Sabbathkeeping, a Test of Loyalty

July 12 – 18, 2026

Key Text

“Moreover I also gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between them and Me, that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them.” Ezekiel 20:12

Study Help: The Desire of Ages, 281–289; The Great Controversy, 49–54

Introduction

“As a sign of His sanctifying power, the Sabbath is given to all who through Christ become a part of the Israel of God.” The Desire of Ages, 288

Sunday

1 LEARNING FROM CHRIST

1.a. What is the evidence that the Sabbath was not made only for the Jews? Genesis 2:1–3; Mark 2:27 How did Christ illustrate correct (or lawful) Sabbathkeeping? Matthew 12:1–13; Luke 13:10–17

Note: “The Jews had so perverted the law that they made it a yoke of bondage. Their meaningless requirements had become a byword among other nations. Especially was the Sabbath hedged in by all manner of senseless restrictions. It was not to them a delight, the holy of the Lord, and honorable. The scribes and Pharisees had made its observance an intolerable burden. A Jew was not allowed to kindle a fire nor even to light a candle on the Sabbath. As a consequence, the people were dependent upon the Gentiles for many services which their rules forbade them to do for themselves. They did not reflect that if these acts were sinful, those who employed others to perform them were as guilty as if they had done the work themselves. They thought that salvation was restricted to the Jews, and that the condition of all others, being already hopeless, could be made no worse.” The Desire of Ages, 204

1.b. Explain why the Jews had no valid proof to accuse Jesus of breaking the Sabbath. Luke 6:6–11; Matthew 26:59, 60; John 15:10; John 8:46

Note: “The Pharisees accused Christ of breaking the Sabbath because He had healed a man upon the Sabbath day; but His words made it evident that He had not violated the command of God. He declared that they were ignorant both of the Scriptures and the power of God, and reminded them that if they had known what this meaneth, ‘I will have mercy, and not sacrifice,’ they would not have condemned the guiltless. He carried their minds back to the law and to the testimony, to the words which He Himself had spoken when enshrouded in the pillar of cloud, and revealed to them the principles of the law of God. He showed them that to relieve the suffering of either man or beast on the Sabbath day was in harmony with the commandment of God.” The Signs of the Times, January 16, 1896

“Neither the Saviour nor His followers broke the law of the Sabbath. Christ was a living representative of the law. No violation of its holy precepts was found in His life. Looking upon a nation of witnesses who were seeking occasion to condemn Him, He could say unchallenged, ‘Which of you convicteth Me of sin?’ John 8:46, R.V.” The Desire of Ages, 287

Monday

2 LEARNING FROM CHRIST’S DISCIPLES

2.a. What was the practice of the disciples whom Christ had instructed by precept and example? Luke 23:54–56. What did He further exhort them to do? Matthew 24:20

Note: “Man has no right nor power to substitute the first day for the seventh. He may pretend to do this; ‘nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure’ (2 Timothy 2:19). The customs and teachings of men will not lessen the claims of the divine law. God has sanctified the seventh day. That specified portion of time, set apart by God Himself for religious worship, continues as sacred today as when first hallowed by our Creator.” The Review and Herald, May 16, 1882

“Christ gave His disciples a sign of the ruin to come on Jerusalem, and He told them how to escape: ‘When ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.’ This warning was given to be heeded forty years after, at the destruction of Jerusalem. The Christians obeyed the warning, and not a Christian perished in the fall of the city.” The Desire of Ages, 630

2.b. Quote more examples proving that the disciples continued keeping the Sabbath even after Christ’s resurrection. Acts 16:13; 17:2; 18:4, 11

Note: “In the first centuries, the true Sabbath had been kept by all Christians. They were jealous for the honor of God, and, believing that His law is immutable, they zealously guarded the sacredness of its precepts.” The Great Controversy, 52

Tuesday

3 A BREACH IN THE LAW OF GOD

3.a. During the third and fourth centuries of the Christian Era, what breach was made in the law of God? Daniel 7:25

Note: “In nearly every council, the Sabbath which God had instituted was pressed down a little lower, while the Sunday was correspondingly exalted. Thus, the pagan festival came finally to be honored as a divine institution, while the Bible Sabbath was pronounced a relic of Judaism.” The Great Controversy, 53

3.b. What work of repair is to be accomplished in these last days and by whom? Isaiah 58:12

Note: “The prophet here describes a people who, in a time of general departure from truth and righteousness, are seeking to restore the principles that are the foundation of the kingdom of God. …

“The breach made in the law at the time the Sabbath was changed by man, is to be repaired. God’s remnant people, standing before the world as reformers, are to show that the law of God is the foundation of all enduring reform and that the Sabbath of the fourth commandment is to stand as a memorial of creation, a constant reminder of the power of God.” Prophets and Kings, 677, 678

Wednesday

4 REPAIRERS OF THE BREACH

4.a. Discuss the deeper meaning of “not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words” on God’s holy day. Isaiah 58:13 (Compare Exodus 20:8–11 and 1 John 3:22.)

Note: “All who love God should do what they can to make the Sabbath a delight, holy and honorable. They cannot do this by seeking their own pleasure in sinful, forbidden amusements. Yet they can do much to exalt the Sabbath in their families and make it the most interesting day of the week. We should devote time to interesting our children.” Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 2, 584

“Far more sacredness is attached to the Sabbath than is given it by many professed Sabbathkeepers. The Lord has been greatly dishonored by those who have not kept the Sabbath according to the commandment, either in the letter or in the spirit. He calls for a reform in the observance of the Sabbath.” Ibid., Vol. 6, 353

“Every man has been placed on trial, as were Adam and Eve in Eden. As the tree of knowledge was placed in the midst of the garden of Eden, so the Sabbath command is placed in the midst of the decalogue. In regard to the fruit of the tree of knowledge, the restriction was made, ‘Ye shall not eat of it, … lest ye die’ [Genesis 3:3]. Of the Sabbath, God said, Ye shall not defile it, but keep it holy. … As the tree of knowledge was the test of Adam’s obedience, so the fourth command is the test that God has given to prove the loyalty of all His people.” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 1, 1106

4.b. What promises are assured to all restorers of the breach? Isaiah 58:14

Note: “ ‘If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; … then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord.’ Isaiah 58:13, 14. To all who receive the Sabbath as a sign of Christ’s creative and redeeming power, it will be a delight. Seeing Christ in it, they delight themselves in Him. The Sabbath points them to the works of creation as an evidence of His mighty power in redemption. While it calls to mind the lost peace of Eden, it tells of peace restored through the Saviour. And every object in nature repeats His invitation, ‘Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you Rest.’ Matthew 11:28.” The Desire of Ages, 289

Thursday

5 ENTERING INTO SPIRITUAL REST

5.a. Sabbathkeeping is an outward sign of what rest? Ezekiel 20:12; Matthew 11:28–30; Hebrews 4:3–6, 9–11

Note: “ ‘There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. … Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.’ Hebrews 4:9, 11. The rest here spoken of is the rest of grace, obtained by following the prescription, Labor diligently. Those who learn of Jesus His meekness and lowliness find rest in the experience of practicing His lessons. It is not in indolence, in selfish ease and pleasure-seeking, that rest is obtained. Those who are unwilling to give the Lord faithful, earnest, loving service will not find spiritual rest in this life or in the life to come. Only from earnest labor comes peace and joy in the Holy Spirit—happiness on earth and glory hereafter.” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 7, 928

5.b. What place will the Sabbath of the Lord occupy when the work of restoration is completed? Isaiah 66:23

Note: “When there shall be a ‘restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began’ (Acts 3:21), the creation Sabbath, the day on which Jesus lay at rest in Joseph’s tomb, will still be a day of rest and rejoicing. Heaven and earth will unite in praise, as ‘from one Sabbath to another’ (Isaiah 66:23) the nations of the saved shall bow in joyful worship to God and the Lamb.” The Desire of Ages, 769, 770

Friday

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

How did Christ exalt the seventh-day Sabbath when on earth?
When confronted by those who claim that the early disciples kept Sunday, what Scriptural evidence must we present to them?
How are we restoring the memorial of God’s creation today?
What is God’s promise to the repairers of the breach?
How can we truly appreciate the spiritual nature of the Sabbath?