Walking Wisely - We Worship on the Lord's Day

Be glorified today. I like the title of that song, "Christian's Daily Prayer." That might be one we need to go meditate over. I think that's a little bit like what I'm doing with Ephesians, these verses, that that would be our daily prayer, our monthly prayer, that we would walk wisely. I enjoyed that worship as always. I'm very thankful, very appreciative for Jared and how he's been leading us. Now this morning I am NOT going to ask you to turn to a particular verse of Scripture. That's rare for me, very odd for me. As a matter of fact, it really doesn't feel good for me as a preacher of God's Word.

We will be in quite a few different passages because this is a topical message. Although it is topical, it is textual. Everything comes out of the Scripture. And if you are taking notes or a note-taker, you can write some of those things down, those verses. And if you do have trouble following me, it's okay. Just put your pen down and I can get you the information you need if you need to study a little more on your own. But last week we studied Ephesians 5 verses 15 to 18 and what I called "Walking Wisely." But I was very specific in my application, as you know.

So I titled the message "Walking Wisely in the New Year." And in Ephesians 5 verses 15 to 18, we saw what it means to walk or to live not as the unwise but as the wise. Now let's listen to those verses in the amplified version. Paul says, "Therefore, see that you walk carefully, living life with honor, purpose, and courage, shunning those who tolerate and enable evil, not as the unwise but as wise, sensible, intelligent, discerning people, making the very most of your time on earth recognizing and taking advantage of each opportunity and using it with wisdom and diligence, because the days are filled with evil.

Therefore, do not be foolish and thoughtless, but understand and firmly grasp what the will of the Lord is. Do not get drunk with wine, for that is wickedness, corruption, and stupidity, but be filled with the Holy Spirit and constantly guided by Him." Now I know I did this all throughout last week's message. I did it on purpose, but this morning I'm giving us a call and I'm giving us a charge for the month of January and even the entire year. I want us to all study these verses, maybe read them in multiple translations. That's good for you. I want you to meditate over these verses.

I want you to maybe memorize these verses, but let's make sure we pray over these verses, that these verses will be firmly fixed in our hearts. You know it's one thing if we know them and we can quote them, but if it's down deep in our hearts the meaning and we pray over them and the Spirit is enabling us to live out these things, that's different than just memorizing. But let's make sure we know this teaching and let's make it our goal to walk or to live wisely in January and throughout the new year.

Now this morning I'm going to take the same call, the same charge to live or to walk wisely, and I want to apply it to another area of our life. I've already told you what area that is in our scripture reading. Sunday or the Lord's Day, how we view Sunday, how we live on Sunday, what we do and what we do not do on Sunday. Now those of you who have been around in Christ's life for a while, you know this. Every year or so I teach on this subject. Now why do I do this? Because we need this folks more than you know. We need reminding of certain things all throughout our Christian journey.

I taught on this subject last March so it's not quite been a year but I want you to listen close. I want you to be on the edge of your seat because it just could be that a certain portion of this message is just for you. Now this leads me to ask us a few questions that we need to explore. Why has the church always chosen to worship on the first day of the week? Now the first day of the week is Sunday. If you study church history you will see that the church is always worshipped on Sunday. That's the first day of the week. But why?

Of course there have always been fringe groups who have chosen to worship on Saturday or the old Jewish Sabbath day. Sabbath day Adventist would be one group. They just happen to be wrong here. But the question, why has the church always worshipped on Sunday? The first day of the week but more specific, why do we worship on Sunday? The first day of the week. So this morning I want us to answer those questions and I want to call us to live wisely as we relate to Sunday as an individual people, as a family, and as a church. And I want us to answer these questions and relate to these things from the Scriptures by looking at three things.

First we'll look at when the Old Testament Jews worship and what the Old Testament says here. Second we will look at when the New Testament church worship and then last we will look at the New Testament teaching on this particular subject. So number one, the Old Testament teaching here. Number one, the Old Testament teaching. Now when we study the Old Testament we see that the Old Testament people of God did not worship on Sunday of the first day of the week. This may surprise some of you but yet for some of you you might not have ever thought about it. Now there are two significant scriptures which determine when the Jews worship.

First at the end of the creation account in Genesis 2 when God rested from his work and second in Exodus chapter 20 at the giving of the Ten Commandments through Moses which is sometimes called the law of God. Now I want to quickly look at these two verses. First why did God rest at the end of the creation? Why did God rest at the end of the creation? We see this in Genesis chapter 2 verses 1 to 3. "Thus the heavens and the earth were finished and all the host of them and on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done and he rested on the seventh day." Notice that.

"God rested on the seventh day from all of his work that he had done so God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it God rested from all of his work that he had done in or throughout creation." Now I want to call your attention to the fact that there are three verbs in these verses. The verb finished, the verb rested, and the verb blessed. God finished his work, God rested from his work, and God blessed the seventh day. And we must see that God did not rest because he was tired from his work. He was not tired, he was not weary like a man or an animal. God can never be tired because he is not like man or an animal.

Simply God was giving us an example. He was establishing a pattern of work and rest for man and mankind. And God exemplified six days of work and then one day of rest and then God established that as a pattern for man and mankind. So we see that God established a pattern of work and rest. This pattern was six days of work and then he set aside, he exalted, he blessed the seventh day for rest. And we need to see the purpose of the seventh day. That was rest. This was a day for man to rest and to reflect on God's creation. But at this place in the Old Testament we do not see a commandment for worship.

None of the Old Testament saints from Enoch to Abraham were commanded to worship on the seventh day, nor is there a record of them setting aside the seventh day for worship. We just don't see it. But then second we see this in the Ten Commandments. We see this in the Ten Commandments. In Exodus chapter 20 we see the record of God giving the Ten Commandments to Moses for the Jews that was God's people. And within these commandments God gives one that relates to worship. That's the fourth commandment. Now I'm going to read to the fourth commandment but I'm going to start in verse 1.

And God spoke all these words saying, "I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." And here is where he starts with the commandments. "You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity or the sin of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation for those who hate me.

But bestowing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless, who takes his name in vain." And then verse 8, "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 to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male servant or your female servant or your livestock or the sojourner." That would be a traveler who is within your gates.

"For in six days the Lord made the heaven and earth and the sea and all that is in them and he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." Again we see that every seventh day was holy and it was set apart now for rest and worship. But notice here it is called the Sabbath day. And this word Sabbath is a key word it actually means to rest from labor because that day was set apart for rest and for worship. So here in Exodus 20 we see that God was commanding the Israelites, that's God's people the Jews, to rest from their labor.

And in doing this they would have remembered God in creation for this commandment does echo Genesis 2, does it not? And also they would have worshiped the God that delivered them from Egyptian captivity. That is because in the second giving of the commandments in Deuteronomy 5, Moses called them to remember their days of Egyptian captivity. Now there are other passages that highlight what we've just seen. In these examples we see this was a fixed and expected way of life. That would be six days for work and the seventh day set aside for rest and worship. In these examples we see that the Jews adhered to this way of life.

First in the giving of the manna to the people of God in Exodus 16. Of course this is when the Jews had been set free from Egyptian slavery and they were in the wilderness and literally God was feeding them supernaturally. But God commanded the Israelites to gather enough manna for their daily needs only. If they gathered extra to store it up for the next day it would breed worms and it would stink. But not on the sixth day which was the day before the Sabbath. On the sixth day they were to gather twice as much because God would not rain down manna on the seventh day.

He did not provide manna for them on the seventh day because they were to rest from their labor on the seventh day. And then second in the Gospels as we see how Jesus lived. In all four Gospels it is plain to see that the Jews had set aside the seventh day as the Sabbath day of rest and worship and they did more than set the seventh day aside. History tells us that they had actually constructed hundreds of laws that if they obeyed those laws they were supposed to ensure them of keeping the Sabbath.

And this was one of the conflicts that Jesus had with the religious leaders that we see all throughout the Gospels with a casual reading it seemed that Jesus did whatever he pleased on the Sabbath but that's not the case. And that is because he willingly and purposely broke their man-made laws but he never broke God's law he never broke the Sabbath. And the Jewish leaders were enraged because he had dared to break their laws which in their eyes was breaking the Sabbath. Now what's my point here? You could say pastor that's a history lesson. It's the Old Testament I mean what does that mean to us?

I wanted to give us a brief education because some of you do not know these things some of you do so it's a reminder. Simply in the Old Testament and under the Old Covenant God's people were commanded to keep the Sabbath day holy that means the seventh day was set apart and it was set apart from work and it was set apart for rest and for worship. Let me repeat that for the Jews and under the Old Covenant in the Old Testament the seventh day was set apart it was blessed and it was set apart from work and for rest and worship. Now question are we under the Old Covenant?

Are we under this particular Old Testament teaching concerning the Old Covenant Sabbath? Are we supposed to keep the seventh day the Sabbath? No and I will explain more of why throughout the message. But then next I want to move into what the New Testament Church did. So number two the New Testament Church and their practice. The New Testament Church and their practice and I'm talking about their practice in the day that they worship. Now seeing when the New Testament Church meant for worship it can be difficult to see at first for two reasons.

First of all those early Christian converts who were coming out of Judaism they did continue to worship at the temple and in the synagogues on Saturday the Jewish Sabbath. But then second because of the growth of the New Testament Church we have to really pay attention because after the death and the resurrection of Christ the growth of the New Testament Church happens really fast and the growth spiral of the New Testament Church gets broader and broader from the book of Acts and on through the rest of the books of the New Testament.

But here I want to make three observations which will help us see when the New Testament Church worshiped and how that developed. First observation notice what day certain major events took place in the New Testament. Notice what day certain major events took place in the New Testament. The resurrection took place on the first day of the week which is Sunday. Luke 24 verses 1 to 3 says, "But on the first day of the week and early dawn they went to the tomb taking the spices they had prepared." This was the women. "And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb but when they went in they did not find the body of Jesus." He was resurrected.

We also see this in Matthew 28 verses 1 to 6 as well. "But then also the two post resurrection appearances of Jesus to his disciples those take place on the first day of the week which is Sunday." John 20 verse 19 says, "On the evening of that day the first day of the week the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews Jesus came and he stood among them and he said to them, 'Peace be with you.'" In John 20 verses 20 to 25 we see that Thomas was not with the disciples when Jesus had revealed himself to them. Remember he said he would not believe unless he put his fingers in the nail hole.

Sometimes he's called doubting Thomas because of those things. And in John 20 verse 26 that verse says, "Eight days later when the disciples were inside again and Thomas was with them although the doors were locked Jesus came and he stood among them and he said, 'Peace be with you.'" And also the giving of the promised Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost that happened on the first day of the week which is Sunday. Acts 2 verse 1 reads, "When the day of Pentecost arrived they were all together in one place.

If you do the work on the Jewish calendar you will see that this is the first day of the week that is and was Sunday." Now I know that's been quick but it's easy to see that the two most important events after the cross happened on the first day of the week that is Sunday. The resurrection of Jesus which proves that he had provided salvation to man and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit which was the birth of the church those events occurred on the first day of the week that Sunday. Now the second observation notice when the church begins to meet for worship. Notice when the church begins to meet for worship.

One example is the church at Troas. In Acts 20 verse 7 that verse reads, "On the first day of the week when we were gathered together to break bread Paul talked with him intending to depart on the next day and he prolonged his speech until midnight." Here we see the church gathered for two very important things. First they were eating together we're gonna do that today so we're biblical. And second they were gathered for instruction from God's Word. Here we see that Paul instructs them well into the night up to midnight and these things take place on the first day of the week which is Sunday.

Maybe this tells me that I can preach long on Sunday but not long on Wednesday. Our next example is the church at Corinth in 1st Corinthians 16 verses 1 to 2 those verses say, "Now concerning the collection for the saints that's taking up money as I directed the churches in Galatia so you also are to do on the first day of every week each of you is to put something aside store it up as he may prosper so that there will be no collecting when I come." Here we see Paul giving the church instructions on how to take up a collection.

Notice he says on the first day of every week this strongly implies if not outright says that the church at Corinth met on the first day of the week every week and that is Sunday. And if we do some language study here we make a very interesting find. In all four Gospels there is an unusual way of expressing the first day of the week for the resurrection of Jesus. In the original it literally reads the number one of the Sabbath. I know that sounds odd it's an odd construction of the language. And language scholars tell us that this is very bold language.

The simple words for first are seen over a hundred and fifty times in the New Testament but this unusual wording is found in the Gospels and only pertaining to the resurrection except for two other places in the New Testament Acts 20 verse 7 in 1 Corinthians 16 2. So the determination here is this resurrection day and the first day of the week when the church met for worship were distinguished as unique and special days by the emphasis given from this unusual bold wording. That needs to be repeated.

The determination here is that resurrection day and the first day of the week were distinguished as unique and special days by the emphasis given with this unusual wording. So it is easy to see that the New Testament Christians both the Jews and the Gentiles they began to worship on the first day of the week that was in his Sunday. Resurrection day was seen as the completion of God's redemptive work.

It was and is a day of victory celebration and worship so it was natural that the church would meet on that day the first day that Sunday and resurrection day and the first day of the week when the church met were clearly distinguished as unique and special days because of the unique way those days were called. Resurrection day Sunday worship was the number one of the Sabbath. The third observation and this one's a little shorter. Notice that a unique name for Sunday seems to have taken hold by the time we get to the book of Revelation. We know what was taking place when John wrote the book of Revelation.

John the Apostle was in exile on the island of Patmos and as God begins to unfold to him those great visions John says in chapter 1 verse 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day. So it seems that John is giving the first day Sunday maybe a new name the Lord's Day. Now what is my point here and this is a good place for you to say so what so what does this mean to me pastor what does this mean to me today. I want to give you a brief education here this is a refresher for some of you the New Testament Church did two things.

First they began to worship on the first day of the week or Sunday they began to worship on resurrection day for that is when their Lord had risen and they begin to worship on Holy Spirit Day for that is the day that the Holy Spirit was poured out and the church was born and second they distinguished resurrection day and the day they met for worship as a unique day by the way they described it or named it. It became the number one day of the Sabbath or the number one day after the Jewish Sabbath Sunday and then at the end of the canon or the New Testament it became the Lord's Day.

Now I know I have said this before but I think we really should call Sunday the Lord's Day. The last time I preached on this topic I said that I don't know that I have made that transition myself but I think we should transition to calling Sunday the Lord's Day. John the Apostle he did he called Sunday the Lord's Day because it was resurrection day and it was the number one day after the old worn out Jewish Sabbath day and I think we should call Sunday the Lord's Day because that is what it is.

It is his day it is the Lord's Day and my call for us here is this let's see Sunday the Lord's Day all throughout January in the new year let's even move away from calling it Sunday it might be a hard habit to break let's call it the Lord's Day just like the Apostle John and you know I thought about something language means something words mean something if I call you a brother or a sister in the Lord that means something if I look at you and I talk with you and I say I love you and you say I love you back some of you do some of us do talk like that that means something well this language here means something because when we say it's the Lord's Day that speaks of ownership and possession because it does now I want to move into what the New Testament teaches so number three the New Testament teaching here number three what the New Testament teaches here as we have seen the New Testament implies and I believe shows us that the church is to meet on the first day of the week and that's Sunday and in the New Testament we clearly and undeniably see that the old covenant fades into obscurity and the new covenant is revealed in Christ and as that happened the old covenant day of worship faded and gave way to a new day of worship Sunday the first day after the old Jewish Sabbath and we see the church assembled on the first day of the week all throughout the New Testament so it is obviously implied it's obviously exemplified and I believe expected that we meet on the first day even though it is not stated or commanded that the church need on the first day and we clearly see in the New Testament that the New Testament church model that the church is to meet for worship on that day and for the most part the church throughout history has testified to this fact in this reality but in the New Testament there are very specific instructions concerning the day of worship but these instructions are against keeping the old covenant Sabbath in the church now I need to repeat that in the New Testament there are instructions concerning the day of worship but the specific instructions are commandments against keeping the old covenant Sabbath and Sabbath days in the church now this is what was happening we see in the New Testament that there were false teachers who infiltrated many of the New Testament churches we have been seeing that in our study in the book of Philippians on Wednesday nights the fact that after Paul came in and out of cities these false teachers would come in behind him and these false teachers were teaching that a person was saved by grace through faith but they added something to grace and one of the things they did was they said that a Christian must keep the Old Testament law as well simply they were mixing salvation by grace through faith with Judaism they were mixing salvation by grace through faith with law keeping that would be works now at this point here there are three portions of scripture I want us to look into first Romans chapter 14 now I don't have time to read that chapter as a matter of fact I can't do all the work for you I gotta leave something for you to do go study Romans chapter 14 and there in Romans 14 we have the situation where Paul was addressing the church at Rome with a very specific problem within the church at Rome there were mature Jewish and Gentile Christians and there were immature Jewish and Gentile Christians as well and basically this is what was happening some Jewish Christians were holding on to the old covenant dietary laws and Sabbath days and even sacrificing at the temple and Paul calls them weaker Christians and he does not strongly condemn them but he definitely calls them weaker brothers so Paul calls these brothers weaker Christians this is not an open condemnation but it's not an affirmation of their behavior either most importantly he calls all in the church to accept it's in love now get that he did not rebuke the weaker Christians nor does he exalt the stronger Christians in Romans 14 he calls all of them in the church to accept one another and to love one another no matter if they are the weaker or the stronger but then second the Galatian situation the Galatian situation now with this set of circumstances I want to read a couple of verses Galatians chapter 4 verses 9 to 11 this was a very serious situation for Paul in this church that's why we're going to study Galatians soon in our small groups Galatians 4 9 to 11 Paul says but now that you have come to know God or rather to be known by God what is he saying you're Christian you've been converted to Christ you've come out of Judaism you've been born again but notice what he says how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world whose slaves you want to be once more you observe days and months and seasons in years what is he referring to he is referring to Judaism he's referring to Sabbath days Sabbath rests all throughout the old covenant and he says in verse 11 I am afraid I have labored over you in vain within the Galatian church what was happening was this there were a group of false teachers they were called Gnostics and they came into the church and the Gnostics were calling these Christians back into keeping parts of the Mosaic law Gnostic teaching called them to keep certain Jewish Sabbath days certain Sabbath months and Sabbath years and here Paul strongly condemns the practice in verse 9 he says they were going back to weak worthless elemental things Paul says that they were going back to being slaves all over again so Paul clearly condemns those who were seeking to go back into keeping certain parts of the Mosaic law in those days would have been the old covenant Jewish Sabbath days third the Colossian situation the Colossian situation I want to read some verses here as well Colossians 2 16 to 17 Paul says to the Colossian church therefore let no one pass judgment on you and questions of food and drink or with regard to festival or new moon or a Sabbath well what is all this this is all Judaism old covenant stuff if I can use that term what does he say in verse 17 these are a shadow of the things to come but the substance belongs to Christ now within the Colossian church there was a group judging Christians because they were not keeping the Jewish law specifically the dietary regulations the festivals and the Sabbath days and here Paul condemns their judgment he calls them to Christ and reminds them that all things in the law were a mere shadow of what was to come well what was to come Christ Jesus that needs repeating Paul condemns this teaching which called these Christians back to the Jewish dietary regulations back to the Jewish festivals back to the Jewish Sabbath days and he calls them back to Christ he reminds them that all things in the law were a mere shadow of what was to come and what has come was and is Christ and he had come for them so Paul clearly condemns those who expected the Colossian Christians to keep the Jewish Sabbath which was the Sabbath day and he calls them back to Christ now listen to this quick overview overview of what we see in the New Testament this is big picture flyover I know nowhere in the New Testament are Christians commanded to keep the old covenant Sabbath or old covenant regulations that needs to be repeated the New Testament does not command Christians to keep the old covenant Sabbath or any of the old covenant regulations in fact it's the opposite Hebrews 8 13 states that the old covenant is obsolete obsolete in Acts 15 at the Jerusalem Council church leaders meant to work out some of the first theological problems in the fledgling church and in the judgments they handed down they never imposed worshiping on the old covenant Sabbath for the new Gentile believers and holding on to any old covenant regulations was condemned in Romans 14 Galatians 4 and Colossians 2 let me repeat that holding on to any of the old covenant regulations was clearly and strongly condemned by Paul in Romans 14 Galatians 4 and Colossians 2 so in its example the New Testament church met on Sunday the first day by implication and I believe expectation the New Testament teaches us that the church should meet on Sunday the first day now what's my point here you might be saying so what pastor that's a whole lot now I don't know if I can get all that what does that mean to me first we must see that the New Testament strongly condemns the keeping of any old covenant regulations by New Covenant believers that is what we are and that includes old covenant Sabbath days our seventh day Adventist friends they're just simply wrong they're just wrong they need to let go the old and grab a hold to the new and listen church remember that the old covenant was full it was nothing but types and shadows which pointed to the promised Messiah that he was coming and look he has come we live on this side so all of those types and shadows of the old covenant are fulfilled in Christ again listen to Colossians 2 16 to 17 Paul says therefore let no one pass judgment on you in question of food and drink with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath these are a shadow of the things to come but the substance belongs to Christ the substance has come and look personally that is why I do not like calling Sunday which is the Lord's Day I do not like calling that a Christian Sabbath you just don't see that language in Scripture and look I know that if I say that in certain circles I'll get in hot water I'll be frowned upon because there are a lot of strong good believers who call Sunday the Christian Sabbath I just don't see that there and then second by implication and expectation I believe that the New Testament teaches that the church should meet on Sunday the first day which is the Lord's Day so I believe churches that offer worship times such as Friday nights or Saturday nights as they substitute to Sunday they're wrong now is there anything wrong with having worship times at other times of the week no churches can decide to meet at other times of the week for various and good reasons we meet on Wednesday nights why for one thing it's kind of a common expectation in our culture but we should meet at other times beside just Sunday just think about it there could be churches around the world that it's more common for them to meet on a Monday night or a Thursday night or a Friday night is there anything wrong with that no but look at what we do on Wednesday nights it's good I'm ready to get back but listen folks a Wednesday night service a Friday night service we have a revival renewal meeting coming up in the spring we will meet Sunday Sunday night Monday Tuesday Wednesday a Monday a Tuesday on Wednesday night cannot take the place for a Lord's Day service I do not believe it can now at this point I want us to see what must be our position and our approach to one another now this is very serious see the longer we're in the life of the church we begin to realize that we're all a little different yeah well how do we react to one another when we're different first and foremost we must be gracious accepting and loving towards one another even when we may live out our Christian life a little different than one another there's at least one person that needs to hear me say that again we must be gracious accepting and loving towards one another even when we may live out our Christian life in a different way than one another in Romans chapter 14 we learned that those who have Liberty in an area of life and those who have conviction in that same area must walk hand in hand Romans 14 teaches us that we must accept love and support one another even in the areas of conviction where we may different and not to judge and not to despise one another and to judge and to despise is a grievous sin I'll give you an example someone or some family may have firm convictions about eating out on a Sunday or recreation on a Sunday but then there are some others who might not be bound by those kind of convictions well how do we react do you get in your car you watch a brother or sister headed out to eat on a Sunday and you just grit your teeth and you go up and down left and right with your wife and family no remember Romans 14 says that we accept one another we're gracious to one another we're loving towards one another even when we live out our Christian faith a little different so we must be gracious accepting and loving towards one another even when we may live Sunday a little different but listen to some of the errors that I have seen many make here and I think that some of these may apply to you more than you know I've given you this list before but I've added it to it I've tweaked it this week the first error the error of not setting aside Sunday is the Lord's Day there are those who do whatever they want to do on the Lord's Day because for them it's just another Saturday any kind of recreation any kind of activity really just anything because it has become just another Saturday they work hard Monday to Friday so Saturday is Saturday Sunday is Saturday well that is an error that is a sin that is a trap and that can be a big sin in the life of many churches Christians should not view Sunday that way the Lord's Day next the error of setting aside part of the day is the Lord's Day I saw this happened to a friend of mine who pastors a larger church they were in the process of canceling an early service some came and said to him we want to keep the early service because that gives us time to do whatever we want to do the rest of the day that is a wrong way of thinking there that is an error that's a trap that some can get into you might say pastor you being a little hypocritical don't we cancel Sunday night sometimes we're not going to have Sunday night tonight what do I always tell you to do get some rest rest could be different for you than it is for me we should see that as a time of rest and not overdo it and treat it like it is a another part of Saturday but then this is another one that some of you need to hear the error of carrying a trump card to be used against the Lord's Day when you need it or when it's convenient now you know what a trump card is when you play cards you know it doesn't matter what the trump card is if it's a trump card it trumps all the other cards if a two is a trump card well that trumps the ace isn't that right I think you get that so what I'm saying is this there are some who always have things that always seem to trump the Lord's Day family needs they trump the Lord's Day sometimes work that trumps the Lord's Day work and all kinds of things seem to trump the Lord's Day hobbies that can trump the Lord's Day that kind of mindset that kind of error that's sin that's sin now some of you need to look at some family and say I'm sorry it's the Lord's Day I can Monday some of you need to look at work and say I can get that on Monday or Tuesday this is the Lord's Day think about those things because sometimes people get into that trap and then there's the error of the proverbial ox in the ditch I've used this one before this is a reference to Luke chapter 14 verse 5 where under the old covenant it was lawful to get an ox out of the ditch or a well on the Sabbath see that was work but it was lawful to rescue the animal or work on the Sabbath and that was work on the Sabbath but it was lawful and even good because of the great need of the animal and the value of the animal I've told this story before but I have known people who always had an ox in the ditch I knew a man years ago he always had an ox in the ditch there always times he would say well you know pastor I couldn't be there I had an ox in the ditch I had to work I had this ox I had to work here and do this look for him it was an excuse he should have got that ox out of the ditch on Friday or Saturday or Thursday for him it was just being lazy and that can be an error a trap that some can get into this one can get many of you the error of running out of gas on the Lord's Day the error of running out of gas on the Lord's Day now I'm not talking about running out of gas in your car on the way to church some of you sometimes you do so much on Friday and especially Saturday you don't have enough strength for the Lord's Day you're out of gas listen church if what you were doing on Friday and Saturday wears you down and wears your family out to the point where you don't have enough strength and energy for the Lord's Day I think that's sin see you're wrongheaded there you're not thinking about these things like you should because whose day is it the Lord's Day this sitting in my notes but I think it fits when it's our anniversary whose day does that belong to belong to every man in here every husband in here ought to say it's my wife's day you let yourself be tired and worn out and you don't have any strength and energy for your anniversary and what happens your wife's not too happy so what about the Lord's Day some of you you're just out of gas on Sunday the Lord's Day why because you just do too much you don't live wisely making the best use of your time and one big one for some the error of extreme rules on the Lord day on the Lord's Day now the wrong question here is this what shouldn't I do on the Lord's Day some are always caught up in that question what should I not do what should I not do what should I not do the right question is this what should I do if you get the what should I do right the what I shouldn't do right will take care of itself when it comes to rules and such on the Lord's Day here's my question what does the scripture say what does the scripture say can we find that rule and that teaching and that principle in the scripture I've used this quote before John Piper captures the right approach here well he says we want a swirl of God activity on the Lord's Day we want a swirl of God's activity on the Lord's Day we should be busy with a flurry of God's activity on the Lord's Day and notice how balanced we are folks there are times on Sunday nights I say go home get some rest but come back the next one because we're gonna hit the ground running which is what we'll start next week now as I begin to close the question how does this relate to the new year and how does this relate to walking wisely in the new year this is my call this is my charge to you as your pastor let's make sure we walk and live wisely as we relate to Sunday the Lord's Day let's all make sure we walk and live wisely all throughout the week so that Sunday the Lord's Day can be all that it should be look let's make sure we study and know Ephesians 5 15 to 18 let's make sure we understand what it means and we can live it so it can affect our approach and how we live for the Lord's Day again John Piper he really hits the nail on the head we want God's Day the Lord's Day to be a swirl of God activity not just this Sunday not just the Lord's Day is throughout January but all through the year so the title of the message this is what I'm calling walking wisely because we're carrying that theme all the way through these messages walking wisely we worship on the Lord's Day.

We worship on the Lord's Day. Let's pray.