Many argue that it is incorrect for Christians to claim that Jesus is our Sabbath, stating that this is not found in the Bible. Some even say that this diminishes Jesus by equating Him to a mere day of rest, especially since Mark 2:27 calls Him the “Lord of the Sabbath,” making it wrong to say Jesus is the Sabbath. Is this true? For some, this argument may seem logical, but upon closer examination, it is misleading and incorrect, leading to much misunderstanding. Here are some key reasons why Jesus is our Sabbath as God’s people today:
Meaning of “Sabbath”: The primary meaning of “Sabbath” is physical cessation or rest from daily activities, not necessarily limited to the seventh day of the week (Lev. 23:6-8). Even in the Old Testament, “Sabbath” did not always refer to physical rest. When God rested on the seventh day of creation (Gen. 2:1-3), it was not physical rest since God does not get tired. It was a literal cessation from creation because everything needed for life was complete (Gen. 1:31). According to Hebrews 4:1-4, this spiritual rest of God continues to our time and is offered to those with open hearts to enter this spiritual rest (Heb. 4:1-10).
Jesus as Rest for the Soul: Jesus offered Himself to sinners as “rest for the soul” in Matthew 11:28-30. This rest is for our salvation, a spiritual rest, unlike the physical Sabbath commanded to the Israelites through Moses at Mt. Sinai. According to the fourth commandment, even animals, which have no spiritual life, were given physical rest on the Sabbath, making this Sabbath part of the Ten Commandments a physical rest only (Exo. 20:10). In the New Testament, Jesus is the “Sabbath” for Christians, a spiritual rest, not a physical rest limited to 24 hours once a week but a daily rest for our souls from the burden of our sins. This is what we need more than the seventh-day physical rest.
Honoring Jesus as Our Sabbath: Calling Jesus our Sabbath today is not diminishing Him. Some think it is an insult because they misunderstand that the word Sabbath in the Bible always refers to weekly physical rest on the “Sabbath DAY.” They think we insult Jesus by saying He is our Sabbath. But when we understand that Sabbath does not always mean “DAY,” we see that Jesus is the true rest every person needs. The “Lord of the Sabbath” mentioned in Mark 2:27 does not necessarily mean Jesus is the “Lord of the Sabbath DAY.” The Holy Spirit used “Lord of the Sabbath” (not Sabbath DAY) because the Holy Spirit also taught Apostle Paul that the “Sabbath DAY” was a temporary commandment in the Old Testament. The Sabbath DAY was a “shadow” of the coming fulfillment—Jesus, who provides true rest for the soul (Col. 2:16-17). This rest is experienced daily by anyone who comes to Jesus, unlike the Israelites in Moses’ time who were limited to physical rest once a week on the weekly seventh day.
Therefore, the rest that anyone needs today is not the “Sabbath DAY,” but the “remaining Sabbath-rest” (Greek: sabbatismos) according to Hebrews 4:9, a daily rest of grace experienced by all who accept Jesus as Lord and Savior.
Hebrews 4:9 “There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God.”
This remaining “Sabbath-rest” (not Sabbath DAY) is no longer the Sabbath DAY of the Old Testament. It is a shadow that has passed (Col. 2:16-17), leaving only one type of Sabbath for God’s children: Jesus is our Sabbath!
