10 Biblical Reasons to Keep the Sabbath

by Kelly McDonald, Jr.

If you keep the Sabbath for any length of time, you will be asked the question: Why Do You Keep the Sabbath? In this article, we will review 10 Biblical reasons for keeping the Sabbath.

Reason #1: We are made in the image of God. In Genesis 1:27, we learn: “So God created man in his own image in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” All humans were made in the image of God. In other words, God left an imprint of Himself in us. This important truth has an interesting relationship to the Sabbath. After God made mankind, He rested on the Sabbath. This makes humans inseparably connected to this special day. In Genesis 2:2-3, we learn that God rested on the Sabbath. Since we are made in His image, every human is made with the innate need to rest on the seventh day.

Reason #2: Jesus Christ kept the Sabbath. The gospel accounts of Christ’s life make it clear that Jesus also kept the Sabbath. In Luke 4:16 we read, “…as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.”

Reason #3: Jesus said that He was Lord of the Sabbath. This is the only day of the week that He declared Himself Lord over. In Mark 2:28, He said: “Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath.”

Reason #4: The human body was designed for rest. Jesus said that the Sabbath was made for man. Mark 2:27: “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” God rested on the seventh day and was refreshed (Gen. 2:1-3; Ex. 31:17). Since we are made in His image and are infinitely more fragile than Him, it shows just that much more that we were designed for the Sabbath rest. It contributes to our physical, mental, and emotional health (Ex. 20:8-11, Ex. 23:12; 34:21).

Reason #5: The earliest disciples kept the Sabbath even after the resurrection. New Testament believers kept the Sabbath years after the resurrection (see Acts 13:13-48, Acts 17:1-4, Acts 18:1-4 for some example).

Reason #6: Paul said to let no one judge us for keeping the Sabbath (Colossians 2:16-17).

Reason #7: The writer of Hebrews said that the Sabbath rest remained. “9 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10 for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his.” (Hebrews 4:9-10, NIV).

Reason #8: Most Christians continued to observe the Sabbath for hundreds of years after Christ. We have a free booklet available on our website titled A Brief History of the Sabbath in Early Christianity (CLICK HERE TO READ). These resources totally refute the idea that the early church instantly ‘flipped’ to Sunday.

Reason #9: The Sabbath has prophetic implications. When speaking about the days before His return (Matthew 24:1-3), Jesus said, “But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day” (Matthew 24:20). This shows that Jesus intended for the Sabbath to be observed even when He returns.

Reason #10: In Isaiah 56:1-7 and 58:13-14 God promised special blessings to all humans who keep the Sabbath whether they were Jew or Gentile. He connects keeping the Sabbath with being bound in covenant with Him.

God bless!

Kelly McDonald, Jr.
BSA President – www.biblesabbath.org