⁴ For He has said somewhere concerning the seventh day: “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works”; ⁵ and again in this passage, “They certainly shall not enter My rest.” Hebrews 4:4-5

Sunday is the most valuable day of the week. If you fail on Sunday, you will fail on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and the rest of the week. The fourth commandment, to keep the Lord’s Day holy, can be considered the cornerstone commandment. If you’re looking for a place to start regarding commandments, start with the fourth. If you observe the Lord’s Day and keep it holy, it propels you to keep the rest of the commandments. However, if you disregard the fourth commandment, you lose the traction to keep the other commandments. The fourth commandment is the stepping stone to all the other commandments.

The apostle John is exiled to the Island of Patmos, and on the Sabbath, he receives a vision of Christ: “On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard a loud voice like a trumpet.” The Holy Spirit moves and fills John because he suffered persecution for preaching the word of God and his testimony of Jesus Christ. John was able to see this great vision and be moved by the Holy Spirit because He suffered persecution and endured for the six days leading up to the Sabbath. In Acts 2: it says, “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting… All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”

If we prepare for six days, we will be filled with the Holy Spirit. How do we prepare for observing the Lord’s Day? For six days, we live according to His word. We do as God commands in every situation in our lives. Whether it’s troublesome, tedious, or difficult, we adhere to His commandments and live according to the Bible. We live for six days sticking to His word and overcoming obstacles and temptations. The results, good or bad, of how we lived for six days, show up on Sundays. Putting aside the content of the sermon, even as the preacher reads from Scripture, we will be filled with the Holy Spirit. Our Sundays will go, good or bad, according to the amount of preparation we put in.

If we live our lives, do what we want, think what we want, and say what we want for six days, and show up to church, don’t expect to be filled with Holy Spirit or experience any change whatsoever. Two people can be sitting in the same church, in the same row. One will receive grace and be filled with the Holy Spirit. The other will doze off. What’s the difference? It’s all in the preparation! Prepare to receive great things on Sunday by living good for six days.

And once you’ve put in the six days of work, of living godly and according to His word, observe the Lord’s Day. Put your job on hold. Put your business on hold. Put your studies on hold. Put off commerce (buying and selling). Clean your body, mind, and clothes and observe the Lord’s Day! With the six days of preparation and the doing the right things on Sunday, we receive the power and grace to live the next six days of our lives. We must continue this cycle instead of falling into the trap of living horribly for six days and wasting Sundays.

The fourth commandment is the starting point, the anchor, and springboard to living a life filled with the Holy Spirit. Never again will we wonder why there is no change or improvement in our lives. Never again will we live six days without a thought of God or His word and expect something magical to happen on Sunday. Do the preparation and the work to receive His grace!

Click for Korean sermon. https://soundcloud.com/yhpaik/1983-11-9a-1

Click for English reading. https://youtu.be/njVm7Kk9aYE