Participants: David Down
Series Code: DUTP
Program Code: DUTP000012
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00:01 We're at the traditional Mount of Blessing.
00:03 It's probably not the correct site. But there is a beautiful 00:06 view of the lake of Galilee and also the ruins of the town of 00:10 Capernaum on the sea shore. Capernaum was called Jesus' 00:13 own city because he spent so much time there and performed 00:17 so many miracles there. He healed Peter's mother-in-law 00:21 and the nobleman's son. He cleansed the leper and restored 00:24 the paralytic. We mustn't forget to mention that he raised Jairus 00:28 daughter from the dead there, also. 01:02 We're in Capernaum, which is a very important city as far as 01:06 the New Testament records are concerned; because here, 01:09 Jesus Christ made his headquarters, spent a lot of 01:11 his time, and performed many miracles here. 01:14 In particular, the biblical record refers to him being in 01:18 the synagogue, and casting out a demon here, and preaching 01:22 in the synagogue at Capernaum. And this is the reconstruction 01:27 of the synagogue. This pillar has a Greek inscription on it, 01:32 which says, Herod and his son, Justos, and their children 01:38 erected this pillar. And so they wanted a little credit, 01:41 you see. The pillar over here, it has a Latin inscription. 01:46 Which is a much later date and it simply refers to the man 01:49 who reconstructed the synagogue here. On the western side 01:55 of the synagogue, there is a prayer hall, a long prayer hall. 01:59 You can see that from the seats that are along here. This is 02:01 where the men used to sit while the prayers were being recited. 02:05 And so this was a prayer hall along on this side. 02:09 And over here on the eastern side, there was a courtyard. 02:15 And this is where people met before or after the service, 02:19 and had a little chat to each other. And so this was over on 02:22 the eastern side. Now here is some of the original paving 02:26 stones. And these are very important; because 02:30 The archeologists lifted some of these stones and looked 02:34 underneath them. Underneath is a very solid layer of thick 02:38 plaster. Its 10 centimeters thick. Underneath the plaster 02:42 they found - Guess what? 30,000 coins. 02:46 Now, that's very important because from these coins, 02:49 they are able to determine that actually, the coins were of the 02:53 3rd and 4th century, A.D. That means that these paving 02:57 stones have to be later than that. So therefore, any question 03:00 of this being the exact synagogue which Jesus preached 03:03 in is just not on. It means that this particular part of the 03:06 synagogue, called the Kwat- synagogue was of a later period. 03:10 3rd or 4th century A.D. You'll notice on this western 03:14 side of the synagogue, there are a lot of black stones; 03:17 because the synagogue itself is made of white lime stones. 03:20 Some of these blocks are 3 or 4 tons each. And they come from 03:23 miles away. And that's why it's called the White Synagogue. 03:26 But down beneath the White Synagogue are these black 03:29 vassal stones. See all around here is volcanic, black stone. 03:34 And you will notice that these black stones go in under the 03:38 synagogue. Now the important point about this is that 03:41 these stones are obviously of earlier vintage. 03:44 And that has led some people to the conclusion that although 03:47 the White Synagogue was in a later period, it is built on the 03:50 site of an earlier synagogue, which could go back to the 03:53 first century A.D., which would identify this, the synagogue 03:56 that was used during the time of Jesus. Behind the synagogue 04:01 are some sticks. It is thought that these sticks mounted up 04:05 to an upper story. And if that is so, well, that is probably 04:11 where the women went. You, know men and women were always 04:13 separated. So the men went downstairs, in the main body of 04:16 the synagogue, and the women would go to the upper floor 04:19 to participate in the worship. Just to the south of the 04:26 synagogue. In other words between the synagogue 04:29 and the lake, there are some houses or rooms that were here. 04:33 You see the ruins of them. They were made of black vassal stone 04:37 and beyond these, there is a very interesting building. 04:41 Unfortunately it has just been covered up with some plywood 04:45 or something, so we can't see it. Although, we have a photo 04:48 of it. And this was once a church. Now this church is a 04:53 later Christian period, and it is called, Peter's house. 04:58 Because some graffiti were found on the wall with Peter's name 05:02 on it. That, of course, is a much later period. 05:05 Earlier there is some graffiti with the name of Jesus on it. 05:08 Certainly, this house goes back to an earlier time. 05:11 And there is evidence that there was some sort of meetings 05:14 going on here in the first century A.D.; but whether the 05:17 meetings were of a Christian nature, or whether they were 05:20 Jewish people meeting there, we don't know. 05:22 But anyway, this house is called Peter's house. 05:25 And it goes right back to an earlier time. In fact, actually, 05:27 the foundations of the house go go back to the prechristian era. 05:31 Well, Capernaum is an interesting place, isn't it? 05:34 And it was the scene of many of Jesus' miracles, one of which, 05:38 of course, was healing the centurion's servant. 05:42 And according to the record, the centurion had built a 05:45 synagogue for the Jews in Capernaum. 05:48 One of the interesting features of the miracles of Jesus, 05:53 is that so many of them, have you noticed, were performed 05:56 on the Sabbath Day? So what does this mean? Does it mean that 06:02 Jesus had abolished the Sabbath, didn't keep it any longer? 06:06 No, it doesn't mean that at all. Notice for instance, the miracle 06:10 where he healed a man with an hand. It says, Behold there was 06:17 a man with a withered hand. This is in Matthew 12. 06:20 And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on 06:24 the Sabbath? that they might accuse him. And he said to them, 06:28 What man is there among you, who has one sheep? 06:32 And if it is fallen into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not lay 06:35 hold on it and lift it out? Of how much more value, 06:39 then, is a man than a sheep? Therefore, it is lawful to do 06:45 good on the Sabbath. You see these fellows wouldn't mind 06:48 pulling a sheep out of pit to save their pockets; but they 06:51 weren't willing for Jesus to heal a man on the Sabbath Day. 06:54 So, what Jesus was saying, is that it is lawful to do well 06:59 on the Sabbath Day. Now that means that farmers have to 07:03 feed their cattle, and other people have to do their cooking. 07:09 Nurses have to do their nursing work on the Sabbath. 07:13 There are emergency operations have to be performed. There are 07:16 certain things that have to be performed on the Sabbath day. 07:21 Jesus is saying, It is lawful to do well on the Sabbath. But 07:24 by saying that, he's not abolishing the Sabbath. 07:26 On the contrary, it is quite a apparent that he intended 07:30 all of the 10 commandments to be kept, because, a rich young 07:35 ruler came to him on one occasion and asked him, What 07:37 he had to do to eternal life, and he said, in Matthew 19: 17, 07:43 Why do you call me good? No one is good but one, that is God. 07:46 But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments. 07:50 And the young man said to him, Well, which ones? Now Jesus 07:53 didn't quote the whole ten. But he quoted enough of them 07:56 to show that he was quoting from the 10 commandments. 07:59 He said, You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. 08:02 You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness. 08:05 So these are from the ten commandments. 08:07 It is quite apparent that Jesus was teaching this young man 08:09 You ought to keep the ten commandments. And that of course 08:12 includes the Sabbath Day. But the interesting question is, 08:15 Which is the Sabbath Day? 08:18 This is an otherwise busy street in Jerusalem on a Saturday 08:24 morning. As you can see, it is barricaded as are many of the 08:28 other streets all over Israel, shop are shut. Busses don't run 08:32 and offices are closed. The 4th commandment says the 7th day 08:37 is the Sabbath of the Lord our God. And Saturday is the 7th day 08:41 Jews all over the world have celebrated the 7th day Sabbath 08:45 for thousands of years. And wherever there is a synagogue, 08:48 you'll find them worshiping on this day. 08:50 Well, it is not only the Jewish religion that recognizes 08:57 Saturday as the 7th day of the week. 08:59 Actually, the Christian religion also recognizes Saturday 09:03 as the 7th day. Have you noticed that? 09:05 Well, you all know what day of the week Jesus was crucified on, 09:09 don't you? Good Friday. Right? Of course. There are very few 09:13 Christians will deny that 09:14 So Friday was the day on which Jesus was crucified. 09:19 Now, let us turn to the book of Luke. And in chapter 23, 09:23 and referring to the crucifixion, it says this, 09:26 That day was the preparation and the Sabbath drew near. 09:30 So the day before the Saturday was the preparation day. 09:34 And then the Sabbath came and verse 56 says, They returned and 09:40 prepared spices and fragrant oils and they rested on the 09:44 Sabbath according to the commandment. 09:46 Now apparently they had it right, because it says here 09:49 that they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment. 09:52 They had the right day alright. So the following day was the 09:56 Sunday, the first day of the week on which Jesus rose from 09:59 the dead. So there you have it. Saturday is the seventh day 10:02 of the week. Now its quite apparent that Jesus intended 10:06 his disciples to keep the 7th day Sabbath; because when 10:09 he was warning them that Jerusalem was going to be 10:11 destroyed and they'd have to flee from the city. 10:14 He said in Matthew 24 and verse 20, Pray that your flight may 10:19 not be in the winter or on the Sabbath. Now some people say, 10:22 Well, that was simply because the Jews were observing the 10:25 Sabbath. But actually, if that is the case, it would have been 10:28 a lot easier for them to flee from Jerusalem while all the 10:32 Jews were worshiping in the Synagogue than any other day 10:35 of the week. So its quite apparent that Jesus was 10:37 expecting his disciples to be observing the Sabbath. 10:40 Well, what about the apostles? Did they change it perhaps? 10:44 It wouldn't seem so. For instance we have the record in 10:48 Acts, chapter 13, of Paul and it says in verse 42, 10:53 When the Jews went out of the Synagogue, the Gentiles begged 10:58 that these words might be preached to them 11:00 the next Sabbath. Now these were Gentiles came to him. 11:03 Now, Paul could have said to them, Well, listen fellows, 11:06 There's no need to wait until a whole week. 11:07 You come and listen tomorrow, that's the Christian day of 11:10 worship. But no, it simply says in verse 44, Next Sabbath 11:14 almost the whole city came together to hear to word 11:18 of God. So Paul and the Gentiles apparently were involved 11:22 in this and its quite apparent that the apostles 11:26 were still observing the 7th day Sabbath. And so all the 11:31 mounting evidence points in that direction. Now there are some 11:35 people who say, Isn't the Sunday the Lord's Day? 11:40 Well, it has that connotation now, but is certainly didn't in 11:45 the early days. This expression is only found in Revelation 11:50 chapter one and verse ten, where John said, I was in the Spirit 11:54 on the Lord's Day. It doesn't say which day of the week 11:57 it was - just in the Spirit on the Lord's day. 11:59 But in other parts of the Bible, You don't have any problem. 12:02 For instance, it says, The 7th day is the Sabbath of the Lord 12:06 thy God. That's the Lord's Day. And when Jesus was on earth, 12:10 He spoke about the Sabbath. Notice what he says in the book 12:15 the book of Matthew. The book of Mark, is it? 12:17 Yes, Here we are, in chapter two, 12:19 And he said to them, verse 27, The Sabbath was made for man, 12:23 and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of man is 12:25 also Lord of the Sabbath. So Jesus was Lord of the Sabbath. 12:30 It was his day, his special day. Its the Lord's day. 12:33 So according to the Bible, the Lord's day is not Sunday, 12:36 the first day of the week. The Lord's day, the 7th day, 12:39 that is the Sabbath. Now the question is, What time of the 12:43 day does the Sabbath begin? Leviticus 23, and verse 32, 12:48 tells us, It shall be to you a Sabbath of solemn rest, 12:52 from evening to evening you shall celebrate your Sabbath. 12:56 You see, God measures time in days from sunset to sunset. 13:01 You might remember the book of Genesis, creation week it says, 13:06 The evening and the morning were the first day. 13:08 Evening and the morning was the second day. 13:09 So days in the bible are measured from sunset 13:13 to sunset. Well that would mean that the 7th day Sabbath 13:17 is to be measured from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday. 13:21 Okay, now what are some of the things that we have to keep in 13:24 mind during those Sabbath hours? What does the bible say? Well, 13:28 of course the first thing you find in the 10 commandments, 13:30 Remember? Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. In it 13:34 you shall not do any work. Now that means any unnecessary 13:38 work. Any work that can be done some other day, the bible 13:42 says, In it, you shall not do any work. 13:46 Stop right there. Then there's something else that we 13:50 need to keep in mind. In the book of Isaiah, chapter 58, 13:57 it says, verse 13, If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath 14:01 from doing your pleasure on my holy day; and call the Sabbath 14:06 a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable, and shalt honor him, 14:10 not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure: 14:13 then you shall delight yourself in the Lord, 14:17 because the Sabbath is a really happy day if you keep it 14:19 the right way. But God says, Its not a day for your own pleasure. 14:23 So you going to sport on the Sabbath day?, Saturday, is that 14:26 your sport day? Well, remember it says here, Don't find your 14:31 own pleasure on the Sabbath day. Well, what about 14:36 our shopping activities. You know there's something over here 14:40 that is relevant to that. In the book of Nehemiah, chapter 13, 14:43 and in verse 16, it says, Men of Tyre dwelt there also, 14:47 who brought in fish and all kinds of goods, sold them on the 14:49 Sabbath to the children of Judah. Then I contended with 14:53 the nobles of Judah, and said to them, What evil thing is this 14:57 that you do by which you profane the Sabbath day. 14:59 It was an evil thing to buy or sell on the Sabbath day. 15:04 So, if Saturday is your shopping day, stop. 15:08 Remember that God wants you to have this day for your own 15:14 benefit, and don't go shopping. Don't go buying or selling 15:18 on the Sabbath day. God wants you to really enjoy the Sabbath 15:23 day. And so there is a verse for you over here in the book of 15:27 Exodus, and in chapter 16, and in verse 23. Then he said 15:33 to them, This is what the Lord has said, Tomorrow is a Sabbath 15:36 rest, a holy Sabbath of the Lord Bake what you will bake today, 15:40 and boil what you will boil and lay up for yourselves 15:45 until the morning. Keep it until the morning. So the day 15:48 before the Sabbath, Friday is the day to do all the cooking. 15:52 Merilee Adams is doing her preparation. 15:57 Merilee, what is this Sabbath preparation involved with here? 16:01 With me, Well, on Friday I try and tidy the house up. 16:06 And I vacuum the floor, 16:09 making sure the dusting's done. Little things like that. 16:13 make it look tidy ready for Sabbath. All I do on the Sabbath 16:18 as far as housework I have been cooking, 16:21 I try and do some cooking, mainly 16:26 make a soup or a stew or something like that 16:28 on Friday, and on Sabbath I'll heat it 16:32 and we'll have that for our lunch on Sabbath. 16:34 So, not much to do on Sabbath. No, Sabbath is an easy day. 16:38 All this Sabbath preparation, you know, on Fridays, 16:41 sounds like a lot of hard work. Do you think it's worth it? 16:44 I think so, yes. To get one day when I can spend with my family 16:49 relaxing and taking them to church. Well worth while. 16:53 So, if you're into cooking on the Saturday, remember, 16:57 God wants you to make the Sabbath a day of complete rest 17:02 and do your preparation work on the day before, on a Friday. 17:06 So much for what we should not do on the Sabbath 17:11 to get the most out of this wonderful day. 17:13 But what can we do? Well, the obvious answer is, first of all, 17:18 go to church. In Hebrews, chapter 10, and in verse 24 17:23 it says, Let us consider one another in order to stir up 17:27 love and good works, not forsaking the assembling 17:31 of ourselves together, and so much more as you see the day 17:35 approaching. The nearer we come to the second coming of Christ, 17:40 the more important it is that we don't forsake the assembling 17:43 of ourselves together. And church is a wonderful place to 17:46 be when you can meet those of like faith. Some people say, 17:49 I don't get enough out of it. They are overlooking the fact 17:53 that really what we ought to be doing, going to churches, 17:55 trying to help others. See what you can put into it. 17:58 Church is a wonderful place when you look at it that way. 18:01 But there's other things you can do. What better way of 18:05 remembering your creator? And that after all is what the 18:08 Sabbath is all about. Then going for a nice walk in the 18:11 bush. Or if you're lucky enough to live down near the beach, 18:15 walk along the seashore and pick up some of those beautiful pink 18:18 shells that you find lying around. It's also a very good 18:22 day for visiting the friends that you have in the hospital. 18:26 What better thing you can do than cheer somebody up 18:29 on the Sabbath day. You know, you didn't have time during the 18:32 week. So go on a Sabbath afternoon and bring a little 18:36 cheer into their lives. Its also a good day for catching up 18:39 on your reading. So many good books, you know. 18:42 Books about nature. Books about exciting missionary adventures. 18:48 Or books about the bible. Or there's lots of interesting 18:52 books you can read on the Sabbath day that you don't have 18:55 time to do somewhere time else. 18:56 So get the most out of this day, and make it the best day 19:02 of the week. Now just one more question. Some people say, 19:07 But one day is as good as another. What does it matter 19:11 whether we keep the 7th day or the 1st day for that matter 19:14 any other day of the week. Well I think it does matter. 19:17 And I'll tell you why. In Genesis, chapter two, 19:20 and in verse three, when it speaks about the 7 days of 19:25 creation, comes to the 7th day and it says, Then God blessed 19:29 the 7th day and sanctified it. Now, let me put it to you 19:34 this way. If God blesses something, doesn't that make 19:38 that better than anything else? And if it doesn't, we're really 19:42 saying that God's blessing isn't worth anything. And so I think 19:45 that when God blessed the 7th day, that really makes it better 19:49 than any other day of the week. Wouldn't you agree with that? 19:52 I'll tell you something else, too. In Luke, chapter 4, 19:57 and in verse 16, it says, So he, Jesus, came to Nazareth 20:02 where he had been brought up, and as his custom was, 20:06 he went into the Synagogue on the Sabbath Day. 20:09 It was Jesus' custom to go to the place of worship 20:13 on the 7th day, Sabbath. And as we are Christians, 20:17 I think the right thing to do, is to follow his example, 20:21 and go to the place of worship on the same day as Jesus Christ 20:25 did, the 7th day of the week. It's the best day of the week 20:29 and that's the way to get the most out of it. 20:33 I was brought up to keep Sunday. But I find that I have derived a 20:36 great delight and satisfaction in keeping the 7th day 20:40 Sabbath that Jesus kept. In our next program, we move on to 20:45 Rome, where we visit the great cathedral of St. Peter's. 20:48 and discuss the early Christian church. |
Revised 2014-12-17