If this meant literally observing all the laws of Moses, versus fulfilling their intent as per Rm. 8:4 (while the specific day of Matthew 24:20 applies to Israel where and when the AOD appears), then as said, Paul etc. and the NT church would be invalidated, and the gymnastics you must engage in attempting to justify not literally keeping observing the laws yourself and trying to negate the texts that refute you are an argument against the cultic devotion of your sect.
To be consistent, those who teach we must keep the 7th day Sabbath also must literally require keeping another pre-Mosaic everlasting covenant, that of circumcision, (Gn. 17:13) of which Scripture expressly states, “neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.” (Gal. 6:15) And if they will invoke the law of Moses as their authority to keep ceremonial law, then they have a practical dilemma as well, as God has taken away the means by which they can observe them all the other for ever type statues2 (without the Temple there can be no Levitical priesthood, or “patented” incense, etc.). Rather, the Lord has commanded us to be obey Him under the New covenant, which we are to able minsters of, “not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” (Col. 3:6)
EVERLASTING, FOREVER, PERPETUAL COMMANDS | |
Below is a list of everlasting, forever, perpetual (synonymous terms) covenants (binding agreements) or perpetual, forever type statutes and ordinances (laws). Note: While it is possible that “for ever” (#5769; also often translated as “everlasting” or “perpetual”) can mean less than eternal (Dt. 15:17) , that is rarely the case, but as in “Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever:”or “The righteousness of Thy testimonies is everlasting: give me understanding, and I shall live” (Ps. 119:144 – a good prayer), it usually denotes eternity! | |
1 | Gn. 9:16; Rainbow in clouds a sign of everlasting covenant |
2 | Gn. 17:2-13; Circumcision an everlasting covenant. |
3 | .Ex.31:14-17; 7th day Sabbath a sign for a perpetual covenant throughout all Israel's generations. |
4 | Lv.24:5-8; Offering of shewbread-everlasting covenant-perpetual statute. |
5 | Num.18:19; Heave offering: a statute forever-covenant of salt forever. |
6 | .Num.25:12,13; Righteous Phineas given a covenant of peace..a covenant of everlasting priesthood. |
7 | |
8 | Ex.12:17; Feast of unleavened bread an ordinance forever. |
9 | Ex.27:20,21; Lv.24:3; light burning in Tabernacle: a statute forever. |
10 | Ex. 28:43; Nakedness of priests to be covered by a statute forever. |
11 | Ex.29:9; 40:15; Holy garments for the Aaronic Priesthood for a perpetual statute. |
12 | Ex.29:28; Lv.10:15; Num.18:8,11,18; Heave offering eaten by a statute forever |
13 | Ex.29:42; Animal sacrifices to be offered continually throughout all Israel's generations |
14 | Ex.30:8; Incense to be burned in Tab. perpetually throughout all generations. |
15 | Ex.30:10: Atonement on altar throughout all your generations. |
16 | Ex.30:21: Ceremonial washing by a statute forever. |
17 | Ex.30:31: Anointing with Holy Oil unto YHWH for sons of Aaron throughout all their generations. |
18 | Lv.3:17: Eating of fat + blood prohibited a perpetual statute. |
19 | Lv.6:13: Fire ever to be burning on the altar, to never go out. |
20 | Lv.6:18-20: Law of the meat offering: a statute forever. |
21 | Lv.6:22: Meat offering of priests: a statute forever. |
22 | Lv,7:34-36: Peace offerings a statute forever. |
23 | Lv.10:9: Drinking of wine, strong drink forbidden to priests going into Tab.: statute forever. |
24 | Lv.16:29-34: Day of atonement a everlasting statute, a statute forever. |
25 | Lv.17:7: Bringing in of sacrifices into Tab., not worshipping devils, a statute forever. |
26 | Lv23:14: Offering of first fruits unto YHWH a statute forever. |
27 | Lv.23:21: Feast of Pentecost: a statute forever. |
28 | Lv.23:41: Feast of Tabernacles: a statute forever. |
29 | Lv.25:34: Law of land reserved for Levites: a perpetual possession. |
30 | Num.10:8: Feast of Trumpets: an ordinance forever. |
31 | Num.10:15: One law for both Israelites and for the stranger in the land: an ordinance 4ever. |
32 | Num.18:23; Dt.18:5: Service of the Tab. reserved for Levites by a statute forever. |
33 | Num19:10: Law of washing garments after slaying red heifer: a statute forever. |
34 | Num.19:21:Water of separation a perpetual statute. |
35 | Dt.7:9 YHWH keeps covenant+mercy with them that love Him and keep His commandments, as revealed in His rightly divided Word. |
, under the New Covenant instituted in Christ's precious sinless shed blood, (Lk. 22:20; cf. Heb. 9:16) the Lord Jesus, having come in the flesh and risen to Heaven, we are to "walk by faith, and not by sight" (1Cor. 5:7), and sight is what the ceremonial elements provided. And thus it is distinctly stated that the prophesied New Covenant was "Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord." (Hebrews 8:9) The prophesied destruction of the previous temple being allowed to take place by the LORD in approx. 70 AD., that event terminated the sacerdotal priesthood, with it's Levitical genealogical records etc., thereby making it literally impossible to keep the whole Law as it was literally intended. This destruction puts an exclamation point as it were after such passages in Hebrews as, “In that he saith, A new covenant, He hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.” “But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us” “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: " (Heb. 8:13; 9:11, 12; 10:4,5).
As the Temple was destroyed and replaced by the “holy temple in the Lord” of believers, so also the Old Covenant was replaced with the New. Therefore in no place is the N.T. church called to perpetuate the Old Testament shadows among the hundreds of commands given to the church of new creations, but rather we are expressly warned about those who would constrain us to keep such ordinances that Christ fulfilled. (2Cor. 3, Col. 2:14-17; Galatians 3-6; Phil. 3:1-3; etc.) This deletion of such ordinances includes the special observance of the 7th day Sabbath2 as nowhere is the NT church commanded to keep this, though the other 9 of the 10 commandments are reiterated under the New Covenant. (1Cor. 8:5,6; Rv. 22:9: 1Jn. 5:21; 1Cor. 6:9; 10:7,14; Eph. 5:5: 1Tim. 6:1: Eph. 6:2-3: Rom. 13:9; Gal. 5:19-21; James 2:10-12: Rom. 13:9; 1 Cor. 6:9; 10:8; Eph. 5:5; Gal. 5:19-21; James 3:10-12: Rom. 13:9; Eph. 4:28: Rom. 13:9; Col. 3:9; Eph. 4:25: Rom. 7:7; 13:9; Eph. 5:3, 5. More, by the grace of God.. ----------------------
THE NINE "MORAL" COMMANDS OF THE 10 COMMANDMENTS ARE REITERATED in the New Testament:
1). To worship the Lord God only (1st commandment): no less than 50 times
2). Idolatry (2nd commandment): condemned 12 times
3). Profanity (3rd commandment): condemned 4 times
4). Honoring parents (5th commandment) is taught 6 times
5). Murder (6th commandment) condemned 6 times
6). Adultery (7th commandment) condemned 12 times
7). Theft (8th commandment) condemned 4 times
8). False Witness (9th commandment) condemned 4 times
9). Covetousness (10th commandment) condemned 9 times
* see references here *Why is it that the duty to keep the Seventh day as Sabbath is not mentioned ONCE in the New Testament?
WHEN THE NEW TESTAMENT LISTS SINS, SABBATH BREAKING IS CONSPICUOUSLY ABSENT:
In Mark 7:21-22 13 sins are listed. Jesus did not mention breaking the Sabbath.
In Romans 1:29-32 20 sins are listed and not one of them is Sabbath breaking.
In Galatians 5:19-21 a list of 15 sins are given,
In 2 Timothy 3:1-4 there's a list of 18 sins, but not once is Sabbath breaking mentioned!
WHY IS IT THAT NOWHERE IN THE NEW TESTAMENT IS IT TAUGHT THAT THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT MUST BE OBSERVED?
-Why is it that nowhere in the New Testament is failure to keep the Sabbath day condemned as sin?
-Why is the fourth commandment itself not repeated even ONCE in the New Testament?
-If the Sabbath keeping is so important for a disciple of Christ, why was it not mentioned in His sermon on the Mount or in ANY of His teachings?
-Why didn't Jesus command Sabbath keeping?
-Why didn't any of the Apostles command Sabbath keeping?
-Why didn't the Jerusalem counsel command Sabbath keeping or condemn Sabbath breaking? (Acts 15)
Some answer that the Jews already knew about the Sabbath so it was taken for granted that they would continue to keep it, but then why were the other nine commandments reiterated? Would they not be taken for granted as well? It would also seem that with so many Gentiles coming into the Church, that if keeping the Sabbath was so important there would be instruction in the New Testament Epistles somewhere concerning it. There are instructions for them concerning morality, ethics, worship, Church order and family lifestyle. Why would something as important as Sabbath keeping be ignored? Circumcision, which predates the Law and the Sabbath commandment was an issue in the New Testament Church and is addressed repeatedly in the New Testament Epistles and by the Jerusalem Counsel.
Sabbath keepers argue that it is the example of Jesus that gives us the reason for keeping the Sabbath. "He kept the Sabbath, so I must keep the Sabbath. Jesus is my example," they say. Well this kind of reasoning is flawed because it only chooses Jesus' Sabbath keeping and rejects the rest of His Jewish lifestyle. Jesus also kept Kosher laws. He kept the Passover, Sukkot, Hanukkah, and worshipped in the temple.
Posts 61 and 63 list a lot of “stuff” and other articles, enough for me to comment on for a long time. I read through all of it. I didn’t see any discussion on Matthew 24:20 (maybe I just missed it...could you point it out?).
WHY?