Waswe, Iu Mas Keepim Sabbath Evri Week?
Waswe, Iu Mas Keepim Sabbath Evri Week?
LONG olketa year klosap long 1990, samfala smol grup bilong Methodist Church duim wanfala samting long Suva, kapitol bilong Fiji. Olketa man, woman, and olketa pikinini wea werem kaleko for go long church blokem 70-fala road. Olketa stopem olketa trak wea go long road and tu olketa domestic and international flight. Why nao olketa duim datwan? Olketa laekem evriwan long Fiji for keepim Sabbath.
Long Israel distaem, evri hae story building wea olketa wakem start kam long 2001 mas garem wanfala elevator wea stop seleva long evri floor long datfala building. Why nao olsem? Mekem evri Jew wea keepim Sabbath, start long Friday evening go kasem Saturday evening, no need for duim “waka” for pressim olketa button long elevator.
Long kingdom bilong Tonga wea stap long South Pacific, hem tambu for eniwan duim eni waka long Sunday. No eni plane mas land, and ship tu mas no kam for anchor long wharf. Eni kontrak wea olketa saenem long datfala day, gavman bae no acceptim. Nomata wanem religion nao pipol garem long Tonga, gavman putim wanfala law wea mekem evriwan keepim Sunday olsem “day wea holy.” Why nao olsem? For mekem evriwan long kantri for keepim Sabbath.
Olsem olketa story antap showimaot, staka pipol tingse God laekem olketa for mas keepim Sabbath evri week. Samfala talem wei for keepim Sabbath hem barava important bikos olketa bilivim datwan nao bae mekem olketa for sev. Olketa narawan tingim, wei for keepim Sabbath olsem hem nao barava important komand from God. Wanem nao Sabbath? And waswe, Bible talem olketa Christian for mas keepim Sabbath long wanfala day evri week?
Wanem Nao Sabbath?
Datfala English word “Sabbath” hem kam from wanfala Hebrew word wea minim “rest, stop for duim samting, no duim nao.” Genesis storyim long mek-seven day, Jehovah God hem rest from waka wea hem duim for creatim olketa samting. Nomata olsem, start long taem bilong Moses nomoa, God talem pipol bilong hem for keepim wanfala day or Sabbath for rest. (Genesis 2:2) Bihaen olketa Israelite lusim Egypt long 1513 B.C.E., Jehovah duim mirakol taem hem givim manna for olketa long wilderness. Taem olketa go tekem disfala manna, God talem olketa olsem: ‘Sixfala day iufala savve pikimap, bat long mek-seven day hem wanfala Sabbath. Long datfala day bae iufala no faendem eni manna.’ (Exodus 16:26) Bible talem, “pipol start for keepim sabbath long mek-seven day,” start taem sun go daon long Friday evening go kasem taem sun go daon long Saturday evening.—Exodus 16:30.
No longtaem bihaen Jehovah talem olketa toktok antap, hem givim wanfala law abaotem wei for keepim Sabbath wea hem wanfala long ten komandment wea hem givim long Moses. (Exodus 19:1) Mek-foa bilong datfala ten komandment hem sei: ‘Iufala mas gohed keepim Sabbath and mekem hem holy. Iufala garem sixfala day for duim waka bilong iufala. Bat long mek-seven day hem wanfala Sabbath for God bilong iufala Jehovah.’ (Exodus 20:8-10) Long datfala taem, wei for keepim Sabbath hem kamap samting wea olketa Israelite duim evritaem long laef bilong olketa.—Deuteronomy 5:12.
Waswe, Jesus Keepim Sabbath Evri Week?
Ia, Jesus hem keepim Sabbath. Bible story olsem abaotem hem: ‘Long barava taem, God sendem kam Son bilong hem, wea born long wanfala woman and wea hem stap anda long law.’ (Galatians 4:4) Jesus stap anda long Law bikos hem wanfala Israelite, and wei for keepim Sabbath hem insaed datfala law. Law covenant hem no stap moa bihaen Jesus hem dae. (Colossians 2:13, 14) Taem iumi savve long olketa taem wea olketa samting hia happen, datwan bae helpem iumi for minim tingting bilong God abaotem wei for keepim Sabbath.—Lukim chart long page 15.
Hem tru, Jesus sei: “No tingse mi kam for finisim datfala Law or teaching bilong olketa Profet. Mi no kam for finisim olketa samting hia, bat for mekem teaching bilong olketa kam tru.” (Matthew 5:17) Bat wanem nao datfala toktok “kam tru” hem minim? Tingim diswan, taem wanfala man wakem wanfala building and hem finisim for fitim wanem boss laekem, datwan showimaot datfala kontrak wea hem saenem hem kam tru, and hem free nao from datfala kontrak. Long sem wei tu, Jesus mekem kam tru datfala Law taem hem barava followim long perfect wei. Taem datfala Law wea hem nao datfala “kontrak” hem kam tru, pipol bilong God free nao from datfala law.
Waswe, Olketa Christian Mas Keepim Sabbath?
From Christ mekem datfala Law kam tru, waswe, olketa Christian mas keepim Sabbath evri week? Aposol Paul ansa olsem: ‘No letem eni man judgem iufala abaotem kaikai and for drink or long eni spesol day or for keepim niu moon or sabbath; from evri samting hia hem shadow long olketa samting wea bae kamap, bat tru samting hem long Christ.’—Colossians 2:16, 17.
Samting wea Bible talem showimaot bigfala change hem kamap abaotem samting wea God laekem pipol bilong hem for duim. Why nao datfala change kamap? Bikos olketa Christian stap anda long wanfala niu law, wea hem nao “law bilong Christ.” (Galatians 6:2) Datfala Law covenant wea God givim long Moses for olketa Israelite hem finis taem Jesus hem dae. (Romans 10:4; Ephesians 2:15) Waswe, datfala law for keepim Sabbath hem finis tu? Ia, hem finis. Bihaen Paul talem datfala toktok “iumi free from Law,” hem gohed for storyim moa wanfala law insaed datfala Ten Komandment. (Romans 7:6, 7) So datfala Ten Komandment wea Law for keepim Sabbath hem insaed, datwan nao hem finis. Dastawe, God no askem olketa wea worshipim hem distaem for keepim Sabbath evri week.
Iumi bae lukim wanfala tokpiksa for minim why worship bilong olketa long Israel hem change for Christian wei for worship. Wanfala kantri maet changem olketa law bilong hem. Taem olketa niu law long wanfala kantri hem set finis, gavman no askem moa pipol for followim datfala old law. Nomata samfala niu law hem semsem olsem old wan, samfala long olketa niu law hia bae hem difren tu. Hem gud for man studyim gud datfala niu law mekem hem luksavve long olketa niu law hia. And tu, man wea citizen long datfala kantri wea barava followim law, bae laek for savve long wanem taem nao datfala niu law hem start.
Long sem wei tu, Jehovah God givim winim 600 law for olketa Israelite, wea 10-fala main law hem insaed. Olketa law hia hem abaotem olketa samting wea stret and no stret, olketa sakrifaes, wei for stap klin, and for keepim Sabbath. Bat Jesus sei, olketa anointed follower bilong hem nao bae kamap wanfala niu “nation.” (Matthew 21:43) Start long 33 C.E. kam kasem distaem, disfala niu nation garem wanfala “niu law,” wea kam from tufala main law, for lovem God and for lovem neiba. (Matthew 22:36-40) Nomata “law bilong Christ” hem garem olketa instruction wea semsem witim olketa Law wea God givim for olketa Israelite, iumi no sapraes hao samfala law barava difren and samfala iumi no needim nao. Datfala law for keepim Sabbath evri week, hem wanfala long olketa wea iumi no followim distaem.
Waswe, God Changem Tingting Bilong Hem?
From Law bilong Moses hem change for law bilong Christ, waswe, diswan showimaot God hem changem tingting bilong hem? Nomoa. Long sem wei olsem wanfala mami or dadi bae changem samfala rul for fitim pikinini, Jehovah tu changem olketa law, wea fitim pipol bilong hem for obeyim. Aposol Paul storyim diswan olsem: ‘Bifor Christian faith hem kam, iumi evriwan slave long sin and law hem stap for protectim iumi, and iumi gohed for weitim God for showimaot datfala Christian faith. So Law nao leadim iumi go kasem taem Christ hem kam, mekem iumi kamap raeteous from datfala faith. Bat taem Christian faith hem kam, iumi no needim law nao for leadim iumi.’—Galatians 3:23-25.
Hao nao samting wea Paul storyim hem fitim Sabbath? Tingim disfala tokpiksa: Taem wanfala student hem go skul, maet hem mas lanem wanfala subject, olsem carpenter, long sem day evri week. Bat taem hem start for waka maet hem mas iusim savve wea hem lanem, no long wanday evri week nomoa, bat long evri day long week. Dastawe, for followim Law, olketa Israelite mas keepim wanfala day evri week for rest and worship. So olketa Christian mas worshipim God, no long wanfala day nomoa bat evriday.
Waswe, diswan minim hem no stret for markem wanfala day evri week for rest and worship? Nomoa. Bible talem iumi wanwan nao for disaed, taem hem sei: “Wanfala man hem tingim wanfala day olsem hem spesol winim olketa nara day. Nara man hem tingim evriday hem semsem nomoa. Man seleva mas barava sure long samting wea hem disaedem.” (Romans 14:5) Nomata samfala maet ting for keepim wanfala day holy winim olketa nara day, Bible talem, God hem no askem olketa Christian for keepim Sabbath evri week.
[Piksa long page 12]
“Sixfala day iufala savve pikimap, bat long mek seven day hem wanfala Sabbath. Long datfala day bae iufala no faendem eni manna.”—EXODUS 16:26
[Piksa long page 14]
‘So Law nao leadim iumi go kasem taem Christ hem kam, mekem iumi kamap raeteous from datfala faith. Bat taem Christian faith hem kam, iumi no needim law nao for leadim iumi.’—GALATIANS 3:24, 25
[Piksa long page 13]
Keepim Sabbath Evri Week, Long Sem Day Evriwea
Olketa wea mas keepim Sabbath evri week long sem day evriwea, faendem hem hard bikos long samfala kantri hem no sem day witim olketa nara kantri. Long map hem garem wanfala line wea stap midolwan long Pacific Ocean. Olketa kantri wea stap long west saed long datfala line olketa wanday firstaem long olketa kantri wea stap long east saed long datfala line.
Diswan hem tru, bikos taem hem Sunday long Fiji and Tonga, bae hem Saturday long Samoa and Niue. Fiji hem stap samting olsem 1,145 kilometer from Samoa. So sapos olketa long Fiji keepim Sabbath long Saturday, olketa long sem religion long Samoa bae gohed waka nomoa bikos hem Friday yet long Samoa.
Olketa Seventh-Day Adventist long Tonga keepim Sabbath long Sunday, olketa savve duim olsem mekem olketa keepim datfala Sabbath long semtaem olsem olketa long Samoa, wea stap samting olsem 850 kilometer from olketa. Bat long semtaem, olketa Seventh-Day Adventist long Fiji wea no stap farawe from Tonga olketa no rest, bikos hem Sunday long Fiji and olketa keepim finis Sabbath long Saturday!
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[Piksa long page 15]
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Olketa Tru Samting for Tingim Abaotem Sabbath:
Nomata sapos wanfala verse long Bible hem storyim wei for keepim Sabbath evri week, firstaem, iumi mas savve gud wanem taem nao God talem olketa toktok long datfala verse.
4026 B.C.E. BIFOR TAEM BILONG MOSES
TAEM WEA GOD WAKEM ADAM God givim datfala law abaotem Sabbath long
taem bilong Moses and olketa Israelite,
bat no bifor datfala taem.
—Deuteronomy 5:1-3, 12-14.
1513 B.C.E. TAEM WEA GOD GIVIM LAW FOR OLKETA ISRAELITE
LAW WEA GOD GIVIM LONG OLKETA ISRAELITE God no givim datfala law abaotem Sabbath long
olketa nara nation.(Psalm 147:19, 20) Datfala
law hem olsem wanfala “saen” midolwan long
Jehovah and olketa Israelite.
Datfala wei for keepim Sabbath evri week,
hem wanfala nomoa long olketa nara Sabbath
wea God talem olketa Israelite for keepim.
—Leviticus 16:29-31; 23:4-8; 25:4, 11;
33 C.E. LAW BILONG CHRIST
TAEM LAW WEA GOD GIVIM FOR OLKETA ISRAELITE HEM FINIS Long 49 C.E., taem olketa aposol and
olketa elder long Jerusalem disaedem
wanem God laekem olketa Christian for
duim, olketa no storyim eni samting
abaotem wei for keepim Sabbath evri
week.—Acts 15:28, 29.
Aposol Paul hem wari abaotem olketa Christian wea mekhae
tumas long wei for keepim olketa spesol day.
2010 C.E.
[Piksa long page 11]
Olketa newspaper wea storyim samfala grup bilong Methodist Church long Fiji wea blokem road for trae mekem olketa long Fiji for mas keepim Sabbath
[Picture Credit Line on page 11]
Courtesy of the Fiji Times
