The rest offered to God's people in Christ is better than that of the old covenant. Many of the instructions from the old covenant are repeated throughout the New Testament and treated as normative for new covenant life. Beale, A New Testament Biblical Theology: The Unfolding of the Old Testament in the New (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2011), 5.
He presents his interpretation of the Old Testament in the light of the Gospel event and reveals his own. A lesson designed to outline the Old Testament understanding of God's rest and the Sabbath as a sign of the Old Covenant will provide a canonical interpretation of Hebrews 3-4.
Rest and the Davidic Covenant
SABBATH REST IN HEBREWS 3–4
SABBATH REST IN THE PENTATEUCH
Testing Covenant Faith
PSALM 95: SABBATH REST AND THE DAVIDIC COVENANT
Rest as Messianic Hope
SABBATH REST IN THE GOSPELS
The Old Testament theme of rest comes into sharper focus through Matthew's presentation of the Sabbath controversies. They claim: "Jesus did not abolish the canonical authority of the Old Testament, but correctly oriented it to end in his own teaching." Matthew juxtaposes chapters 11–12 to present Jesus' statement about rest as the fulfillment of the Sabbath.
His invitation in Matthew 11:28-30 is the clearest expression of his identity as the fulfillment of the Sabbath. Jesus "invites them to follow his own teaching as the final interpretation of the law", since he is the "intended goal" of the law and the prophets.15 Carson claims,. This statement fits the context of Matthew's presentation of Jesus as the ultimate interpreter of the law in the Sabbath pericopes that follow in chapter 12.
Talbot's unique contribution to the study is her exhaustive examination of the word anapausis to demonstrate the fulfillment of Old Testament promises. Jesus confronts the strict interpretation and application of the fourth commandment by recalling two complementary but distinct Old Testament encounters with the law. Here he emphasizes the importance of the temple to demonstrate that legal observance of the Sabbath was not the primary concern even within the law itself.
The pericope closes with an even more controversial statement: Jesus' claim to be "Lord of the Sabbath." In a sense, the narrative was building towards this ultimate statement. The problem is that Pippa has misunderstood the fuller meaning of the Sabbath as presented in the Old Testament and does not understand how Christ fulfills it. Those who defend the Christian Sabbath rightly see moral principles in Sabbath legislation.
What begins in Matthew as an argument about the interpretation of the Sabbath commandment ends on another level with the dramatic newness of Christology and mission.”45. The Sabbath scene - and everything that follows in Mark's Gospel - must be interpreted within the context of this novelty. It expects the authority of Jesus to affect even the most sacred practices of the Old Covenant: the sign of the Covenant itself, namely the Sabbath.
Although not strongly supported, this argument supports those who argue that the Sabbath is a creation ordinance made for man. The position of this project is that the title is Messianic and that it is Jesus alone who is Lord of the Sabbath. Jesus, however, does not present an argument to serve as jurisprudence for a correct understanding and application of the Sabbath.
Advocates of the Sabbath as a "creation ordinance" argue that the word "man" here carries the general meaning of all mankind. For whom the Sabbath was created—whether Jewish or all mankind—is not the issue at hand and should not be read into Jesus' statement. 57. The eschatological overtones of Mark's Gospel provide a broader context within which to understand Jesus' statements about the Sabbath.
The arrangement of the Sabbath issues immediately after Jesus' statements about new wine confirms such an eschatological reading. Since the Sabbath was an anticipation of the eschaton, Jesus saw it as the perfect day to bring wholeness to those in need. The prominence of healings as the source of controversy on the Sabbath points to the restoration that Jesus' work will ensure.
SABBATH REST IN THE PAULINE EPISTLES
Some have suggested that the "weak" are former Gentile idolaters, while others suggest they are Jewish or Gentile ascetics or Jewish legalists. It is hard to imagine Paul being so sympathetic to practices that originated in paganism." Dunn fails to convince in his argument that the "weak" group consists of both Jews and godly Gentiles. The "weak" in faith were primarily Jewish Christians in the church, making the Sabbath the most natural reading of verses 5-6 as a point of conflict in the body.
Moreover, Paul's conclusion that "everyone should be fully convinced in his own mind" (14:5) about the "days" in question can hardly refer to pagan holidays. Paul addresses specific issues where the church fails to fulfill the law of love to one another in the life of the body (13:8). The “strong” believer does not distinguish between days any more than he does with food.26 Paul quickly returns to food in verse 6, indicating that “the advice he gave on food was sufficient advice to the two groups to resolve both issues. cover". 27 In other words, Paul's admonition regarding food applies to the conflict over the respect of days.
Schreiner concludes, "The position of the 'weak' regarding foods and days indicates a certain deficiency in their faith. There is no indication of guilt regarding the practice of abstaining from food or days by the "weak". nor are the strong reprimanded for their failure to follow their example. The obstacle to "peace" and "mutual edification" (14:19) is the proud attitude that the "weak" and "strong" have towards each other has.
Paul instructs the "strong" to avoid the temptation to "despise" their weaker brothers and sisters (14:3, 10). To "despise" means to devalue someone or have a contemptuous attitude towards them.31 In this case, the "strong" looked down on the "weak" with an attitude of contempt for their inability to get out from under the old. covenant practices and enjoy freedom. A greater priority in the life of the Church is "walking in love" for the spiritual good of one another.
In fact, Paul categorizes Sabbath keeping as non-essential.33 A better understanding of Christ's redemptive work will inform the conscience and free believers to "follow in the footsteps of faith" (4:12) and to depend only on grace and not on observance. to the law (4:14-16). Paul is careful to support his instruction by making room for Sabbath-keeping that flows from a sincere desire to please the Lord (14:6). Paul's reference to their past lives (4:8) and a return to "elemental principles of the world" (4:9) seem to point to pagan holidays.
However, given the identity of the false teachers and the "desire to be under the law" (4:21) it seems likely that verse 10 is a reference to the Jewish calendar.36. First, some commentators note the similarity between Paul's sequence and Genesis 1:14, where the heavenly bodies are divided into day and night and are signs of. If true, the combination of pagan and Jewish references implies that Paul is equating their attraction to Judaism with the paganism they left behind.38 A mocking assessment of the dependence of the Judaizers.
Bruce, The Epistle to the Galatians: A Commentary on the Greek Text, New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans). barriers in the dividing wall as mentioned above The Sabbath has fulfilled its purpose and no longer functions within the New Covenant community.
Paul's dealings with the strong in Romans 14-15 indicate that he himself "counts all days alike" (Romans 14:5). The implication is that maturity in Christ informs the conscience in such a way that one is free to live in the new covenant reality where the Sabbath is no longer binding because it has been completely fulfilled in Christ. Colossians 2—the third and final passage in Paul's letters dealing with the Sabbath—demonstrates Paul's conviction that the Sabbath was only a "shadow" pointing to Christ, who fulfills true rest for God's people.
This investigation of Paul's view of the Sabbath further supports the thesis of this project. Beale, A New Testament Biblical Theology: The Unfolding of the Old Testament in the New (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic. This project showed that the testimony of the New Testament points to the end and fulfillment of the Sabbath in the person of Jesus Christ.
His finished work will also fulfill the promised rest of the land in the new creation. Paul's epistles affirm that the Sabbath was a type and shadow of the greater rest assured to God's people by Jesus Christ. Much more needs to be said about the implications of this study for the life of the Church today.
Regular attendance at common church meetings is essential to keeping our Sabbath rest strong. The regular observance of the Sabbath has given way to the regular observance of the Lord's Supper in the life of the church. Foreword to Typos: The Typological Interpretation of the Old Testament in the New, by Leonhard Goppelt, translated by Donald H.
I Will Give You Rest: The Background and Meaning of the Rest Motif in the New Testament.” Tyndale Bulletin 46, no. Jesus as 'He Who Entered His Rest': A Christological Reading of Hebrews 4:10.” Journal for the Study of the New Testament 36, no. Sunday: History of the Day of Rest and Worship in the First Centuries of the Christian Church.
