The Sabbath

Memory Verse

“Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for people, not people for the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27 TNIV

Intro

Question: What is one of your favourite gifts you have received?

My Story: Share a personal story about receiving a great gift.

Bible Story | The gift of the Sabbath

In your own words, tell the story of creation (Genesis 1 & 2). Focus on the creation of Adam and Eve (rather than all the details of what was created on each day) and explain how one of the very first things that God did was give them a gift—the Sabbath.

Genesis 2:3 | What three things did God do on the Sabbath?

exploring the bible

Mark 2:27 | What might it mean that the seventh day is blessed?

Isaiah 40:28 | Does God get tired? Why might he have rested on the seventh day?

Exodus 3:1-6 | What made this “holy ground” holy? What might it mean for a day to be made holy?

Exodus 20:8-11 | What instructions did God give us about the Sabbath?

If God’s law is all about love, what does the Sabbath have to do with love?

Luke 4:16; Matthew 12:9-14 | What can we learn about the Sabbath from Jesus?

What you do on the Sabbath is more important than what you don’t do!

Fun Facts

The Bible teaches that the Sabbath is the seventh day of the week. But which day is that? One way to find out is by comparing Luke 23:52–24:3 with the Easter story. Jesus died on Good Friday (the sixth day), rested in the tomb on Saturday (the seventh day), and rose on Easter Sunday (the first day). So the seventh day is Saturday. But there’s a twist! In Bible times, people didn’t have clocks that could tell them exactly when midnight arrived, so starting a new day at midnight wouldn’t have made much sense. Instead, each day began at sunset. You can see an example of this in Mark 1:32, where people waited until after sunset to bring their sick to Jesus (they mistakenly thought Jesus wouldn’t want to heal on the Sabbath). So the Sabbath begins at sunset on Friday and ends at sunset on Saturday.

LIVING IT

Discuss: Why did God give us the Sabbath?

Discuss: Is there anything you find hard about keeping the Sabbath?

Decide: Is the Sabbath something that you want to live out in your life?