Meaning of third commandment today
Since we do not observe the Sabbath day on Saturday because it was part of the Old Testament Law between God and the Israelites, how do we correctly follow the third commandment when it says that the Sabbath is supposed to be on the seventh day of the week?
As New Testament followers of the Lord, we recognize that the Sabbath day laws were part of the ceremonial law and are no longer in effect (Galatians 4:10-11, Colossians 2.16).
For New Testament followers of the Lord, the third commandment focuses our attention exclusively on the word of God and not a day of the week. That explains why Martin Luther wrote in his Catechism that, for Christians, God’s will in the third commandment is that “we do not despise preaching and his word but regard it as holy and gladly hear and learn it.” That explanation reflects what Scripture says (Psalm 122:1; Colossians 3:16; Hebrews 10:25).