Is the Sabbath Part of the "New Covenant"? (original) (raw)
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The Role of God’s Moral Law, Including Sabbath, in the "New Covenant
2004
M any Christians today believe and teach that when the "old covenant" of the Old Testament gave way to the "new covenant"/New Testament of Christianity, the entire "old covenant" law became obsolete. 2 Since the seventh day Sabbath was part of that law, it is logical to conclude that literal Sabbath observance is no longer relevant or required. This approach has been adopted by a broad spectrum of Christians, from those (especially evangelicals) who hold that Christians are not bound to keep any particular day 3 to others (including Pope John Paul II) who slide aspects of the Old Testament Sabbath over to Sunday in order to make it a Christian "Sabbath." 4 The line of reasoning just described is logical: "Old covenant" law, which includes seventh day Sabbath, is replaced by "new covenant." Therefore seventh day Sabbath comes to an end. However, this logic is founded on an assumption, namely, that the Bible teaches such a sharp break between "Old" and "New" Testament religion that there is no continuity between the covenants that they represent. This assumption has a profound effect upon the nature of Christianity, so that many Christians reject the divine authority and value of much or all of the Old Testament. 5 If we examine the crucial assumption that there is no continuity between the "Old" and "New" Testament cov
The Ten Commandments - A Critical Reading
2010
The social and ethic nature of the Ten Commandments; The validity of the Ten Commandments; Monotheism at stake; Sabbath (Saturday) as day of rest; The perfect Codex of Law.
The Role of God’s Moral Law, Including Sabbath, in the “New Covenant”1
2004
Many Christians today believe and teach that when the “old covenant” of the Old Testament gave way to the “new covenant”/New Testament of Christianity, the entire “old covenant” law became obsolete.2 Since the seventh day Sabbath was part of that law, it is logical to conclude that literal Sabbath observance is no longer relevant or required. This approach has been adopted by a broad spectrum of Christians, from those (especially evangelicals) who hold that Christians are not bound to keep any particular day3 to others (including Pope John Paul II) who slide aspects of the Old Testament Sabbath over to Sunday in order to make it a Christian “Sabbath.”4 The line of reasoning just described is logical: “Old covenant” law, which includes seventh day Sabbath, is replaced by “new covenant.” Therefore seventh day Sabbath comes to an end. However, this logic is founded on an assumption, namely, that the Bible teaches such a sharp break between “Old” and “New” Testament religion that there ...
A Fresh Look at the Ten Commandments
The Living Light, 2000
A Decalogue (5:7–21) is ten instructions, a handbook explaining the obligations of clients to their patrons (10:12—11:32; 16:18—17:13; 22:1–12; 24:6). A long-standing tradition of interpretation considers decalogues to be a genre developed by elite males to teach one another the basic stipulations of the Covenant between YHWH and Israel. Decalogues are codes of honor which reflect what elite males expect of themselves, and how other elite males will evaluate how well they fulfill their roles in their households, villages and tribes.5 The long-standing tradition of interpretation that the decalogue is a genre developed by elite males Furthermore, the emphasis on worshipping YHWH alone would be an unusual teaching of women whose household worship was more inclusive of other members of the divine assembly like Asherah (5:6–10), and it is unlikely that women would view themselves as household possessions rather than as full, contributing members of their households (5:21). The Decalogue teaches the Hebrews to treat one another the way YHWH treats them. Their behavior is an image of YHWH. They were not to be competitive, but to create communities where even the powerless could survive. Only Hebrews who could remember their own sufferings well enough could be compassionate. Only then could their households live simply so that other households may simply live.
The Ten Commandments “AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE ORIGIN AND MEANING OF THE DECALOGUE AND AN ANALYSIS OF ITS ETHICAL AND MORAL VALUE AS A CODE OF CONDUCT IN MODERN SOCIETY” By Joseph Lewis This extensive history and study of the Christian “Ten Commandments” was long overdue when it was published and Dedicated to the Memory of two of America’s best-known Atheists: Luther Burbank and Thomas Edison. Joseph Lewis, 1889-1968, lived well into the 20th Century – the Century of the great Religious Wars – WWI was to stop the advance of Socialism, and the Freethought movement in America and Western Europe. Between WWI and WWII was the “Red Scare” and the Dumbing Down of America; by the end of WWII Christianity had the power to nullify the US Constitution, and have America continue Hitler’s Christian war against Atheist Russia – the Cold War. There are 613 Commandments of God in the Christion Bible: See: List - The613Commandments.com and a god being what a god was thought to be when these old legends and myths were written, it is necessary for every Bible Believer to honor and obey each and every one of those 613 Commandments the same as the “Ten commandments.” One of these 613 Commandments was strongly enforced when Christianity had the power; Exodus 22:18 “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live” and thousands of women were horribly murdered. We must not allow this to happen again. Emmett F. Fields