lost my Christian experience altogether, choked out by the mountain of other pressing demands. But thanks to God’s instruction, rather than being strangled and choked, I delighted in the breath-taking experience of the Sabbath. Yes, the Sabbath was a breathing space during the rat race! Actually the Bible itself describes the Sabbath in terms of "breathing easy". The Hebrew word translated as "refreshed" in Exodus 23:12 and Exodus 31:17 means, "to take breath". So the Sabbath is truly a time to relax and be rejuvenated.

At university I once found out that an important examination was scheduled for the Sabbath and immediately decided not to attend it. God’s Ten Commandments can make decision making easy for us if we take them seriously. Just as the Ark in the wilderness went before the Israelites and guided them in all their wanderings, so the Ten Commandments guide believers in the will of God through their pilgrimage on Earth. Actually, I was able to take the exam because I found out that the university had a system for Sabbath-keepers to sit exams on Saturdays after sundown. I had to stay at a pastor’s house for the day, before heading into the university to sit the test in the evening. I am personally thankful for Auckland University’s respect of religious liberty because I know that there are many places in the world where such respect is not given.

Being employed in the medical field has led to several jobs involving Sabbath duties. I spent fourteen months working at a psychiatric halfway house rehabilitating patients who had spent years in institutions. Over one summer break I did nurse aiding for a few months. Then later on I was involved with hospital and general practice work on the Sabbath. The main principles that I followed were, firstly, to cheerfully do whatever humanitarian work was really necessary while avoiding common stuff like everyday cleaning, routine chores and employment-related medical examinations. Secondly, I donated to charity any money that I earned from my Sabbath duties. This was a blessing as it gave me the joy of choosing where to give my "Sabbath-money". None of the jobs that I held meant working on every Sabbath or for many Sabbaths in a row and I would not have stuck with such employment because it would have meant virtually zero church attendance. Having a starvation diet of organized church fellowship would have been both spiritual suicide and a disregard of the command exhorting us to hold a sacred meeting on the Sabbath (Leviticus 23:3 c.f. Hebrews 10:25). I must mention here that although it must be a breach of Leviticus 23:3 to neglect sacred gatherings week after week when there is opportunity to participate, this verse cannot mean that it is compulsory to attend worship meetings every Sabbath, for Jesus Himself did not do that (e.g. when He was in the wilderness for forty days).

Early sunsets during the winter season were a challenge when employed in general practice. Quite a bit of general practitioner (GP) work does not really involve urgent things and I well remember one winter evening when a patient walked into my consulting room at about Friday sunset asking for an insurance medical. I cannot remember what was actually said, but I politely declined, apologized and rebooked him for another time. He did not appear to be offended. It was my fault really because I should not have been working so late and should have instructed the receptionists to watch out for routine medical examinations and schedule them for times other than Friday afternoons. Now I do my best to avoid working late on Friday afternoons, especially in the winter. If it appears that I may be working close to Friday sunset then I try to do everything possible to prepare beforehand so that the beginning of the Sabbath is honored and I am in the right frame of mind.

A fellow Sabbath-keeper once convinced me that it was OK to attend health conferences on the Sabbath. These were continuing professional development meetings for GP’s and involved mixing with other doctors and participating in seminars. So when I attended my next conference I stayed at the venue that Sabbath. It was a big mistake. Spiritual food was zero and spiritual company felt similarly low, except for God who in His mercy did not forsake me. I decided never to do it again. Attending such meetings, even if they are about humanitarian or health topics, means participation in a common secular gathering rather than a sacred meeting or "holy convocation" (Leviticus 23:3). Also it forces common thoughts and everyday subjects into our minds. Frequently secular or business conversations are overheard. No, it is not for me. However, I must confess that subsequently I did attend one conference for just the Sabbath afternoon after going to church in the morning. But this was a mistake too, and now I avoid any Sabbath involvement with medical conferences. This is a sacrifice because it sometimes means missing gatherings that would otherwise be very helpful and it makes meeting "accreditation" goals more difficult. But it is nothing compared to the sacrifices Christ has made for us.

Being now married with two young children makes planning ahead for the Sabbath especially important. Our routine is to discuss during the week what we are going to do for the following Sabbath. We try and do something special on Friday evening. We are members of a local Seventh-day Adventist church where we attend Saturday morning services. There is a special program for the children. In the afternoon we usually have a picnic and nature walk. We feel it is especially important for the children to get outdoors into nature after sitting in church. We often invite friends to join us for our Sabbath afternoon activities. Currently we have a non-Christian friend who usually comes along with us. She is studying the Bible with my wife and hopefully, in the not too distant future, will surrender her life to the Lord. When the weather is rainy we frequently still go for a walk. But if it is really rough, which is not often, we do something else like watch animal videos or read with the children.

True Sabbath-keeping is not drudgery. It is a delight! What more could a human ask for than a special weekly 24-hour appointment with his or her Maker and Redeemer? An appointment that God Himself has graciously asked us to have with Him because we are special to Him, even as Adam and Eve were? It is as if Jesus knocks on the door of our homes each Friday evening. Will we be ready for Him? Will we welcome Him in?

Jesus wants to be welcomed into your home and heart this coming Sabbath. Will you let Him in? He has given you a day for you to enjoy family life to the fullest and to experience blessed social contact with others. He has given you a day to experience the joy of helping others. Enjoy it, revel in it, delight in it, it is yours, a wonderful gift from God!