Our scripture reading, to which I invite you to turn with me at this time, is found in the Old Testament book of Exodus, the 31st chapter, beginning in the 12th verse. The second book of the Bible, Genesis, Exodus, chapter 31. If you will skim over the first several verses of Exodus 31, You'll find that God is speaking here of the Holy Spirit-inspired giftedness which He so graciously gave to Bezalel and Aholiab unto the completion of the tabernacle. The prior chapters speak of the various articles of furnishings and so on in the tabernacle. God is very, very specific. and how he wanted to be worshipped and what he demanded of his holy people. And Bezalel and Aholiab were supremely gifted in all matters of construction and artwork and fine craftsmanship and the like. That being the context, we pick up our scripture reading in verse 12 of Exodus 31, and we read to the end of that chapter, but we'll be focusing in especially, brothers and sisters, on verses 12 through 17. Verses 12 through 17 will constitute our text for this evening. Exodus 31, beginning then in verse 12, hear then the word of the Lord. Then the Lord said to Moses, say to the Israelites, You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come. So you may know that I am the Lord who makes you holy. Observe the Sabbath because it is holy to you. Anyone who desecrates it must be put to death. Whoever does any work on that day must be cut off from his people. For six days work is to be done. But the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day must be put to death. The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He abstained from work and rested. And the Lord finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai. He gave him the two tablets of the testimony, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God. Thus far, the reading of God's holy word. And as always, dear friends, I ask and urge you to keep your Bibles open and handy to look to God's word together at the close of this Lord's day. Dear congregation of Jesus Christ, Perhaps you saw the headline of yesterday's Herald News entitled, Meteor Blast Injures 1,100. Meteor Blast Injures 1,100. It's a story out of Russia. And perhaps some of you can see the subheading under that major heading reads, Shockwave Shatters Windows, Stirs Fear. The caption here under this picture of that meteor blast reads as follows, and I quote, above a meteor streaking over Chelyabinsk, Russia. At top, an image of the meteor's fireball captured by a camera mounted on a car dashboard. NASA said the meteor's explosion released 300 to 500 kilotons of energy. The article says that's the equivalent of 20 atomic bombs. Think of that. And left the trail 300 miles long. The shockwave damaged 3,000 buildings in Chelyabinsk, officials said. At a zinc factory, part of the roof collapsed, end of quote. Now friends, why did this particular headline so capture my attention? Well, it captured my attention specifically because of what the Apostle Peter proclaimed on the day of Pentecost as recorded for us in Acts chapter 2 concerning the fulfillment of a prophecy of the prophet Joel. And if your Bibles are open and you would care to turn with me, turn with me to the book of Acts in the New Testament, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Acts chapter 2, beginning in verse 17 and reading through verse 21. Acts 2, verse 17. Listen carefully or follow along, please. Peter proclaims, No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel. In the last days, God says, I will pour out My Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams. Even on My servants, both men and women, I will pour out My Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. Now notice this, verse 19. I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned into darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. All glory be to God." Now it's interesting. Not only does the Apostle Peter here reference signs in fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel, but when we look back in the Scriptures and we review all of redemptive history, we find that very frequently God gives a sign. He gives a sign. For example, turn with me if you would please to the very first book of the Bible, the book of Genesis, the ninth chapter, Genesis chapter 9. And beginning in verse 12 of Genesis 9, and reading through verse 17, notice what we read, Genesis 12, 9. And God said, this is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come. God is speaking here to Noah after the great Mabul, the great worldwide universal flood. I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth. So God said to Noah, this is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth. Now friends, similarly, turn a few pages to the right with me, please, to Genesis chapter 17. In Genesis chapter 17, beginning in verse 9, excuse me, beginning in verse, yes, beginning in verse 9, notice what we read, Genesis 17, 9. Then God said to Abraham, As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you, for the generations to come. This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep. Every male among you shall be circumcised. You are to undergo circumcision, and it, notice, will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. For the generations to come, every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner, those who are not your offspring. Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male who has not been circumcised in the flesh will be cut off from his people. He has broken My covenant." And of course, when we get to the New Testament, we find our Lord Jesus instituting the two signs or sacraments of baptism and the Lord's Supper. But friends, as we bring all of this biblical information to bear back on the words of our text in Exodus 31, and I would invite you to turn back there with me if you would please, we find that God speaks to Moses of still another sign, a particular sign. A sign which God tells Moses He must inform the Israelites they simply must observe. And that is the sign of the Sabbath. The sign of the Sabbath. Well, we as Christians today thank and praise God for the fact that violations of the Sabbath day or violations of the fourth commandment of God's law do not result in the death penalty as it did in Moses' day, primarily because our sins have been paid for by the shed blood of Christ on Calvary. primarily because Jesus Christ perfectly fulfilled the law for us, still in all the Bible says that all those who have come into a covenant relationship with God solely by His grace, solely through faith in the name of our blessed Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, still in all are under the obligation to rest and rejoice in that sign of the Sabbath. That sign of the Sabbath. Now what exactly does that mean, however, for you and me as Christians today? What does that mean for you and me? What does the sign of the Sabbath mean very personally and practically for you and me as New Testament Christians? Well, as we begin to work our way through the words of our text, we're going to discover three key characteristics of the sign of the Sabbath, which help us to answer these and similar kinds of questions. Now then, characteristic number one our text teaches us is that the sign of the Sabbath is personal. The sign of the Sabbath is personal. For example, look at verse 12 of Exodus 31 with me, if you would please. Here we read, then the LORD, now notice all the capital letters in that name, LORD, that means it's a translation of the Hebrew name, Yahweh, the great I Am, the covenant-making, covenant-keeping God of Israel. Then Yahweh, the LORD, said to Moses, say to the Israelites, literally say to the sons or children of Israel, you must, notice not you may, but you must observe The New American Standard Version translates it, I believe, you must surely observe. The Hebrew word is shamar, if you're taking notes, S-H-A-M-A-R is how we would transliterate that, shamar, and shamar means to keep, to guard, to give heed to. Say to the Israelites, you must observe, shamar, my Sabbaths. You must. Who must? You must. My covenant people, those who have come into a special covenantal relationship with me, you must. Why so? The text goes on to teach us this will be a sign. It will be it could be translated a banner. This will be a distinguishing mark, if you will. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come. So you may know that I am Yahweh, so that you may know that I am the Lord who makes you holy. Now, friends, think about this. Think about what we have just read and briefly commented on. In fact, allow me to illustrate the significance of that this way. Generally speaking, in our country, in our culture, when couples get married, they exchange wedding vows. And they also exchange what, generally speaking? Yeah, rings, they generally exchange wedding rings. And the significance of that wedding ring is such that it is an indication that they have been pledged in a covenantal relationship to one other at the exclusion of all others. And brothers and sisters, what the Bible is saying here is that the Sabbath day is such a sign. What the wedding ring is to a husband and a wife, so the Sabbath day is to the Christian, to the believer in our Lord Jesus Christ. The Sabbath day sets us apart. The Sabbath day is an indication that we are in an exclusive relationship with the Lord our God, and we say, no, we forsake, we spurn, we turn away from all others. It is a sign that we love Him, that we are living for Him, that by His sovereign grace and electing love, He has drawn us to Himself, paid the penalty for our sins, and saved us. Think of it. It is such a sign. Now notice also, in those verses that we have just read, it says at the end of verse 13, "...so that you may know that I am the Lord who makes you holy." In other words, our recognition, our adhering to the Sabbath day is also a sign that only God can save us, only God can sanctify us, and we cannot save or sanctify ourselves. In fact, the Bible says that it is by grace you have been saved, through faith. And this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works. lest any man should boast. And our recognition of the Sabbath day is a reminder, it is a testimony, it is a declaration that all that we have and all that we are is given to us by the grace and the mercy of God, you see. And that is taught throughout the Scriptures. In fact, let's go to Deuteronomy. Turn a few pages to the right with me, please, to Deuteronomy chapter 7. It's the fifth book of the Bible, the last book of the first five books of the Bible, the so-called Pentateuch. And drop down with me, if you would, please, to Deuteronomy 7, beginning in verse 6. Deuteronomy 7, beginning in verse 6, we're going to read through verse 8. God's Word declares, For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be His people, His treasured possession. The Lord did not set His affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath He swore to your forefathers that He brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. God says, I loved you simply because I loved you. Now let's go to the New Testament. Similarly, the book of Romans, the eighth chapter. After that glorious gospel promise in verse 28 of Romans 8, that we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. Beginning in Romans 8, verse 29, we read, For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called. Those He called, He also justified. Those He justified, He also glorified. Notice how many of the second personal pronouns we read there. After mentioning God, it says, He, He, He, He, He. Salvation is all of Him, and it is all unto Him. We are debtors to His amazing grace, and His electing love, and His magnificent mercy. Let's go over to Ephesians chapter 1. Just flip several pages to the right with me again, please. Ephesians chapter 1, beginning in verse 3, the Apostle Paul similarly proclaims, Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ in accordance with His pleasure and will, to the praise of His glorious grace which He has freely given us in the one He loves. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins in accordance with the riches of God's grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. All glory be to God! I loved you because I loved you. It is I who have made you holy." Now think about that. Think about that. As we consider all of the glorious riches of God's grace, that He is a covenant-making, covenant-keeping God, it begs this question, does it not? Are you, am I, in covenantal relationship with Him? Are you, am I, in covenantal relationship with Him? For example, My friend, have you been baptized? Have you been baptized either as an infant or as an adult? As a sign, a New Testament sign that you have come into covenant with God. Similarly, if you have been baptized, have you made profession of faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior? So many times when we celebrate the sacrament of infant baptism, I point out to the boys and girls, or I'll make the comment that at baptism, as the children receive that sign of the covenant, Old Testament circumcision, New Testament baptism, God is saying to them, I will be your God. I will be your God. And young people, I challenge you, have you ever responded to that sign of baptism of being in covenant with God by saying, yes, Lord, and I will be numbered among your people, professing faith in Christ as Lord and Savior, you see? Friends, these are critically important questions. They are questions which have a direct bearing on the destiny of our eternal souls. In fact, in Matthew 10, turn there with me, if you would, just for a moment, to verses 32 and 33. In Matthew 10, verses 32 and 33, Jesus says, whoever acknowledges Me, or whoever confesses Me before men, I will also acknowledge or confess him before My Father in heaven. But whoever disowns or denies Me before men, I will disown or deny him before My Father in heaven." Think of it. Now let's bring that information back to bear on the words of our text in Exodus 31, verse 12, when the Lord said to Moses, say to the Israelites, you must observe My Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am Yahweh, I am the Lord who makes you holy, who makes you holy. The first key characteristic that we learn concerning the sign of the Sabbath is that it is personal. The sign is personal. Abba, notice, a second key characteristic concerning the sign of the Sabbath, our text teaches us, is that it is also profitable. It is also profitable. Look at verse 14 of Exodus 31, with me if you would please. Verse 14, here we read, Observe, Shamar, the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. Anyone who desecrates it, anyone who defiles it, anyone who profanes it, it could also be translated to read, must be put to death. Whoever does any work on that day must be cut off from his people. Now friends, I want us to pause here just for a moment as I make two very important points concerning God's stated death penalty for profaning or desecrating the Sabbath day. A penalty which no doubt seems exceedingly severe, exceedingly harsh, to you and me as New Testament believers, as those living in the New Testament era. First of all, please note the primacy of the fourth commandment of God's law within the context of the ten commandments of God's law. Note the primacy of the fourth commandment of God's law within the ten commandments of God's law. For example, Please note that even prior to the giving of the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai, God had already established the Sabbath principle. He had already established the Sabbath principle. How so? Well, he did. So first of all, did he not in the creation week, creating for six days and resting on the seventh? That's pointed out in our text in Exodus 31, verse 17. And again, in Exodus 20, verses eight through 11, where that fourth commandment is expounded upon. In other words, this is a creation ordinance. God set the pattern of what our week is to be like when he worked for six days and he rested on the seventh day. He set the Sabbath principle already in Genesis one and two. But God also established and affirmed the Sabbath principle before the giving of the law in Exodus 20, in Exodus 16 concerning His provision of manna for the Israelites in their wilderness wanderings. Boys and girls, young people, do you know what God dictated, what He decreed concerning the collection of manna, especially as we got toward that sixth, seventh day? He had commanded them to take enough just for one day. And it was a sign of trusting Him that He would provide our daily bread. In fact, what happened if people took more than one day's worth? The Bible says worms ate it and it was soiled and all sorts of things and it became putrid and all the rest. But on the sixth day, They were commanded to do what? Not to take enough for one day, but to take enough for two days so that they would not have to work or collect it on the seventh day or the Sabbath day. And so here we see the primacy, if you will, of the fourth commandment of God's law. But secondly, note on this point, that as Matthew Henry points out, the fourth commandment, as it were, is a link between the two tables of God's law concerning our relationship with God and our relationship with our fellow man. In fact, writes Matthew Henry, and I quote, the fourth commandment is the hem and hedge of the whole law. where that is not kept in mind, farewell both godliness and honesty." Similarly, a study note in the Reformation Study Bible comments as follows, and again I quote, To keep God's Sabbath is to keep the covenant, since the Sabbath is the sign of the special relationship between God and Israel. To disregard God's Sabbath was to disregard God's purposes for creation through His redemption of Israel. And still writes another, to disregard or desecrate the Sabbath was punished as an act of treason. It was punished as an act of treason. End of quote. Think of it. So critical to their consecration as a people was the Sabbath day. Now friends, that having been said, look again at verse 14, the very first part of that verse. I want to highlight something else to you. Observe, Shamar, the Sabbath day because it is holy to you. That word holy in the Hebrew is kodesh, k-o-d-e-s-h is how you would translate it. It means to be set apart, to be dedicated, to be consecrated. But look at that again. Observe the Sabbath because it is holy to you, to you. You know, as I was kind of pondering and prayerfully reflecting upon that particular part of the text, A New Testament text came to mind, namely Mark 2, verse 27. Mark 2, verse 27, where Jesus says, the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. And I got to thinking about that. And as I did, something occurred to me. It's something that I had read just a month ago in the January 2013 issue of Table Talk, which has, some of you may recall, as its theme for the month, the lost virtues of listening, meditating, and thinking. And in the opening devotional section here, what's called the Quorum Deo section, living before the face of God, editor Burke Parsons writes as follows, and I'm quoting, listen very carefully, please. He writes, the missionary and martyr Jim Elliott, 1927 through 1956, I believe Jim Elliott was martyred by the Alka Indians at that time, relatively young man. The missionary and martyr Jim Elliott wrote, quote, The devil has made it his business to monopolize on three elements. Noise, hurry, crowds. Satan is quite aware of the power of silence. End of quote from Jim Elliot, and then Burke Parsons continues. It is difficult to escape the busyness, noise, and crowds of life. We are bombarded by a host of amusements and contraptions, most of which we have enthusiastically welcomed into our lives, homes, communities and churches. We have conditioned ourselves to distraction. Think about this. We have conditioned ourselves to distraction. And we are leading the next generation down the same path in a hurry. C.S. Lewis wrote, and he quotes, we live, in fact, in a world starved for solitude, silence, and private, end of quote. Bert Parsons continues, we stand at a crossroads. And we will either rediscover the lost virtues of listening, meditating, and thinking, or we will amuse ourselves to death. Or we will amuse ourselves to death, end of quote. Think about that. And so, my dear, dear friends, I ask you this evening, how have you, how do you, how are you and your family celebrating, commemorating, observing the Sabbath day? How am I, how is my family observing, commemorating, celebrating the Sabbath day? How do we spend our Sundays? And by the way, boys and girls, young people, the reason why we worship not on Saturday but on Sunday is essentially due to the fact that that is the day that Jesus rose from the dead. And the early church brothers and sisters said, this is the Lord's Day. And they worshipped on that day, and they prayed on that day, and they celebrated the sacraments on that day, and they gave their offerings on that day, etc. The Lord's Day, Sunday. But the question remains the same. Are you and I any different? from our unsaved neighbors, essentially, when it comes to a celebration of the Sabbath day? Is the only difference between us that we're in church for an hour on a Sunday morning or a Sunday evening? Praise God for that, but is that all that sets us apart? Do you and I spend a good portion of the day like them, like millions of our fellow citizens, simply sleeping? Watching television? Filing into sports stadiums? Doing all kinds of chores around the house? Catching up on some shopping at the shopping mall, et cetera? Listen, things that God has graciously given us six other days of the week to do. And things, by the way, which also frequently cause others to work. Perhaps preventing them from being in the house of the Lord. And honoring the Sabbath day. Are we any different? Are we any different? Are we seeking the Lord from the very moment we awaken on a Sunday to the very moment we lay our head on the pillow at night? Can we say, Lord, by your grace and goodness, I honor the Sabbath day by keeping it holy? Or not. Or not. Friends, it seems to me and I'm speaking for myself as well, that so many times, even as Christians, we forget we are unmindful of the fact that this particular day is decreed to be a special part of what sets us apart. As God's holy people. As God's holy people. In fact, in 1 Peter 1, verses 15 and 16, God's Word declares, Suppose that's why I so love what we professed a few moments ago in Question and Answer 103 of the Heidelberg Catechism, because it so beautifully summarizes so much of the Bible's teaching on the fourth commandment of God's law. What is God's will for us in the fourth commandment? Listen once again. First, that the gospel ministry and education for it be maintained. Worship, Sunday school, households, Bible studies, all the rest. And that especially on the festive day of rest. Doesn't mean we can't worship on other days. Calvin preached and worshiped virtually during the Reformation time every day. God asked especially for this one day. Especially on the festive day of rest, I regularly, not occasionally, not periodically, I regularly attend the assembly of God's people to learn what God's Word teaches, to participate in the sacraments, to pray to God publicly, and to bring Christian offerings for the poor. Second, that every day of my life, see this is a type, it's a figure, that every day of my life I rest from my evil ways. Let the Lord work in me through His Spirit. And so begin already in this life the eternal Sabbath. And so begin already in this life the eternal Sabbath. And friends, that brings us to the third and final characteristic of the sign of the Sabbath, namely, it is perpetual. It is perpetual. Let's go back to Exodus 31. Drop down with me, if you would please, to verse 15. Verse 15. Here we read, For six days work is to be done, But the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord. Now, think about that. Previously, our text taught us it is holy to you, to us, and it is, but it's also holy to the Lord. Now, what does that mean? Well, in his Institutes of the Christian Religion, John Calvin writes this, and I quote, We must be holy at rest that God may work in us. We must yield our will. We must resign our heart. We must give up all our fleshly desires. In short, we must rest from all activities of our own contriving so that having God working in us, we may repose in him. End of quote. And that's true for six days. Work is to be done. But the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest. Holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day must be put to death. The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting, the Hebrew could be translated as a perpetual covenant, as a perpetual covenant. Why? Why? Why does God say that? Because it was the key distinguishing mark by which God's people reminded themselves that they were a holy set apart people unto God. And it was the key distinguishing mark by which God's people were recognized as not being a part of this fallen, sin, curse world. They were a different people. They were a called out people. They were holy unto God. The key distinguishing mark, you see. The key distinguishing mark. And that is why, again, Calvin writes, the Sabbath was a day most sacred and inviolable, since by its neglect all of religion would fall. All of religion would fall, end of quote. And friends, again, as I've been contemplating and being convicted of some of these things, another text that came to mind was 1 Peter 2, verse 9, where God says, but you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God. that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. But you are a holy people that you may that you may declare the praises of him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light. All glory be to God. The sign of the Sabbath was to be perpetual. You know, friends, as we close, turn with me, if you would, just for a moment, to the book of Numbers, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers 15, verses 32 through 36. Verses 32 through 36. In Numbers 15, beginning in verse 32, notice what we read. While the Israelites were in the desert, a man was found gathering wood on the Sabbath day. Those who found him gathering wood brought him to Moses and Aaron and the whole assembly, and they kept him in custody because it was not clear what should be done to him. And the Lord said to Moses, the man must die. The whole assembly must stone him outside the camp. So the assembly took him outside the camp and stoned him to death as the Lord commanded Moses. Friends, again, the severity, the swiftness of that judgment sobers us. It seems extremely severe to us, and it was. But one commentator has so insightfully said concerning that issue, and I quote, "...the man who broke the Sabbath destroyed, so far as lay in him, the entire covenant between God and His people. Not only broke it, but annulled it, and threw Israel out of the covenant. Hence, when the sin was committed, no hesitation was felt in carrying out the law." And so you see, we do indeed thank and praise God for the fact that the particulars of the Old Testament application of this fourth commandment of God's law no longer pertain to us. But brothers and sisters, let us never forget that its principles and its privileges do. They do pertain to us. In fact, that is why we read in the prophecy of Isaiah The 58th chapter, verses 13 and 14, the following. If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on My holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord's day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in the Lord. and I will cause you to rise on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob. The mouth of the Lord has spoken. Amen. Let's bow our heads and our hearts together in prayer. There remains then a Sabbath rest for the people of God. penned the author to the Hebrews, for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us therefore make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience. O Lord our God, for our own physical and spiritual good, and for your own eternal glory. Enable and empower each and every one of us, we pray, to remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. In Jesus' name, amen.