More people using the internet means more people have to be on the job to troubleshoot the inevitable problems. More people on the road means more people driving tow trucks to take care of the inevitable crashes and breakdowns. But sure, if it sounds pharisaical, we don't have to talk about it
Brother, are you using this argument to not obey the biblical Sabbath and keep Sunday instead? Does a child obey because he trusts in himself to be able to do everything his parents ask of him or does the child obey because he trusts his parents want what is best for him? Those that clearly disobey God's Sabbath are showing they do not trust God to lead them out of sin through His law. Sin is to disobey God and sin leads to death. To not sin is to obey God's law. Those like Abraham who have put their trust in obeying God are saved. Those who disobey God are lost to sin. For example, God knows I obey Him differently from David? Unlike David, I turn to the temple for forgiveness. Jesus has taught me how to get up again and again quickly when I fall until I no longer fall. It is not that I can never fall, but that I know what God expects from me when I fall, which David failed to do by not going to the temple. God expects me to ask for forgiveness in prayer to get up again and again until I no longer fall. If David had gone to the temple, he would have been saved from his sin, but because he did not go to the temple, David was lost to sin, until he gained a new faith through the prophet Nathan. David got forgiveness free of the works of the temple when he was forgiven for his new belief of being worthy of death for committing adultery with Bathsheba without having done the regular work at the temple for his forgiveness. What many think can only happen after Jesus happened to David before Jesus! I say again, what has been assumed as unique to the new covenant David experienced before the new covenant! Way before Jesus' death on the cross, David received "righteousness" for having believed, free of the regular work of animal sacrifices at the temple for the forgiveness of his past sin of adultery! Something everyone thinks only happens after Jesus happened to David before Jesus! David's free "righteousness" experience of getting "righteousness" free of the regular work of animal sacrifices for the forgiveness of the past sin of adultery took place before Jesus.
David was furious. “As surely as the LORD lives,” he vowed, “
any man who would do such a thing deserves to die! He must repay four lambs to the poor man for the one he stole and for having no pity.” Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! . . . Then
David confessed to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” Nathan replied, “Yes, but the LORD has forgiven you, and you won’t die for this sin. Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for the word of the LORD by doing this, your child will die.” (
2 Samuel 12:5-7a,
13-14 NLT)
David gained initial forgiveness for his free of regular work "righteousness", having done no regular work at the temple when God counted his having "believed" he was worthy of death for adultery as equivalent to an act of "work" to complete his new faith of being worthy of death for breaking the Seventh Commandment of committing adultery with another man's wife. David gained forgiveness for his past sin of adultery without having done the regular work of animal sacrifices at the temple! What many think happens after Jesus, gaining free work credit of an act of "righteousness" without having done the regular work of animal sacrifices at the temple, happened to David before Jesus. David's experience of gaining an initial act of "righteousness" without having done the regular work of animal sacrifices for the forgiveness of his past sin of adultery was before Jesus!
When people work, their wages are not a gift, but something they have earned. But
people are credited righteousness (work), not because of their work, but because of their faith/belief (pistis) in God who forgives sinners.
David also spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are credited righteousness (work) without working for it: “Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight. Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of sin.” Now, is this blessing only for the Jews, or is it also for uncircumcised Gentiles? Well, we have been saying that
Abraham was credited righteousness (work) by God because of his faith/belief (pistis). But how did this happen? Was he
credited righteousness (work) only after he was circumcised, or was it before he was circumcised? Clearly, God accepted Abraham before he was circumcised! (
Romans 4:4-10 NLT fixed)
Here are God's instructions for "keeping the Sabbath". We are warned that if we disobey the Sabbath we will "fall" like those who died in the desert.
God’s promise of entering his rest still stands, so
we ought to tremble with fear that some of you might fail to experience it. For this good news—that God has prepared this rest—has been announced to us just as it was to them. But it did them no good because
they didn’t share the faith of those who listened to God. For only we who believe can enter his rest. As for the others, God said, “
In my anger I took an oath: ‘They will never enter my place of rest,’” even though this rest has been ready since he made the world. We know it is ready because of the place in the Scriptures where it mentions the seventh day: “On the seventh day God rested from all his work.” But in the other passage God said, “They will never enter my place of rest.” So God’s rest is there for people to enter, but
those who first heard this good news failed to enter because they disobeyed God. So God set another time for entering his rest, and that time is today. God announced this through David much later in the words already quoted: “Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts.” Now if Joshua had succeeded in giving them this rest, God would not have spoken about another day of rest still to come. So there is a special rest still waiting for the people of God. For all who have entered into God’s rest have rested from their labors, just as God did after creating the world. So
let us do our best to enter that rest. But if we disobey God, as the people of Israel did, we will fall. (
Hebrews 4:1-11 NLT)
United in our hope for the soon return of Jesus, Jorge
