Introduction

Perhaps one of the biggest tests for teens is the keeping of the Sabbath, or using the Sabbath in the way that God intended. In this issue of Teen Bible Study Guide we will discuss the law of God regarding the fourth commandment.

Fourth Commandment

EXODUS 20:8 NKJ "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 manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates."

1. What type of labor did God intend for people to do for six days?

2. How did God create the Sabbath (Gen.2:1-3)?

3. What could be accomplished by a weekly rest?

4. Did God make this day different from the other six? If so, how?

Christ's Teaching

1. What did Jesus Christ mean by the following scripture?

MARK 2:27 NKJ And He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath."

2. List the ways the Sabbath could be considered a curse.

3. List the ways the Sabbath is a blessing.

Sabbath Lesson

EXODUS 31:15-17 NKJ "Work shall be done for six days, but the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. (16) 'Therefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. (17) 'It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.' "

1. Would God expect people to be put to death today for not keeping the Sabbath?

2. What is a perpetual covenant?

3. Are the children of Israel a viable group of people today? Is there a spiritual type of the Children of Israel? Read and comment on the following scriptures; Galatians 3:29, 6:16 and Ephesians 2:12.

4. Is the Sabbath a "sign"? If so, how?

Christ and the Sabbath

1. Did Christ keep the Sabbath? Read Luke 4:16.

LUKE 4:16 NKJ "So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read."

2. Study the story of Christ healing a woman on the Sabbath and discuss the lesson he was teaching.

LUKE 13:10-17 NKJ "Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. (11) And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up. (12) But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity. (13) And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. (14) But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day. (15) The Lord then answered him and said, Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or his donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? (16) So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound--think of it--for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath? (17) And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him."

3. What lesson did Christ make with this example?

4. Is doing good on the Sabbath lawful?

5. Give some examples of what might be appropriate on the Sabbath.

6. Give some examples of what might be inappropriate on the Sabbath.

Learning to Prepare for The Sabbath

Read Exodus 16 Bread from Heaven...

EXODUS 16:4-5 NKJ "Then the Lord said to Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not. (5) And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily."

1. Was it possible to determine which day was the Sabbath through this miracle? How?

2. What happened if they tried to gather the bread (Manna) on the Sabbath?

3. What if they tried to keep the bread over on other days of the week?

4. How would someone prepare for the Sabbath today?

List some things to do in anticipation of the Sabbath. (Use separate paper).

Summary

1. What does God teach about the Sabbath for His people today?

2. What are the widely held attitudes/beliefs in society regarding keeping the seventh day of the week holy?

3. What are your beliefs concerning how you should observe the Sabbath?