The scriptures reveal that God was so opposed to His people engaging in profane labor on the Sabbath that He actually designated the sixth day as a period to prepare for this holy time. Even the Great Creator prepared for His Sabbath. Notice God's words:

Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or not. And it shall come to pass, that on the sixth day they shall prepare that which they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily (Ex. 16:4-5).

        God declares that He rained down enough manna that the Israelites could collect a double portion on the sixth day with the express purpose of "proving" the Israelites. In other words, He did this to see if they were truly committed to obeying Him. If they were, they would gather enough food on Friday to satisfy their needs for both that day and the next. They would then cook all of it on the preparation day. Note the instructions Moses gave to God’s people.

And it came to pass, on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. And he said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, Tomorrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake today, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning. And they laid it up till morning, as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein. And Moses said, Eat that today; for today is a Sabbath unto the LORD: to day ye shall not find it in the field. Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, in it there shall be none. And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none. (Ex. 16:22-27)

   

        These verses reveal that God had to supernaturally intervene to provide a way for the Israelites to properly honor His Sabbath. In this case, He not only provided twice as much food on the preparation day, but He also miraculously preserved it so that it would not spoil.
        The point to all of this is that God intended for His Sabbath to be treated differently. It was HOLY TIME. Therefore, He would personally make sure His people had a way to keep it holy.
        But what about the Israelites who failed to prepare adequately? What were they to do? Were they to go out and buy food from someone else on the Sabbath? Absolutely not! God did not give them an alternative food source when they failed to prepare on the sixth day. The scriptures state "they found none."
        Is there a lesson for God’s people today in the action He took so very long ago? It would certainly seem so. Based on His clear instructions to the children of Israel, perhaps we should ask ourselves a very important question: is it right for us to go outside our spiritual camp, and buy from others on the Sabbath if we fail to adequately prepare for this day?

The Significance of the Preparation Day
        Today almost all of God’s people understand the great significance of His Sabbath and holy days. These appointed times declare a magnificent plan that was envisioned by Him before the world was created.
        With this in mind, consider what God could be teaching His people with the creation of a preparation day. If the Sabbath pictures God’s kingdom (Heb. 4:9-10), could the sixth day be telling us that, during the first six thousand years, His people must properly prepare themselves in order to enter into that kingdom? In other words, if we do not make ourselves ready for God’s millennial rest, will God allow us to be a part of it?
        Additionally, will we prepare for that kingdom by following His instructions, or do we think we can forge our own path and do it a different way? It is clear that some believe the latter because Jesus actually warned against such thinking, saying:

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, you that work iniquity (Mt. 7:21-23).

        When Jesus spoke of those who worked iniquity, He was referring to people who did not keep His law. A cornerstone of that law is His Sabbath. With this in mind, is it possible that Jesus’ warning could also apply to those who refuse to honor His instructions concerning the preparation day? After all, these instructions were given to ensure that God’s people could keep the Sabbath holy as He intended. Remember, He did it to “PROVE THEM” (Ex. 16:4-5).
        Now consider a sobering thought – could people in God’s Church today, ultimately end up crying out "Lord, Lord" to Jesus Christ when He returns because they failed to obey the fourth commandment, including the appropriate preparation for it? Does the convenience of dining out on the Sabbath actually make the preparation day somehow less meaningful to God’s people? Does it blur the truth regarding our need to prepare for the Kingdom?
        Certainly, today, there is no great sense of urgency with respect to preparing food for the Sabbath, and correspondingly, there is seemingly little sense of urgency to overcome sin in order to prepare for God's coming Kingdom. After all, if God’s people refuse to do the seemingly little things in this life, like preparing  for His Sabbath, why would they think that they need to do the big things like plan and prepare for His Kingdom (Luk. 16:10)? These are serious words and should not be taken lightly. Notice what God said to Israel because of their cavalier attitude regarding His Sabbath and how they prepared for it.

How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws? See, for that the Lord hath given you the Sabbath, therefore He giveth you the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place. Let no man go out of his place on the seventh day (Ex. 16:28-29).

        Here, God is rebuking the children of Israel for their failure to honor His Sabbath. Specifically, He was condemning their lack of preparation. In essence, God was conveying to His people three critical elements concerning eating on the Sabbath. These elements were as follows:

1) Food was not to be acquired on the Sabbath.
2) Food was not to be prepared on the Sabbath.
3) People were not to leave "their place" to acquire or prepare food.

Where Do We Belong on the Sabbath?
        Notice that God said, "let no man go out of his place" on the Sabbath. With these words, He did not mean that individuals could not leave their tent for any reason.  This is evident by the fact that they left their tents when Moses assembled them on the Sabbath and holy days (Num. 10:3-10; 29). Additionally, Jesus dined at the homes of others on the Sabbath (Lk. 14:1-6).
        The point God was making with these instructions was that the Israelites were not to leave their place for the purpose of gathering or preparing food on the Sabbath day. Furthermore, they had no need to do so. God had already provided the preparation day and all the food they would need for two days. Consider that, if God prohibited the Israelites from going outside their place to acquire and prepare food on the Sabbath, why would He approve of His people doing so today?  The answer is HE WOULDN’T!
        During the time of Moses, the people sinned by leaving their physical place in order to acquire or prepare food.  Whether it is our home, a Church hall, or even our vehicle transporting us to and from a place of worship, our place on the Sabbath day is where God's law is observed.  Today, God’s people sin by leaving their spiritual place, the household of faith on the Sabbath, and going into the secular, commercial world where God's law is not being kept (Eph. 2:17, Acts 15:21).

Breaking Every Rule
        In reality, those who dine out on the Sabbath are breaking every aspect of God’s command with respect to eating on the His sacred day of rest. Consider what they do. They acquire food on the Sabbath. They have it prepared for them on the Sabbath. And they go outside the community of faith to procure the food as well as to consume it. Tragically, many of God’s people rationalize every one of these practices. Even more tragic is the fate that awaits them if they fail to repent of this sin.
        It is also important to understand that God’s instructions to Israel were given a thousand years before Nehemiah was even a twinkle in his father’s eye. Simply put, His people were not to go out into a world of unbelievers on the Sabbath. This command seems so obvious and is totally consistent with God’s character. The Sabbath is holy. This being the case, why would God’s people even want to be a part of a society that profanes this day?
        Virtually every person working in a restaurant on the Sabbath is breaking God’s command. Furthermore, they trespass against this wonderful law every time they comply with orders given to them by their patrons, including God’s people. With this in mind, do you really want to give that order?

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