“Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”—Genesis 2:1-3
The Sabbath, or Shabbat, is intended to be a reflection of God’s work in creation after laboring for six days and resting on the seventh. He commanded the Jewish people to keep the Sabbath holy and He blessed it.
Why does Curt Landry Ministries observe the Sabbath starting Friday at sundown till Saturday at sundown?
In modern-day, most of the world uses the Gregorian calendar, also known as the Western or Christian calendar. It was named after Pope Gregory XIII in 1582. The Gregorian calendar differs from the Hebraic calendar.
The Hebraic, or Jewish, calendar is based on the Earth’s rotation around its axis (one day), the moon’s rotation around the Earth (average 29 ½ days), and the Earth’s rotation around the sun (365 ¼ days).
Because the rotations are slightly longer than the traditional calendar, holidays and festivals do not always appear at the same time according to the Gregorian calendar, but are consistent with the Hebraic calendar.
Also note that on the Jewish calendar, feast celebrations are observed from sundown the day before the holiday, to sundown the day of the holiday. For this reason, the Sabbath is observed from sundown on Friday to sundown on Saturday—the last day of the week.
God called us to remember the Sabbath.
“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God…”—Exodus 20:8-10
In the creation story of Genesis, God rested at the end of His work. Not because He needed it, but to show the completion of His creative work. We see seven, as shown in the days of the week in Genesis, symbolizing completeness throughout God’s Word. He also gave us a pattern of how to structure our time: days, weeks, months, and years. Within this structure He blessed the holy day.
What does it mean to rest?
In the modern-day high-paced world, rest has taken on a new meaning. Some might think of it as something deserved, or a time to indulge the senses. However, this is different from the biblical definition.
God rested by reflecting on His good work. We, as Believers, can enter into God’s rest. When we are restored unto the Lord, we possess the peace of the Holy Spirit that rests upon us.
“If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you…”—1 Peter 4:14
Rest on the Sabbath is an opportunity to reflect on the past week. It is an appointed quiet time to renew your mind while asking the Lord to prepare you for the week ahead. God wants you to remember Him all the time, but on the Sabbath, He puts a special emphasis on this. It’s a reflection of the good work He has allowed us to do which brings Him glory.
Other appointed times of remembrance and rest.
There are unique festivals that are set apart by God as divine appointments for His children. These Feasts of the Lord, mentioned in detail in Leviticus 23, are spread throughout the Jewish calendar.
The Feasts and Days of the Lord include:
- The Feast of Passover (Pesach)—The Feast of Unleavened Bread, or Passover, is a memorial to God’s deliverance of His people in the Old Testament and a picture of ultimate redemption through Yeshua’s blood as the Passover Lamb in the New Testament.
- The Feast of Firstfruits (Bikkurim)—The Feast of Firstfruits marks a time of thanksgiving to God for the firstfruits of the harvest. This Feast takes place during the week-long Passover celebration. As a modern-day Believer, it is a time of recognizing Gods blessings of provision in our lives.
- The Feast of Pentecost (Shavuot)—The Feast of Weeks, or Pentecost, is a celebration of the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. It includes giving offerings to the Lord and a call to holiness. The Jews were gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate Shavuot when the tongues of fire fell in the upper room on what we now refer to as Pentecost (see Acts 2).
Shavuot and Pentecost share the same day but they are celebrated in honor of two different events: The giving of the Torah (or instruction), and the giving of the Holy Spirit with a manifestation of fire.
- The Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah)—The Jewish New Year (civil), is celebrated on the first or second day of Tishri (Jewish Calendar). It is a time to put the past year to rest, learn from those experiences, and welcome in the year ahead.
It is a time of transition for a Believer, from who you were, into greater revelation of who you will be in Christ. Rosh Hashanah is also the beginning of a ten-day period that ends with Yom Kippur referred to as the Days of Awe—a period of introspection and repentance.
- The Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur)—Considered the holiest day of the Jewish year, it is a day of repentance and fasting. It takes place on the 10th of Tishrei (Jewish calendar). This is a time to of corporate repentance making amends in the areas where Believers have sinned throughout the previous year.
Referred to in Leviticus 16 as a time of “affliction,” Believers understand the underlying joy that they serve an ever-forgiving God who desires to show mercy and forgiveness when they return to Him.
- The Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot)—The Feast of Tabernacles is a feast that commemorates the years that the Israelites wandered in the desert. Jesus said on the great day of the Feast, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (John 7:37-38). He provided the living water so that we no longer will thirst in the desert!
Sukkot is an eight-day festival where ‘booths’ (called Sukkahs) are traditionally built to commemorate the season where the Israelites dwelt in tents. Each booth is designed by the family, but generally has three sides with a ceiling open enough to allow the stars to be seen. This tradition reminds us that God is our protection and provision at all times.
While many in the Body of Christ believe that observance of these High Holy Days belong only to the Jewish people, we at Curt Landry Ministries choose to place our feet beneath the table of the Lord during these God ordained times—understanding that we do not celebrate out of legalism, but out of a relationship.
God’s timeframe.
Did you know that during the French Revolution, among various other times throughout history, there were attempts to change the seven-day week? Nothing ever came of these attempts because God made all things within this seven-day timeframe. It is not His will for His order to be changed.
Because God has provided a divine order and instruction throughout scripture, we at Curt Landry Ministries enjoy celebrating the historical and biblical significance of the Jewish holidays and the Sabbath as presented in the Bible.
We do observe the Feasts of the Lord, set apart by God in Leviticus 23 for all His people. We understand that as we place our feet beneath His table during His chosen times, that we receive the commanded blessings—blessings that flow from understanding God’s appointed times and seasons.
