As Goes the Sabbath, So Goes the LORD

“Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day?” (Ne 13:17 AV)

What was the evil to which Nehemiah was referring?  Allowing commerce in the gates of the city on the Sabbath.  The heathen of the land where allowed to bring their wares to the gates and the people of God bought and sold on the Sabbath.  The Sabbath became a day of business and consumption rather than a day totally devoted to the LORD.  They profaned the Sabbath by treating it the same as any other day of the week.  As the people of God treat the Sabbath, they treat the LORD.  If the LORD’s day is not unique and special, worthy of our devotion, then neither will the LORD be.  How the people view the LORD is reflected in how they treat the Sabbath!

A funny thing happens when one preaches in church attendance.  Instead of increasing numbers, people actual do just the opposite.  Numbers decrease.  This has happened each and every time church attendance is mentioned.  It is almost as though the people of God deliberately stay home because the man of God will not tell them what they should do.  If the word of God commands us to not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, and we do, then we are treating the LORD as something other than He is.  King of kings and Lord of lords.  If we have other priorities than worship, then we are treating the LORD as someone to be used.  He is worthy of some of our devotion; especially when it benefits us.  But He is not worthy of our full devotion.

In our passage, and as a principle of scripture, the LORD’s day is a whole day. They may have gone to temple, but they also spent the greater part of the day in commerce.  The bulk of their attention was not on the LORD.  It was on things of this world.   It is a special day wherein the LORD is the center of our thoughts.  The preacher harps on church attendance not because he wants to see more numbers for his own ego.  He does so because he knows the manner in which the saint of God treats the Sabbath is the same manner in which he holds the LORD of the Sabbath.