Lesson 35. Time Is a Language of God’s Love

At the creation of our world, the Lord decided to set apart a special time for His creation. He Himself gave an example of what to do and how to keep this time holy.

We read in Genesis 2:2–3: “And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.”

Seven is the number of God’s fullness, a number symbolizing completion, harmony, and the authority of God.

When we speak of the human division of time, it can always be connected with something. A day is one rotation of the Earth upon its axis. A month is the renewal of the Moon’s illumination and its orbit around the Earth. But since this phase lasts from 27.2 to 29.6 days, for convenience these days have been adjusted to the completeness of the year. A year is one revolution of the Earth around the Sun.

But with what can we connect the week? No cycle in the world corresponds to this span of time. Only the event described in the first two chapters of the Bible points to it.

It is highly significant that the seventh day was given by the Creator to humanity, and not the other way around. This enables us to understand that God made this time special for human beings.

In my opinion, at the very beginning of earthly history the Lord came to meet with people on this very day. Adam and his wife knew this appointed time. After the Fall, they became afraid of God and hid, but the Creator found them.

When God came to this meeting, He pronounced sentence upon the sinners for violating His prohibition. Adam and Eve were expelled from Paradise, where they had formerly met with their Creator. Yet they were not separated from one another, and the order of time was not changed.

The family and the Sabbath were carried by humanity from holy life as memorials of that beautiful time when people could meet personally with God. These two gifts were given to humanity and have come down to our own day. In the last days, the enemy of the human soul directs his fiercest attacks precisely against these signs of God’s authority.

To perpetuate the holiness of the seventh day of the week, God placed it in the very center of His law and, together with His other commands, gave it to humanity as a commandment binding upon all people.

The Sabbath is a constant reminder to humanity of Who is the true Owner of the Earth and the Lawgiver. It is also a special portion of time during which God Himself commanded both people and working animals to do nothing, but to rest. The Lord also set this time apart for Himself, ordaining that every intelligent creature should keep the Sabbath holy unto God and worship Him on this day, showing the whole world that people honor God as the Creator and Lord of their lives.

God also comes to people on this day to have special fellowship with them, to bless His obedient children, and to give them new strength for the working week.

Some regard the Sabbath only as a prohibition against work, but it has a deeper meaning for the soul.

It is also interesting that this commandment cannot be fulfilled merely according to the letter of the law. Obedience must include a spiritual understanding of Who God is to me and what He does in my life.

Simply stopping on the Sabbath is good even for a working animal, but we are not mindless cattle called to labor for a portion of food. We human beings possess reason and will and can choose and evaluate what we have chosen.

All the commandments were given to humanity out of love, and they define the proper relationship of a person to God and of one person to another. The fourth Commandment points to the Lawgiver as the Creator of everything that exists, including you and me.

Love obeys God in all His commandments. These laws are written by the Creator Himself in the heart and mind of the person who believes, who loves, and who desires to live forever. My choice to follow Jesus gives me the right to know the entire depth of God’s love and receive its fullness into my heart. To know God better, I must spend more time with Him—thinking about Him, reading about Him, communicating with Him, listening to Him, and laboring with Him. If I practice this throughout the week in every sphere of my life, then on the Sabbath God Himself comes to me through His invisible Spirit, blessing and sanctifying me. This process is invisible to the eye, but it is written in the Word of God.

Exodus 31:12–13 says: “And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily My sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you.”

What love God has expressed in all His commandments! What care for human happiness! What joy it is to have such a caring Lord!

But concerning the Sabbath, God said, “Remember...” Why must we remember? The bustle of life causes us to forget the One to Whom we belong and what He desires to give us. God gives us time—His time. And within this time He gives Himself. God does this every week and watches to see what I will do with this Gift and how I will use It.

Try giving yourself to a friend or loved one for a single day within the bounds of God’s law. You will immediately see who you are to that person and how your time is valued. But God gives Himself continually.

Someone may say that every day belongs to God, and this is indeed true. But God has one special day on which He gives Himself to me. What love! And who will appreciate it? Who is able to understand and receive such a thing? My mind, limited by the flesh, cannot contain it.

Yet God’s love living in my heart reveals this mystery to me and brings into my mind all the beauty and harmony of obedience and unity with God on this day. Creation is united with the Creator, love with Love. Outwardly nothing unusual takes place, but my soul and spirit withdraw from the bustle, become calm, rest, reset, and are renewed.

God is Love, and when I receive Him, I also receive His love. It comes together with Him.

It is impossible to learn love outside obedience to the law.

“Love is the fulfilling of the law.” Romans 13:10.

Love does not need to be compelled to obey; it is obedience itself. Love reveals to me the spirit and beauty of every commandment, showing within the law the magnificence and harmony of God’s character, His mercy and justice.

God gives Himself in time. Where else can such a gift be found?

It is also interesting that throughout Eternity the Sabbath will remain the very day of worship that all the saved will honor in a special way. Once each month they will come into God’s presence for fruit from the Tree of Life, and every Sabbath they will come to worship God. They will receive this gift throughout Eternity, and Love in its pure form and fullness will be their eternal possession.

At present, preparations are being made for our relocation to Heaven, and we must leave as much as possible upon this Earth, not forgetting to renounce anything. Love points out to me everything that defiles my life and is displeasing in the sight of Heaven.

God gives Himself and, as He watches me, waits to see what I will give Him in return.

1. In the light of this lesson, please read Exodus 20:8–11 and Deuteronomy 5:12–15.

2. What do these passages have in common, and how do they differ? What new insight did you see in the interpretation of God’s commandment in Deuteronomy?

3. Did you hear anything new for yourself in this lesson? If so, what?

4. Do you see God’s love for you in the Sabbath commandment?

5. Read Isaiah 66:23 and answer: why will we worship God every month? Where is the explanation found in the Bible? See Revelation 22:2.

6. What blessings does the Sabbath bring to a person?

7. Why does the world keep another day holy?