Jake and I were asked to speak together in stake conference for the Saturday session. They had told us to make it interactive, so we did our best. Jake always teaches so well, and he did not disappoint this time either. Many people afterwards told us how much they enjoyed it and some said best stake conference talk they had heard...it is all Jake. His purpose is to teach.
Keeping the Sabbath Holy has blessed our family
15 April 2022 (Saturday Stake Conference)
Introduction
The streets are lined with hundreds of people as the parade marches in, filled with music, laughter, and joy. Yet for one, the feeling of joy has been stripped. Quasimodo, crowned the ugliest man in the city at Festival of Fools in Paris in 1482 was raised up, mocked, and paraded through the crowd to be ridiculed for his looks. The next day, an attempt to free the man of his disability was attempted as he endured a few hours of torture, as other men stretched his body to try to straighten his body. In my mind I picture an old wood contraption that one was tied to and then pulled from end to end…ouch! You see, Quasimodo was a born a hunchback. In parallel, imagine life for Quasimodo or another in a similar situation. There was once a woman whom for eighteen years was bent over and could not straighten as told by the apostle Luke. Undoubtedly, she too had most likely been ridiculed and mocked. Sitting in the synagogue one Sabbath day, the scriptures teach she was set free from her “infirmity” as Jesus took note and looked over and called Woman you are free from your sickness. (Luke 10:13-17) The Pharisees were beside themselves once again as the Savior taught a new way of approaching the Sabbath, one that differed from their law. Through his example we learn of a sabbath made for healing souls and being there for others.
The Sabbath, a day described as a day of rest and one can find millions of opinions of what that looks like, even within in families there are differences. What is okay, what is not? The stake presidency must have realized that our family could improve in this area, as you know, often when given a topic to speak on, it is exactly what is needed. You may recall in conference a little while back a story was shared about a young boy, who was very involved in soccer, snuck away to participate in his soccer tournament. It was not made clear to my recollection if his parents ever knew, but his young man’s leader saw him sneaking through the bushes outside the building instead of attending class to the soccer fields (we can assume he was an involved leader in the lives to know the young man’s passion was soccer) and showed up later that evening at the young boy’s home. I am sure the young boy was like “oh no!” but the inspired leader did nothing more than ask the boy to teach the lesson the following week and had it marked. Later the young boy realized that the lesson was on “keeping the sabbath holy” and it forever changed his view on the Sabbath day, maybe the stake presidency has the same intention for our family. We are the Farrell’s, married for a little over 20 years, parents of 4, each siblings to 5, both middle school science teachers, and residents of Bartlett.
Open Discussion of what Savior did on the Sabbath (Jake)
Shabbot (Sabbath in Hebrew) = stop, rest, delight, worship
Old Testament Sabbath:
Exodus 20: 8-11 --- “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
“Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it”
Ezekiel 20:18-21 "But I said to their children in the wilderness, 'Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, nor observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols. I am the LORD your God: Walk in My statutes, keep My judgments, and do them; hallow My Sabbaths, and they will be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the LORD your God.' "Notwithstanding, the children rebelled against Me; they did not walk in My statutes, and were not careful to observe My judgments, 'which, if a man does, he shall live by them'; but they profaned My Sabbaths. Then I said I would pour out My fury on them and fulfill My anger against them in the wilderness.
Isaiah 58:13 The prophet Isaiah suggested that we should turn away from doing our own pleasure and should “call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable”
Christ’s example on Sabbath:
Matthew 12: 1-2, Mark 2:23, Luke 6:1-4 Jesus plucked corn to feed the hungered on the Sabbath Day.
Matthew 12: 10-12 Rescuing sheep from pit and is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath (See Mark 2:27)
Luke 6: 6,8 Jesus healed man with withered hand on the Sabbath
John 5:5-9 Jesus heals on the Sabbath, a man given ability the walk
John 9:14 Jesus made clay and opened his eyes on the Sabbath
Luke 6:9 And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to destroy it?
New Testament Apostles Sabbath:
Acts 13:13-14 and 44 Paul teaches on the Sabbath
Acts 16:13-15 Paul prays and baptizes on Sunday
Sabbath today:
D&C 59:9-10 In our day the Lord not given us many rules about the Sabbath. He has told us that on Sunday we are to “go to the house of prayer and offer up [our] sacraments” and that we are to “rest from [our] labors”
Mark 2:27 Jesus taught “the Sabbath was made for man”
*** Not for relaxation but rest. Real rest comes from communion/connection with Christ.
*** Renew yourself and then go lift others.
Scriptural Lessons about Sabbath from modern counsel:
Elder Jeffrey R Holland has taught the Sabbath Day is not a day about all the things we can’t do, that would be pathetic. He teaches if you visualize the star of David, it is the convergence of triangles making a six-pointed star. The convergence at the top is quite narrow and there are some things, we are limited in doing. We do not do some things on Sundays that we might have done appropriately through the week. But the flip side of that Star of David is that those are open ended and expansiveness. Those triangles go out and out. The blessing of the Sabbath is that in some areas we restrict ourselves that the resulting freedom is tremendous expansivess. It is a day of dos and blessings.
President Russell M. Nelson gave some suggestions for keeping the Sabbath day holy. He said, “Make the Sabbath a delight by rendering service to others, especially those who are not feeling well or those who are lonely or in need. Lifting their spirits will lift yours as well. . . . Study of the gospel makes the Sabbath a delight. This promise pertains regardless of family size, composition, or location” (Russell M. Nelson, “The Sabbath Is a Delight,” Ensign, May 2015, 131; paragraphing altered) Am I living in a way that the Lord can have confidence in me? Am I living in a way that I can be an instrument in the Lord’s hands? Are you?
1. Elder Bruce R. McConkie (1915–85) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles stated that Sabbath observance is an eternal principle, and he noted five occurrences in the scriptures when observance of the Sabbath day was required by the Lord:
- “From the day of Adam to the Exodus from Egypt, the Sabbath commemorated the fact that Christ rested from his creative labors on the 7th day (Ex. 20:8–11).”
- “From the Exodus to the day of [Christ’s] resurrection, the Sabbath commemorated the deliverance of Israel from Egyptian bondage (Deut. 5:12–15).”
- “From the days of the early apostles to the present, the Sabbath has been the first day of the week, the Lord’s Day, in commemoration of the fact that Christ came forth from the grave on Sunday (Acts 20:7).”
- “The Latter-day Saints keep the first day of the week as their Sabbath … because the Lord so commanded them by direct revelation (D&C 59).” This revelation was given on Sunday, 7 August 1831.
- “Sabbath observance was a sign between ancient Israel and their God whereby the chosen people might be known (Neh. 13:15–22; Isa. 56:1–8; Jer. 17:19–27; Ezek. 46:1–7)” (Mormon Doctrine, 658; emphasis in original).
2. Elder Earl C Tingey (200) Two scriptures in particular teach us what we should do on the Sabbath and the promises that come from keeping the Sabbath.
1: The first scripture is found in the Old Testament:
“Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord.
“If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them;
“Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.
“And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.
“And I will give peace in the land, and ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid: and I will rid evil beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land. …
“For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you” (Lev. 26:2–6, 9).
2. The second scripture is found in the Doctrine and Covenants: “And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day;
“For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay thy devotions unto the Most High;
“Nevertheless thy vows shall be offered up in righteousness on all days and at all times;
“But remember that on this, the Lord’s day, thou shalt offer thine oblations and thy sacraments unto the Most High, confessing thy sins unto thy brethren, and before the Lord.
“And on this day thou shalt do none other thing, only let thy food be prepared with singleness of heart that thy fasting may be perfect, or, in other words, that thy joy may be full” (D&C 59:9–13).
3. Elder Ezra Taft Benson counsel:
“—Engage in activities that contribute to greater spirituality.
“—Attend essential Church meetings in the house of prayer.
“—Acquire spiritual knowledge by reading the scriptures, Church history and biographies, and the inspired words of our Church leaders.
“—Rest physically, get acquainted with your family, relate scriptural stories to your children, and bear your testimony to build family unity.
“—Visit the sick and aged shut-ins.
“—Sing the songs of Zion and listen to inspiring music.
“—Pay devotions to the Most High through prayer (personal and family), fasting, administration, and father’s blessings.
“—Prepare food with a singleness of heart: simple meals prepared largely on Saturday.
“—Remember that Sunday is the Lord’s day, a day to do his work.”
Randoms by Jake and Renee’
The Sabbath is so much more than just not working one day a week, it is a day to bring Jesus back into our lives.
“The Sabbath is a sacred and Divine institution, a privilege and benefit, not a task and drudgery. God never designed it to be a burden to us, therefore we must not make it so to ourselves. The Sabbath was instituted for the good of mankind, as living in society, having many wants and troubles, preparing for a state of happiness or misery. Man was not made for the Sabbath, as if his keeping it could be of service to God, nor was he commanded to keep it outward observances to his real hurt. Every observance respecting it, is to be interpreted by the rule of mercy.” -Matthew Henry
We do not need to focus on the sin but the healing and the Sabbath has been created for us to do that. A day to focus solely on the Savior to become healed. King Lamoni’s story. King Lamoni’s heart touched and when taught about gospel of Christ says, I will give all these things (my entire kingdom) to know this Christ. What things are willing to sacrifice for that? It then becomes a question of not what we cannot do but what we want to do to draw closer to him.
Break board into 5 areas: Only put up scriptures and allow audience to come up with headers)
1. Jesus healed on the Sabbath (Jake share fungus on finger story about thinking about it does not fix it but taking action—the Lord heals our souls).
Matthew 12:10-13
Luke 6:6,8
John 5: 5-9
John 9:14
2. Jesus fed the hungry
Matthew 12:1-2
3. Jesus attended church and taught (Jake shared story of in Utah when he did not attend because was not feeling/recognizing the Saviors love and Renee’ took kids alone most Sundays to church)
Mark 1:21
4. Do Good- Look for compassionate detours
Luke 6:9
5. Sabbath made for man
Mark 2:27 (final scripture shared)
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