What Adventists Believe About the Seventh-day Sabbath

During the first six days of creation, God made everything necessary for humans to live and thrive. But He wasn’t quite finished with the whole creation process. On the seventh day, God created the Sabbath. His last act of creation was to sanctify this day and make it holy. Then He rested. 

When God rested on the seventh day, He set an example for us. He gave the weekly Sabbath as a day of rest and worship for all of mankind. The Sabbath is a memorial, a day when we remember God’s creative power. 

Keeping the Sabbath allows us to rest our physical bodies. God doesn’t need to rest, but He knows human beings do. It’s important for our mental and physical health to take time to rest and refresh. Studies have shown that people who take time to rest from their labors are healthier and more productive. As Psalm 23:2,3 says, “He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He refreshes my soul.” 

When we rest, we put aside the cares of the world, which allows us to focus on our relationship with Jesus. Just like any meaningful relationship, it’s important to spend time together, talk together and get to know one another. 

The Sabbath was made for mankind for our own good. God wants you to experience thankfulness and joy on the Sabbath day! 

The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week. We can follow Jesus’ example by refraining from our regular daily work to focus on Him and His creation. Leviticus 23:3 tells us, “‘There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a day of sabbath rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a sabbath to the Lord.”  

Adventists believe the Sabbath is a blessing for every created person, and it reminds us that we each have a powerful Creator and a loving Savior. 

We encourage you to take a closer look at this fundamental belief with your pastor, Bible study group or online at Adventist.org/the-sabbath.

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Seventh-day Adventist Belief #20: The Sabbath

The gracious Creator, after the six days of Creation, rested on the seventh day and instituted the Sabbath for all people as a memorial of Creation. The fourth commandment of God’s unchangeable law requires the observance of this seventh-day Sabbath as the day of rest, worship, and ministry in harmony with the teaching and practice of Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath. The Sabbath is a day of delightful communion with God and one another. It is a symbol of our redemption in Christ, a sign of our sanctification, a token of our allegiance, and a foretaste of our eternal future in God’s kingdom. The Sabbath is God’s perpetual sign of His eternal covenant between Him and His people. Joyful observance of this holy time from evening to evening, sunset to sunset, is a celebration of God’s creative and redemptive acts.

(Genesis 2:1-3; Exodus 20:8-11; 31:13-17; Leviticus 23:32; Deuteronomy 5:12-15; Isaiah 56:5, 6; 58:13, 14; Ezekial 20:12, 20; Matthew 12:1-12; Mark 1:32; Luke 4:16; Hebrews 4:1-11)

By Southwestern Union Communication and Adventist.org