Sabbath

It's true that when God first instituted the Sabbath in Eden, He made no mention of going to church on that day; He just set it aside for a holy purpose, which He would expand upon at a later time. (See Genesis 2:1-3.) And in Exodus, He did indeed give us more details about the specifics of that holy day in the Ten Commandments. Still, the Ten Commandments give no instruction that we are to gather together for worship on that day. They just give guidelines on what it means to keep it holy. (See Exodus 20:8-11.)

But as we move forward in Scripture, we come across an enlightening verse in Leviticus: "Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. ...

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If we are not obliged to do what the law literally requires, then may we literally kill, steal, and commit adultery? This cannot be the meaning of Paul's frequent allusions to the letter and the spirit. The form and spirit of the law uphold each other. We cannot break the law literally without breaking it spiritually.

The religion of the Jews in the days of Christ and the apostles had become formal and selfish. They did their good works to be seen of men, not because they loved God and their neighbor. They condemned the open violator of the law, while they did worse than he did. They strictly kept up certain popular forms of obedience to the letter of the law, such as circumcision, ...

Read more of We should keep the spirit of the law but not the letter.