The Sabbath is a Sacred Rehearsal

The Master and Chester were sitting in the library. They had just gotten back from meditating by the contemplation pond. It was late but Chester wanted to talk. He asked the Master, "Do you go to a church or a temple on Saturdays?"

The Master shook his head no.

Chester challenged. "Why not, I thought you believed in keeping the Sabbath."

The Master simply asked, "Why do you think I don't? I rest and meditate every seven days in my dwelling as a Sabbath to the Eternal God. I might go to a Mosque on Fridays or go to a Church on Sundays but I keep the Sabbath as God commanded." The Master got an old, black, worn New Kings James Version bible. He handed it to Chester and said. "Read Exodus 20 verses 8 through 11."

Chester flipped to Exodus 20 and started reading at verse 8, "[8] Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. [9] Six days you shall labor and do all your work, [10] but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. [11] For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it."

The Master asked, "Does it say anything about going to a temple?"

Chester shook his head no.

"Now read to me Leviticus 23 verse 3." The Master pointed at the Bible.

Chester flipped over a couple of chapters and found the passage and read. "Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work on it; it is the Sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings."

Here maybe this will help, try The New International version and tell me what it says. While Chester was reading the Master had gotten another bible out. He handed it to Chester.

After Chester found Leviticus 23:3 he read, "There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the LORD." Chester looked up. It says here sacred assembly and the other said holy convocation, certainly that means going to a church or temple."

Master smiled and said, "One plainly says the Sabbath is to be kept in your dwelling and the other plainly says to keep it where you live. Perhaps my Strong's Concordance can make it clear. It is on the table over there." As Chester got up to get it the Master continued, "In Exodus 23 God mentions the Sabbath as a day of rest but God commands all males to appear before him on the Holy Days which are special Sabbaths. Seven of them. Those are commanded assemblies."

Chester sat down with the concordance. The Master told him. "Find the reference for convocation."

Chester said, "There are several verses but each one is referenced with a number 4744.

The Master explained, "That will help you find what the original Hebrew word was. Look back in the back for the number and read me the orginal word and what the Strong's Hebrew Dictionary gives as it English equivalents."

It took Chester awhile, the book was big and bulky. "Ah, it says, 'Miqra; something called out, the act, the persons or the place. Also a rehearsal, assembly, calling, convocation, reading.'"

The Master said. "Now do the same thing for the word dwelling."

Once again it took Chester a couple of minutes to handle the bulky book. "This time the word dwelling has the number 4186." Flipping to the Hebrew Dictionary he read what it said for 4186. "Mowshab or Moshab; A seat, a site, a session; by extension an abode (the time or place); by implication, population, assembly, dwell in, dwelling, dwelling place, wherein that dwelt in, inhabited place, seat, sitting, situation, sojourning."

The Master leaned forward in his chair, "Notice that the word convocation could have been translated as a rehearsal and the word dwelling could easily have been abode or dwelling place or even inhabitated place. In modern English we would say where you live or house or home, much like the way the New International Version rendered it. In modern English you could say it is a Rehearsal, A Sabbath unto God one has at Home. How would you render Leviticus 23:3 in Modern English?"

Chester thought for a moment and then replied, "There are six days when you can work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred rehearsal. You are not to do any work; it is a Sabbath to be kept for God in your home."

The Master smiled. "Very good, but I want you to remember the phrase 'dwell in'. I will refer to it later."

Chester smiled back, "Why do you consider the word rehearsal to be more accurate than convocation? A rehearsal for what?"

The Master replied, "Remember when I told you that each of the Holy Days detailed the special plan of God and how each day had a symbolic meaning? Apostle Paul explained it to his students in Colossians in a letter he wrote to them. He told them to let no one judge them in food or in drink, or regarding a Holy Day or a new moon or the sabbath. Paul said they are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ. The Sabbath and the Holy Days are Physical Rehearsals of Spiritual Realities that are coming."

Chester brightened up, "Three have already happened as rehearsed!"

The Master smiled at his reluctant student. "Yes, The Passover lamb was a rehearsal of Christ dying for mankind's sins. Unleavened bread was a rehearsal of his blood removing sin from us completely. The Feast of First Fruits, also called Pentecost, was a rehearsal of the gift of the Holy Spirit bringing the first fruits of Gods Plan of Sacred Harvest. Remember the four fall Holy Days? What rehearsals do they represent for our future?"

Chester looked up and tried to remember the night the Master taught him about the blended religion of Judaism and Christianity. The Master waited.

Chester squirmed a little, "Lets see. The Feast of Trumpets must be a rehearsal for the return of Christ and the First Resurrection, right?" The Master nodded. "And the Day of Atonement is a rehearsal of when Satan will be locked away for a thousand years, right?" The Master nodded again. Chester shook his head, "I can't remember the last two. Sorry."

The Master congratulated Chester, "Thats pretty good. The seven day Feast of Tabernacles is a rehearsal of the thousand year reign of peace with Christ as King."

Chester blurted, "Now I remember, the last day is a rehearsal of the Last Great Day. Anybody who wasn't in the First Resurrection or wasn't reincarnated during the reign of Christ are resurrected to their last and final physical life unto Judgement. At the end they either become like Christ or are thrown into the Lake of Fire! I remembered more than I thought!"

The Master continued. "Well the Sabbath is a weekly rehearsal whose substance is Christ. You can read of it in Hebrews 4 but it is vague. I have a much better text that explains it in detail."

The Master got up and went to a shelf and pulled down a book titled, "The Lost Books of the Bible." He turned to Chester and said, "Find the Epistle of Barnubus and read chapter 13. The letter was written by the traveling companion of the apostle Paul. He was a preaching Elder wise in spiritual knowledge."

Chester turned the book over and read the back cover. What are the lost books of the Bible? It says here they were texts and letters suppressed by early Church Fathers."

"There was an important historical event, back in the 4th century. It is called the Council of Laodicea. It changed history two significant ways. At this council they determined what would and would not be considered canon. They decided what would and would not be included in the Bible or read at Church."

Chester mused, "I always wondered when that happened. What was the date of all this?"

The Master simply stated. "364 A.D. But it gets interesting when you consider the second implication of what was published. They published 60 cannons of doctrine at this council."

Chester thumbed through the book. "So this is what they didn't want us to read?"

The Master explained further, "Let me give you some history. During the second and third centuries, Christians were in the habit of keeping both Saturday and Sunday. In fact Ethiopian Christians still do today. During the 2nd and 3rd centuries, Christians rested on the Sabbath and had communion or fellowship on Sundays. The Church fathers at the Council of Laodicea were not opposed to Sunday services but were opposed to Christians Judaizing the Sabbath. Which is what they called the habit of resting on the Sabbath"

Chester rubbed his jaw, "Is this why almost all Christians keep Sunday?"

The Master pointed to the Lost book of the Bible. "They had been keeping Sunday for over 200 years, what was changed was the practice of staying at home and resting on the Sabbath. I have a copy of all 60 Canons somewhere but I have the 29th memorized. 'Cannon XXIX CHRISTIANS must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honouring the Lord's Day; and, if they can, resting then as Christians. But if any shall be found to be judaizers, let them be anathema from Christ.' "

Chester snorted. "Why?"

Master got excited. "Satan had managed to deceive well intentioned men to ignore the most important rehearsal of all. The rehearsal of having God dwell in the hearts of men! The true meaning of the Sabbath! Remember the phrase dwell in? If you read The Epistle of Barnabus Chapter 13, you will see why in light of the 29th Canon they had to ban the text from the New Testament. There are sources today that quote the Epistle of Barnabus to justify going to Church on Sunday but they completely miss the fact the text explains why one shouldn't trust going to a building made of hands. That is not how to obey God and keep the Sabbath. Leviticus 23:3 plainly states one keeps the Sabbath as a rehearsal by resting in one's dwelling. The Church Fathers couldn't ban Sabbath keeping and then allow a text to become canon that admonishes Christians on the proper way to keep the Sabbath!"

Chester decided to read Barnabus 13. When he finished he looked up and concluded outloud. "The Sabbath is a rehearsal of when God will dwell in the temple of our hearts and we will be made holy."

The Master was waiting. "What do I do every Friday night and several times on Saturday?"

Chester blinked a couple of times and said. "You meditate, you read scripture and you pray. I have never seen you pray, but that is what you say you do with your door closed."

The Master shifted in his seat. "Prayer is how one talks to God. Meditation with a quiet, restful mind is how you listen to God. This is how you experience God, in your inner self. The Kingdom of God is within you. Remember I mentioned Exodus 23? I want you to read verse 12 to me."

Chester got the New Kings James Bible and tilted it to the light as he found 23:12 in Exodus. "Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female servant and the stranger may be refreshed."

The Master said. "How can you rest your animals if you are using them to get to a temple? Nevermind, the important word here is rest. Look up in Strongs Concordance the deeper meaning of the word rest. What are all of the English equivalents?"

Chester was getting better at handling the big book. He found rest and many scriptures containing rest. Chester made sure the cross reference number he found was for the word rest in Exodus 23:12. "It is reference number 7673. Here are the other all the words listed, "Shabath; means to repose, cease, celebrate, keep, suffer to be lacking, leave, put away, rest, rid, still, take away."

The Master smiled and said, "Doesn't that sound a lot like what we do when we meditate. I taught you to sit very still and cease your thoughts. If you can't still your thoughts then cease all thoughts not of God. Contemplate God. Pray to God in your mind. Seek and yearn for God. This how one uses the Sabbath to connect to the infinite Love we call God. Rest in the silence of your mind. This is how one communes with God on the Sabbath with a pure heart, in the temple of the heart. Quiet, still rest, with thoughts only on God until his fullness is within you as a celebration of the spirit!"

Chester was thinking, "In Leviticus 23:3 the word Moshab could have been translated as dwelling but also as seat or sitting. Is that like sitting and meditating?"

The Master pointed for emphasis, "Exactly, To sit and be still on his Sabbath is to allow God to dwell in your heart. Remember the path of Buddha requires one to renounce the world completely and dedicate yourself to daily meditation. But the Sabbath makes it possible to only have to renounce the world once a week. By meditating once a week on the Sabbath day, the day God's Holy presence is given to us, allows for our spiritual progress to be as if we meditated every day."

Chester, "I've noticed that other days when I meditate the sweetness and peace aren't as strong as it was tonight. I have to think about this, but it seems to make sense. So its no big deal the Christians go to Church on Sunday or the Muslims go to the Mosque on Fridays?"

The Master got up as if to go to bed. He yawned. "Goodnight Chester. They can meditate every Sabbath and not change their core religion. The Sabbath was never about what day you went to a temple, church or mosque, but when you rested in the Lord."

God (A Modern Perspective)

God's Sacred Name

Was Christ God in the Flesh?

God Talking To You

God's Creation and The Dance of Shiva

Buddha: Atheist or God?

Reincarnation: The Original Plan of God

Sabbath: The Amended Plan of God part 1

Resurrection: The Amended Plan of God part 2

The Sabbath is a Rehearsal

Sabbath and the Buddha

The Tao of Sabbath

Seven Sabbath Meditations

How to Meditate

Advanced Meditation

The Parable of the King's Diamonds

Chester's Oral tests

And God said...

Understanding God

The Aquarian Gospel of Christ

Jesus Christ

Is Krishna also Christ?

How to Meditate

The Epistle of Barnabus Chapter 13

Council of Laodicea

Holy Days: Spiritual Meaning

Sabbath: Amended Plan of God part 1

The Resurrection: The Amended plan of God part 2

Sabbath and the Buddha

The Tao of Sabbath

Sabbath Christians and Messianic Jews

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The Epistle of Barnabas Chapter 13

[1] Furthermore it is written concerning the sabbath, in the Ten Commandments, which God spake in the Mount Sinai to Moses, face to face; Sanctify the sabbath of the Lord with pure hands, and with a clean heart.

[2] And elsewhere he saith; If thy children shall keep my sabbaths, then will I put my mercy upon them.

[3] And even in the beginning of the creation he makes mention of the sabbath. And God made in six days the works of his hands; and he finished them on the seventh day, and he rested the seventh day, and sanctified it.

[4] Consider, my children, what that signifies, he finished them in six days. The meaning of it is this; that in six thousand years the Lord God will bring all things to an end.

[5] For with him one day is a thousand years; as himself testifieth, saying, Behold this day shall be as a thousand years. Therefore, children, in six days, that is, in six thousands years, shall all things be accomplished.

[6] And what is that he saith, And he rested the seventh day; he meaneth this; that when his Son shall come, and abolish the season of the Wicked One, and judge the ungodly; and shall change the sun and the moon, and the stars; then he shall gloriously rest in the seventh day.

[7] He adds lastly; Thou shalt sanctify it with clean hands and a pure heart. Wherefore we are greatly deceived if we imagine that any one can now sanctify that day which God has made holy, without having a heart pure in all things.

[8] Behold therefore he will then truly sanctify it with blessed rest, when we (having received the righteous promise, when iniquity shall be no more, all things being renewed by the Lord) shall be able to sanctify it, being ourselves first made holy.

[9] Lastly, he saith unto them; Your new moons and your sabbaths I cannot bear them. Consider what he means by it; the sabbaths, says he, which ye now keep are not acceptable unto me, but those which I have made; when resting from all things I shall begin the eight day, that is, the beginning of the other world.

[10] For which cause we observe the eighth day with gladness, in which Jesus rose from the dead; and having manifested himself to his disciples, ascended into heaven.

[11] It remains yet that I speak to you concerning the temple how these miserable men being deceived have put their trust in the house, and not in God himself who made them, as if it (the temple) was the habitation of God.

[12] For much after the same manner as the Gentiles, they consecrated him (God) in the temple.

[13] But learn therefore how the Lord speaketh, rendering the temple vain: Who has measured the heaven with a span, and the earth hand? Is it not I? Thus saith the Lord, Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What is the house that ye will build me? Or what is the place of my rest? Know therefore that all their hope is in vain.

[14] And again he speaketh after this manner: Behold they that destroy this temple, even they shall again build it up. And so it came to pass; for through their wars it is now destroyed by their enemies; and the servants of their enemies built it up.

[15] Futhermore it has been made manifest, how both the city and the temple, and the people of Israel should be given up. For the Scripture saith; And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the Lord will deliver up the sheep of his pasture, and their fold, and their tower into destruction. and it is come to pass, as the Lord hath spoken.

[16] Let us inquire therefore, whether there be any temple of God? Yes there is; and that there, where himself declares that he would both make and perfect it. For it is written; And it shall be that as soon as the week shall be completed, the temple of the Lord shall be gloriously built in the name of the Lord.

[17] I find therefore that there is a temple. But how shall it be built in the name of the Lord? I will show you.

[18] Before we believed in God, the habitation of our heart was corruptible, and feeble, as a temple truly built with hands.

[19] For it was a house full of devils, inasmuch as there was done in it whatsoever was contrary unto God. But it shall be built in the name of the Lord.

[20] Consider, how that the temple of the Lord shall be very gloriously built; and by what means that shall be, learn.

[21] Having received remission of our sins, and trusting in the name of the Lord, we become renewed, being again created as it were from the beginning. Wherefore God truly dwells in our house, that is, in us.

[22] But how does he dwell in us? The word of his faith, the calling of his promise, the wisdom of his righteous judgements, the commands of his doctrine; he himself prophesies within us, he himself dwelleth in us, and openeth to us who were in bondage of death the gate of our temple, that is, the mouth of wisdom, having given repentance unto us; and by this means has brought us to be an incorruptible temple.

[23] He therfore that desires to be saved looketh not unto the man, but unto him that dwelleth in him, and speaketh by him; being struck with wonder, foreasmuch as he never either heard him speaking such words out of his mouth, nor ever desired to hear them.

[24] This is that spiritual temple that is built unto the Lord.

Source: The Lost Books of the Bible and the Forgotten Books of Eden.
Published by World Bible Publishers, Inc 1926 pages 160 - 162

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