Why do many worship and do Sabbath on Sunday instead of Saturday?
Who changed it, and when? In addition; if Sunday is the first day of the week and God rested on the seventh day, which would be Saturday, and said to keep it holy and do no work; how is it that we are taught that Sunday is the Sabbath day of worship and rest?
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Asked May 18 2013
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Anonymous
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Colin Wong
Supporter
By "worship on Sunday instead of Saturday" I assume you're really asking about the Sabbath, and why many Christians practice the Sabbath on Sunday instead of Saturday. While the concept of Sabbath is often associated with God's rest on the seventh day in the beginning of time, the earliest mention and practice of the Sabbath actually came during Moses' time. Exodus 31:16-17 The Lord said to Moses, "Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations, as a covenant forever. 17 It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed." The reason? So that Israel will forever remember God's deliverance out of Egypt. Deuteronomy 5:15 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day. When the early Christian Jews expanded outward, to the Gentiles, there arose a great question of whether Gentiles (being non-Jewish) are also yoked to Mosaic laws and Jewish traditions. There was a great debate on the matter of circumcision. Peter then stood up and said: Acts 15:10 Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? 11 But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will." The Jerusalem Council then decided that Christians now live by grace and are not bound to Jewish Mosaic laws. This decision is confirmed when Paul wrote to the Colossian church. Colossians 2:16 Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. Therefor the concept of a Christian Saturday/Sunday Sabbath is not biblical. It does not mean we should not take a day off and rest in the Lord. But that we should not be legalistic in insisting it must be on a certain day. To insist is to place again the yoke of Mosaic law on believers and destroy Jesus' work on the cross. In truth, we are to rest in the Lord every day, in everything that we do. Romans 14:5-9 One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. In conclusion, whether you choose to worship on Sunday or Saturday, or any day of the week, do it in honor of the Lord, and you will be fine.
Lisa Alexander
Supporter
It is wrong to say that the Sabbath is not biblical, because it is clearly stated in the bible the importance of the day. It also was created at the beginning of time and not in the day of Moses. Colossians is speaking on the mosaic laws that were on the outside of the ark. The Holy Sabbath was written by the hand of our Lord God and was inside the ark..The Commandments of God will stand until the end of time and after according to the word of God.. We are all Jews if we are in Christ Jesus. The bible clearly points this out.The Papacy makes it clear they changed the dayand if you do your homework in the bible you will read in Daniel God is not happy about it> Ask God and he will show you all truth through the holy Spirit.
Carl Naitram
Supporter
First of all it is quite obvious that God gave the Sabbath commanment to Israel as a nation. Not to see that is to close your eyes deliberately to the facts. Secondly God never repeated that specific commandment to the Church. To use the statements of keep my commandments to include the Sabbath is not being fair to the context in which they are found. Thirdly. Wherever the Old Testament commandments are specifically referred to in the New Testament the Sabbath is left out. Fourth. The Sabbath day was not originally a day of worship..but a day of rest. The Tabernacle and then later the temple services were daily...no specific day was given for worship. The Jews when they found themselves under Gentile rule brought and could not dictate what rules to have religiously started to meet on the sabbath day in small gatherings which eventually turned into synagogue services. But God never told them that the sabbath was the day of worship. Fifth. There is no commandment given to the church to meet on Sunday..or the first day of the week. They because of the resurrection Met on that day. Sixth. The Lord Jesus when answering the woman of Samaria about worshipping God said..."the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth : for the Father seeketh such to worship him. Worshipping God has very little to do about going to a place on a particular day. Cf Col 2:16,17 We are to worship God in Spirit and in Truth. That is by the way we live. In conduct and conversation. In other words a holy life. True worship of God is by our daily living. Obeying Him, praising Him, Serving Him, helping others. Too many take worship and put it in a box of a day or the service. For example we call the Sunday morning "worship service", but may call the evening service by another name....evengelical or missionary or bible study or prayer meeting. Therefore we dress up on Sunday mornings and sing particular hymns because we say it is the worship service however though we are going to the same building for the evening service there is a difference. Now the big thing is to call the first part of the service worship time and sing special choruses and songs. There are groups who believe they have taken the place of Israel and therefore the see the Sabbath is a commandment to them. That obviously is unscriptural and cultic. It is impossible to globally keep the Sabbath as commanded. In the begiining of their denomination the group which pushes the Sabbath more than any used to judge the time of the sabbath from 6 p.m on Friday to 6 p.m Saturday as commanded by their leader Ellen White..but later change it to sunset to sunset. However globally that has it problems for places like Alaska where during certain times of the year there the days are very long or the nights very long. Please dont get mixed up with Worship, rest, and service.
Lisa Gallman
Supporter
In hiding their eyes from God's true Sabbath, religious leaders offend the God of heaven. God promises punishment for such false shepherds. Millions have been misled on this matter. God cannot treat it lightly. Jesus condemned the Pharisees for pretending to love God while making void one of the Ten Commandments by their tradition (Mark 7:7-13). If ye love me, keep my commandments." John 14:15. "So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God." Romans 14:12. "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin." James 4:17. "Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city." Revelation 22:14. "Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God." Revelation 14:12. by all means, the Sabbath is your Sabbath. God made it for you, and if you love Him you will keep it, because it is one of His commandments. Love without commandment-keeping is no love at all (1 John 2:4). You must make a decision. You cannot avoid it. No one can excuse you. You yourself will answer before God on this most important matter. God asks you to love and obey Him now! The Sabbath is not just for the Jews only! No. Jesus said, "The sabbath was made for man." Mark 2:27. It is not for the Jews only, but for mankind--all men and women everywhere. The Jewish nation did not even exist until 2,500 years after the Sabbath was made. Acts 20:7-12 is NOT proof that the disciples kept Sunday as a holy day? According to the Bible, each day begins at sundown and ends at the next sundown (Genesis 1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31 Leviticus 23:32) and the dark part of the day comes first. So Sabbath begins Friday night at sundown and ends Saturday night at sundown. This meeting of Acts 20 was held on the dark part of Sunday, or on what we now call Saturday night. The New English Bible* begins Acts 20:7 like this: "On the Saturday night in our assembly..." It was a Saturday-night meeting, and it lasted until midnight. Paul was on a farewell tour and knew he would not see these people again before his death (verse 25). No wonder he preached so long! (No regular weekly service would have lasted all night.) Paul was "ready to depart on the morrow." The "breaking of bread" has no "holy day" significance whatever, because they broke bread daily (Acts 2:46). There is not the slightest indication in this Scripture passage that the first day is holy, nor that these early Christians considered it so. Nor is there the remotest evidence that the Sabbath had been changed. Incidentally, this meeting is probably mentioned in the Scripture only because of the miracle of raising Eutychus back to life after he fell to his death from a third-floor window. In Ezekiel 46:1, God refers to Sunday as one of the six "working days." 1 Corinthians 16:1, 2 does NOT speak of Sunday school offerings? No, there is no reference here to a public meeting. The money was to be laid aside privately at home. A famine was raging in Judea (Romans 15:26; Acts 11:26-30), and Paul was writing to ask the churches in Asia Minor to assist their famine-stricken brethren. These Christians all kept Sabbath holy, so Paul suggested that on Sunday morning (which was the time they paid bills and settled accounts), after the Sabbath was over, they put aside something for their needy brethren so it would be on hand when he came. It was to be done privately or, as La Santa Biblia (a Spanish translation) says, "at home." Notice also that there is no reference here to Sunday as a holy day. In fact, the Bible nowhere commands or even suggests Sunday-keeping. Time has NOT been lost and the days of the week have NOT been changed since the time of Christ? No! Reliable encyclopedias and reference books make it clear that our seventh day is the same one that Jesus kept holy. It is a simple matter of research. Furthermore, John 20:19 records of the disciples is NOT instituting Sunday keeping in honor of the resurrection? On the contrary, the disciples at this time did not believe that the resurrection had taken place (Mark 16:14). They had met there "for fear of the Jews" and had the doors bolted. When Jesus appeared in their midst, He rebuked them "because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen." There is no implication that they counted Sunday as a holy day. Only eight texts in the New Testament mention the first day of the week; none of them imply that it is holy. Also, Colossians 2:14-17 does NOT do away with the seventh-day Sabbath? Not at all. It refers only to the sabbaths which were "a shadow of things to come" and not to the seventh-day Sabbath. There were seven yearly holy days, or holidays, in ancient Israel which were also called sabbaths. These were in addition to, or "beside the sabbaths of the Lord" (Leviticus 23:38), or seventh-day Sabbath. These all foreshadowed, or pointed to, the cross and ended at the cross. God's seventh-day Sabbath was made before sin entered, and therefore could foreshadow nothing about deliverance from sin. That's why Colossians chapter 2 differentiates and specifically mentions the sabbaths that were "a shadow." These seven yearly sabbaths which were abolished are listed in Leviticus chapter 23. Romans 14:5, Does not state it is a matter of personal opinion:... Notice that the whole chapter is on judging one another (Verses 4, 10, 13). The issue here is not over the seventh-day Sabbath, which was a part of the great moral law, but over the yearly feast days of the ceremonial law. Jewish Christians were judging Gentile Christians for not observing them. Paul is simply saying, "Don't judge each other. That ceremonial law is no longer binding," but the Sabbath is!
Anonymous
The reason Sabbath (Saturday) definitely is important and not Sunday or "just any day you care to" is because it is the 7th day - the one that God himself sanctioned. He designated and appointed *that* day. In other words, He made a standing appointment for all the rest of time to be with you in spirit while you rest and reflect on how wonderful He is and all He has done and always will do for us. We owe it to Him to keep this appointment - it is the very least we can do.
Anonymous
The Sabbath is the 4th Commandment written by the very finger of God. It is not part of the Mosaic Law whatsoever. God commands it, therefore we do it because we love Him. It is not legalistic to obey God. It is not legalistic to enjoy a day of rest and Holy convocation with the Lord, as the Lord has appointed it. It is a weekly appointment with Him and we as His children do not have the authority to change it. The Sabbath is a day that God himself sanctified at creation, and that is the 7th day of the week. It is a gift. Just read the first few chapters of Genesis. God promises a special blessing for those who keep the Sabbath Holy. We as unholy, sinful creatures cannot just keep any day of the week and say that we are keeping the Sabbath. Not every day is sanctified like the 7th day Sabbath. The 4th Commandment says THE Sabbath, not A Sabbath. Paul also said that God forbid that we do away with the Law simply because Jesus died on the cross. Praise God for it because it was necessary for the penalty of our sins to be paid, but that doesn't give us a license to sin freely. Paul writes in Hebrews 10 that if we knowingly sin, there no longer remains a sacrifice for our sins. We must take God's Word as a whole, not just the parts that fit our own personal desires and convenience. Jesus quoted the Old Testament when Satan tempted Him in the wilderness saying, "man shall not live by bread alone, but by EVERY word that proceeds out of the mouth of God." Paul also tells us in Galatians 3 that if we are of faith, we are all ONE in Christ and heirs of Abraham's seed. There is no difference between Jew or Gentile in the context of our faith in God and Christ.
Anonymous
My opinion is that God sanctified and made the 7th day holy. It still should be because no man has the right to change any commandments authored by the Holy God. There were no Jews alive at creation when God declared it holy. If the 4th commandment no longer applies then neither should the other 9. It is also my opinion that man makes the Bible much more difficult to understand with his interpretations of what it's saying rather than taking it as it reads. As information, I am a Southern Baptist. Should a Sabbath observing Church of God open in my vicinity, I would visit with the intention of becoming a member. One more word on interpretations - I'd be careful of changing His word that jot or tittle that is so dangerous!
Tracy Wilmoth
Supporter
In the last days mankind will be followers of his own rules and not of the Lord's (Revelations). Man himself changed the sabbath to suit his own selfish needs. If we are saved only by grace alone then what purpose does this life have? Saved by grace alone would mean we all go to heaven regardless of the sins we have committed yet we know that the road to the Father is a narrow one and nobody can come to the Father except through Christ. Saved by grace alone is a piece of the puzzle that does not fit. There seems to be a grave misunderstanding in this world today in that WE get to choose whether or not we enter heaven. You must receive your calling first and then decide whether you will answer it or not. Satan is the great deceiver and what better way could there be then to deceive through misrepresentation and confusion of the Father's Laws.
Tim Beeker
Supporter
This is from another forum I posted in, elsewhere on the Web. It might get a bit convoluted at points, but I think it covers the question about Shabbat and the other view as to which one is valid. Before I get too far, I just want to remind folks of Romans 2:13, which declares that it is the doers of Torah who will be justified. :-) --------------------------------------------------------------- One of the constituent parts of Messianic belief is that the biblical Shabbat has not been done away with. I am hopeful that this thread will allow this assumption to be recognized as valid. This will call for study, in different disciplines, on both sides of the argument, examining each side. This will eventually go into many other discussions, branching off from this one. One of the main branches is that of the continuing validity of Torah. This has many branches within itself. For now, though, there are two thoughts regarding Shabbat. They are easy to understand. One side says it's still valid. The other side says that it isn't. It is not my intent in starting this thread to bring about what is to be or not to be done on Shabbat. That's a different matter altogether. The focus of this thread is narrow, so it should, therefore, be a relatively simple task to keep... well... on task. The non-Messianic view states that Shabbat has been done away with. The argument is presented that since the Messiah rose on the first day of the week (a false statement that will be covered in another thread), therefore, the change came about as a celebration of His resurrection. The celebration movement will be discussed in another thread as well, but this is the general gist of the thought, He rose on the first day of the week. The following are the only Scripture references which refer to the first day of the week in relation to this argument: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Now after the Sabbath, toward dawn on the first day of the week, Miryam from Maḡdala and the other Miryam came to see the tomb. (Mt. 28:1) And on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. (Lk 24:1-2) And very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. (Mk. 16:2) And having risen early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Miryam from Maḡdala, from whom He had cast out seven demons. (Mk. 16:9) And on the first day of the week1 Miryam from Maḡdala came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. (Jn 20:1) When therefore it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the taught ones met, for fear of the Yehuḏim, יהושע came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace to you.” (Jn 20:19) And on the first day of the week,the taught ones having gathered together to break bread, Sha’ul, intending to depart the next day, was reasoning with them and was extending the word till midnight. (Acts 20:7) On the first day of the week let each one of you set aside, storing up whatever he is prospered, so that there are no collections when I come. (I Cor. 16:2) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- None of these indicate that the weekly Sabbath has been done away with, or replaced. The closest thing to a meeting on the first day of the week can be found in the passage in Acts, but this was simply a carry-over from Hav Dallah, the evening before. Hav Dallah is an ancient tradition that is still practiced today. Its purpose is to say good-bye to the Sabbath, and to look forward to the next one. Quite often people will get together to share during these times of fellowship. Midrash can be a carry-over into this time as well. The thought of setting aside a sum of money on the first day of the week is in keeping with the thought of the “first fruits” of one’s produce. Setting aside whatever one has prospered through the week puts it out of mind, so there would be no temptation to take what was set aside and use it. There is absolutely no biblical mandates to observe the first day of the week as the Sabbath. Throughout the Gospel accounts the proper observance of Shabbat was continually shown. The Messiah would go into the synagogues and teach on Shabbat, according to the mandate given in Lev. 23:3. This is shown in several places in Scripture. The proper observance of Shabbat is even shown in the instances of the women going to the grave. They would not go to the sepulcher too early because of their respect for Shabbat. Are we to believe that it was done away with immediately afterward? Far from it. Acts 18:11 should settle the matter. It speaks of 72 Sabbath meetings, alone. Another one (and this is where Anomians falter greatly at) is in Acts 15:21. The argument that they present is that what is shown in v. 20 is the only thing that believers have to observe. This is fallacious thinking. To have burdened those who were coming to the faith with everything, all at once, that Torah teaches would have been destructive. They were directed to start out with the four things listed in v. 20, because they would grow into the faith, with deeper things that Torah teaches. This is clearly evident by what is shown in v. 21, which is supporting evidence that Sabbath observance was still in effect YEARS after the resurrection of the Messiah. Verse 21 states: “For from ancient generations Mosheh has, in every city, those proclaiming him – being read in the congregations every Sabbath.” Again, this is a very simple and direct statement in support of Sabbath observance. Now, the argument against Shabbat observances will branch out into many different areas. One of them has to do with the observance of “days.” The argument goes something like this… “I am not to be judged according to the days that I observe. I can have my Sabbath on any day that I want.” This reasoning is based on a misinterpretation of Romans chapter 14. In part, it states: “Who are you that judges another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. But he shall be made to stand, for Elohim is able to make him stand. One indeed judges one day above another, another judges every day alike. Let each one be completely persuaded in his own mind. He who minds the day, minds it to יהוה. And he who does not mind the day, to יהוה he does not mind it.” (Romans 14:4-6a) The problem with this interpretation is that the entire context of the larger passage in which this is found is in regard to eating particular foods on certain days. The three verses before it state: “And receive him who is weak in the belief, not criticising his thoughts. One indeed believes to eat all food, but he who is weak eats only vegetables. He that eats, let him not despise him who does not eat, and he that does not eat, let him not judge him who eats, for Elohim received him.” (Romans 14:1-3) Further down, still in context, we see: “I know and am persuaded in the Master יהושע that none at all is common of itself. But to him who regards whatever to be common, to him it is common. And if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are no longer walking in love. Do not by your food ruin the one for whom Messiah died. Do not then allow your good to be spoken of as evil. For the reign of Elohim is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Set-apart Spirit.” (Romans 14:14-17) So, we can see that the passage which is normally referred to, out of context, in relation to the observance of days refers to the particular days on the Hebrew calendar which speaks of eating different foods on different days. One can eat one thing, another can eat something else. That is not to be disputed. The days themselves were never in dispute to begin with. This is one of the errors that people rely on when they speak of the Sabbath as being done away with. Another passage is similarly related to the one in Romans that an appeal is made to in regard to doing away with the Sabbath. It’s Colossians 2:16, which states: “Let no one therefore judge you in eating or in drinking, or in respect of a festival or a new moon or Sabbaths.” This passage is directly related to HEBREW festivals as they are given in Torah. No other feasts, festivals, or Sabbaths (of any other persuasion) are related to in this passage. And yet, Anomians will try to persuade people that they can eat and drink whatever they want, on any days they choose. This is in error. While I am here in Colossians, I might as well speak of verse 2:13-14, since it comes up in the discussion of the validity of Shabbat and Torah as well. It states: “And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.” Again, this is a misleading thought that Anomians will try to slip past the unsuspecting by saying, “LOOK! See? The Law has been done away with! It was nailed to the tree!” Again, this could not be further from the truth. This passage is best cleared up by an analogy. Imagine you’re going down the road and run a stop sign and a cop sees you. Before he can catch you, he watches you run a stop light. He catches you. You’ve broken the law. He writes you a ticket (your “record of debt”) showing you that you’ve broken the law. You go to court. For whatever reason, the ticket is forgiven you. It is thrown out. That particular “debt” is forgiven you. That DOES NOT MEAN that you are free, forevermore, to go out and run all the stop signs and lights that there are, for the next police officer who sees you will pull you over again and start the process all over. That’s what this passage in Colossians is indicating. It was not Torah that was nailed to the tree, but our certificates of debt, through the transgression of Torah, that was nailed to the tree. This leads me to another thought that I’ll just touch on, but come back to later in another post. If Torah has been done away with, then there is no more sin in the world and we can all do whatever it is that we want to do, without any problems. I’d say that is REALLY GOOD NEWS… were it the truth. Unfortunately, it is not. Also, if Torah is done away with and sin is no more, then there is no need for grace. Go figure! Ask anyone who claims to be a believer if sin has been done away with, and they will tell you that it most assuredly has not been. Ask they if they believe that they have received grace and they will probably start to sing songs to tell you so. Anomians never stop to think that without Torah, there can be no grace. But I digress. One last thing I want to touch on here in this opening thought of whether Shabbat is still valid is the thought provided in two verses in the B’rit Chadashah (N.T.). These passages are: “To give a human example, brothers: even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified.” (Galatians 3:15) and “For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive.” (Hebrews 9:16-17). It is said that the covenant was promised to Avraham, delivered by Moshe, and established by Y’Hoshua. It is all one and the same. Now, the question is this… Since Shabbat was established when creation was finished, and we know that Y’Hoshua observed Torah (and Shabbat, specifically for this argument), and He said, ““For truly, I say to you, till the heaven and the earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall by no means pass from the Torah till all be done… And it is easier for the heaven and the earth to pass away than for one tittle of the Torah to fall.” (Matthew 5:18, Luke 16:17), then what does all of this mean? He clearly stated that Torah would remain. He even said that He did not come to abolish Torah or the Prophets (Matthew 5:17). If all of this is the case, then when did Sunday worship come about? Did Y’Hoshua mention a change in Torah, prior to His death? Clearly, He did not. Scripture indicates that a will only goes into effect once the one who made it dies and that no one can add to it or take away from it once it has been ratified. The promise of the covenant given to Avraham was established by Y’Hoshua. We can see this as a fulfillment of what is spoken of in Yeḥezqĕl (Ezekiel) 16:63. YHVH established His will through Y’Hoshua. Why are people trying to change that will? Y’Hoshua’s death ratified the covenant promises made by YHVH. The covenant promises have stipulations. Anomians try to change those stipulations that were made prior to Y’Hoshua’s death and were ratified at the moment of His death. Again, why are people trying to change that will?
Anonymous
Mark 2:27-28 – “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath: Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath.” No other doctrine is as widely accepted and staunchly defended in the world of traditional Christianity than Sunday-keeping. Though few who profess to be Christian can agree on biblical teachings, they almost always agree that the Saturday Sabbath has been superseded by Sunday worship. To be accepted as a “mainstream Christian,” one generally must keep Sunday, to one degree or another. If asked which day is the Christian Sabbath, most will answer, “Sunday.” Perhaps they will add, “Sunday is the New Testament Sabbath because Jesus rose from the dead that day. By observing this day, we honor Jesus.” They might even say, “The New Testament speaks of Christians going to Church on Sunday or Revelation 1:10 speaks of the apostle John being in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, which is a reference to Sunday.” Numerous clever arguments exist as to why Sunday is supposedly the day Christians are to assemble together and worship God. This unbiblical practice has been in effect so long—over 1,600 years—and is so common that few are able—or willing—to recognize clear scriptures that reveal the true Sabbath day, and its permanence. Most start with Sunday as the “Christian Sabbath” and then search for verses to support this idea—if they study at all—rather than beginning with an open mind and searching for clear passages on the subject, of which there are many. Even a quick study of the topic, with an open mind, will reveal the truth of the matter. Sadly, however, most are too steeped in this popular “tradition of men” to leave its powerful grip. For those who read the Bible, how many times have you glossed over Mark 2:27-28? Or perhaps, with the Sunday fallacy as your basis, you have erroneously assumed this statement means that since He is Lord (or Master) of the Sabbath, Jesus must have changed it from Saturday to Sunday. Be honest with yourself. Jesus’ statement that He is “Lord of the Sabbath” is simple to understand when one considers who created the Sabbath day. As the Creator of all things (Col. 1:16), Jesus sanctified the Sabbath after re-creating the earth, as seen in the book of Genesis: “And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work” (2:2-3). Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath because He created it, and set it aside as a day of rest! No scripture even hints that He set aside Sunday, which is why He did not say He is “Lord of Sunday”—or any other day. Do not allow shallow arguments to persuade you that the Sabbath was “only for the Jews” or that Christ “did away with it”! It has been in effect—as holy time—since the foundation of the world. Man does not have the authority to establish or take away time that God has set aside as holy. Many will argue that they keep the Sabbath “in their hearts” or “in Jesus.” Similar to other plain biblical realities, such as the kingdom of God, the Sabbath is spiritualized away. Considering that the Sabbath is a day of rest, ask yourself, how is it possible to keep the Sabbath, even “in the heart,” while performing daily duties? Can you keep the Sabbath while running a marathon? While building a home? Or while performing any other activity? Of course not. Read Exodus 20:8-11. This human reasoning allows a person to obey the Sabbath as he or she sees fit—rather than as God commands! What He desires is not part of their thinking. They make the Law of God of no effect—just like the Pharisees! Some might cite the account in Matthew 12 (a parallel account of Mark 2:23-28) as proof that Jesus did away with the Sabbath. Yet Christ was trying to make clear that it is lawful for a person to satisfy immediate hunger on the Sabbath, as David did, even though it was not lawful for anyone other than the Levites to eat the showbread (I Sam. 21:1-6). The Pharisees concocted numerous man-made regulations governing the Sabbath that made it a burden on people rather than a blessing. This is what Christ condemned, not the day itself. How do we know? Because “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” In other words, Christ created the Sabbath day for man to enjoy. He did not create man for the Sabbath to enjoy. The Sabbath is to serve man, not the other way around! However, the Pharisees—who were not authorized to amend God’s laws—made the Sabbath into a day for man to serve; thus it became a burden. This is yet another example of Mark 7:7-9. The only difference today is that, rather than making the Sabbath a burden, misguided ministers have made the Sabbath of no effect! They have jumped to the other extreme.
Ayoade FAMUREWA
Supporter
God has never and will never change his laws and commandment. God must have known beforehand that this will bring controversy due to the manipulations of men that is why the issue of sabbath is in the ten commandment. Unless someone can prove that the Ten Commandments are no longer binding on mankind. The issue of whether or not to keep the seventh day sabbath did not arise in Jesus time as well as the apostles because everyone the both Jews and early Christian all worshipped on the sabbath day. It is recorded of Jesus that "as his custom was went to the synagogue on the sabbath day" And what do people do in the synagogue if not worship? Luke 4:16 KJV [16] And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. This worship on sabbath did not stop here Paul that people usually misquote some of his writings on sabbath throughout his life worshipped on the seventh day sabbath. Acts 13:42-44 KJV [42] And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath. [43] Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. [44] And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. Acts 15:21 KJV [21] For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day. Acts 18:4 KJV [4] And he reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks. The book of revelation talks about redeemed worshipping from sabbath to sabbath. All these prove that sabbath still stands and stands forever.
Jennifer Rothnie
Supporter
The Sabbath remains the Sabbath! Christians should not consider Sunday 'the new Sabbath', as if it replaced Saturday or was appointed by God. (Matt 12:8, Matt 25:20-21). We have freedom how we keep it or not (Col 2:16). There is nothing wrong with worshiping on any day of the week (Acts 2:42-47) and even daily if we wish. -We- are the church, not a building (Matt 18:20). Jewish Christians often continued to keep the feast days and the Sabbaths, though they took on a new meaning in Christ (such as 1 Cor 5:8), and were no longer compulsory. They also met in the synagogues, usually to evangelize to the jews (Acts 13:14-44, Acts 17:1-3). The move towards Sunday 'replacing' the Sabbath was pioneered by the Catholic church. This 'Sunday Sabbath' tradition of man is often perpetuated by several primary myths: 1) Misuse of Acts 20:7-12 This meeting spanned at least 2 days by jewish or roman reckoning. The meeting began Sat or Sun evening and lasted through to Sun or Mon morning. Since their meeting spanned two days (breaking bread on each), it cannot be claimed that only one of those days was the 'right' one. Most importantly, the length and time of the meeting was due to "Paul leaving in the morning". It was not a restriction on meeting other days, nor even a sign that that was their usual day. Https://ebible.com/questions/7827-on-what-day-of-the-week-would-the-breaking-of-bread-in-acts-20-7-have-taken-place-would-it-be-on-our-same-calendar-day-in-modern-times The Jerusalem church broke bread together any day of the week (Acts 2:46). Also, in Acts 20:1-6 they are keeping the Feast of unleavened bread, which is not required on anyone. 2) Misunderstanding what "The Lord's Day" meant to the early church. The Lord's Day in the arly church was the passover/Resurrection celebration. (1 Cor 11:20). An early Christian writing, the Didache, references meeting ''according to the Lord' and the daily frequency of seeking out other believers and learning. The Jewish Christians usually celebrated The Lord's Day on the first Passover celebration (Lev 23:5, 1 Cor 5:7), and the gentile Christians on the Sunday after the Passover. (One group chose the day of Christ's death (John 19:14, 1 Cor 11:23-26), the other the day of the Resurrection. (The Apostle John and his disciples kept it on Passover). Eventually the Catholic church -banned- celebration on Passover and changed the reckoning method for the celebration. [One can look up the quartodeciman controversy for more on this: http://holysabbathministries.org/pdfs/Quartodeciman_Controversy.pdf http://www.tomorrowsworld.org/magazines/2013/mar-apr/are-you-a-quartodeciman-should-you-be]. John's reference in Revelation probably meant the Passover celebration. Less likely: he also could have been referring to 'The Day of the Lord' (God's judgement upon man), or even have been referring to Sunday day just as a marker of time. 'Kuriake', in greek, is both the word for Sunday and for Master/Lord. "Kuriake Hermana" is then -either- "Sunday Day" in Greek or "The Lord's day". [Not both at the same time]. Sunday in the Bible is never referred to by the greek name elsewhere, but called "the first day according to the Sabbath". 3) Misapplication of 1 Cor 16:1-4 Paul asked the people (not the assembly) to set aside money at the first of the week. This money would have been a portion their first daily wages for the week 'as they prospered', and shows the principle of giving God the 'first fruits'. [The first fruits offering was always on Sunday -after- the Sabbath]. Paul was talking about each person/family setting money aside on Sunday. When he came, he would send men with references to gather it and take it to Jerusalem, so that no offering needed to be made when he came as the people would already have saved up. 4) Misunderstanding about Pentecost reckoning: Pentecost has always been on Sunday (50th day after the Sabbath of Passover week). It was a Sunday -because- of the Sabbath.
Bill Bailey
Supporter
Sabbath provides a perpetual memorial to creation Gen2:1-3 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made. (Notice RESTED BLESSED and Hallowed or Sanctified it) Exodus 20:8-11 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do ALL your work; you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your STRANGER who is within YOUR gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and ALL that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it. God celebrated Creation week by instituting Sabbath. Again we are told he did three things 1.Rested Blessed Hallowed or Sanctified=(to set apart for holy use) Sabbath is a reminder of our Creator Ps 100 1-5 Col 1-16-17 In a world that teaches there is no God... (evolution).. a world filled with loneliness, people searching for meaning.. Sabbath is a weekly call home to our roots, reminding us who we are, where we came from, what our purpose is, and where we are going! Sabbath a symbol/Memorial of deliverance and redemption as we celebrate Sabbath, remembering God as our creator and as Sovereign of the universe, we also celebrate our deliverance from bondage to sin and eternal death because of what Jesus Christ has accomplished for us through his life, death, and resurrection! We are to rest from all regular & secular work and activities, rest from the unending pursuit of money, materialism and things for this world. Also we rest in His forgiveness and the full salvation made possible to each of us by Jesus Christ through His life, death, and resurrection! Ezekiel 20:12 & 20 Moreover also I gave them my Sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them. 20: And hallow my Sabbaths; that they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD YOUR GOD' Sabbath is a special sign GOD has given HIS people, that WE may know we belong to him and that he is sovereign GOD and LORD of our lives. Sabbath keeping and holiness is also a part of the process GOD uses to (Sanctify) HIS people (set us apart from the world for holy purposes) just as he sanctified His day (setting it aside from the rest for Holy purposes)! JER CH 17 V 19-27 Isaiah CH 56:v2 & CH 58 v13 &14 Sabbath is truly a time to delight and celebrate >Our Loving Sovereign & Creator God >Our redemption in Jesus Christ >That we are children of the King >The time of fellowship with him and others >His creative beauty in nature >The rest we have in Him...physically & spiritually >Blessings promised >Inheritance of His Kingdom
Kevin Carlson
Supporter
As an observant Jew, Jesus kept the Sabbath. But He also went out of His way to perform miracles of healing on the Sabbath which was against the Law. And yet He never sinned. This was to prove to us that the real meaning of the Sabbath was internal and spiritual and is why He said that the Sabbath was made for man. When you were saved, you became a new creation and the work of your salvation was finished forever. (2 Cor 5:17) As Hebrews 4 explains, you entered a life long Sabbath Rest at that time. Any further work to earn or maintain your salvation will bring death because it will prove that you don’t really believe that the Lord’s completed work was sufficient. Finally, here’s a word of warning against venturing into any sort of legalism, no matter how slight. If you’re going to keep one part of the Law, you’d better make sure you’re keeping it all, because anyone who keeps the Law but stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. (James 2:10) In my opinion, dogmatically insisting on a Friday night to Saturday night Sabbath is a dangerous flirtation with legalism.
Greg Kelly
Supporter
We keep Sunday, the first day of the week instead of the day God made Holy, the Seventh Day of the week because of tradition and other fusions of paganism that Paul said at his time was already beginning. Colossians 2:16 is not talking about the 4th commandment, but ceremonial sabbaths the jews were keeping. Interestingly enough, in the King James Version it is written "sabbaths" and in the New International Version it is capitalized and singular "Sabbath". I really can not add to the powerful "thus saith the Lord" Biblical reasoning of keeping the 7th day other than to add that ceremonial laws were nailed to the cross, but we are breaking stone written by the finger of God by trying to nail it to the cross. Read Revelation 14:7 (wow it happens to be 14 and the number 7-unusual) and compare it with Exodus 20: 8-11. Notice the phrase "springs of water" and how it is the same phrase as in Genesis 7:11. Isn't it amazing how controversial this subject is on this platform? Remember to reason and love one another, I do believe Jesus wants us to remember that as well as the commandment, the only commandment that starts with the word "Remember....". Now the question I have is does "that word mean "Observe", as changed in some translations, or does it mean Remember the actual day so that it will retain it's actually holiness? Sure the Sabbath was made for man and we should live holy lives, but God makes a day holy, we are to keep it that way or does keep mean we keep any day we want and it becomes holy? Also from Revelation Chapter One we must recognize that John had a day he called the Lord's Day and Jesus said we should "pray our flight not be in the winter or on the Sabbath day", so to say it has been done away with is simply not Biblical, it also shows a Sabbath exists after the crucifixion. So the issue is, what day is it? Search the scriptures and you find no other day is the Lord's Day except the 7th day, the day God rested and the day Jesus was in the tomb, I presume for the discussion, He was resting. (I know, we could debate what he did on Saturday, that's another subject). God knows we live in a sinful world, should we assume the 4th commandment was not made for our benefit? Like Congress that declares specific times as holidays, can God not choose a specific time He wants us to put aside our worldly cares? Keeping the Sabbath saves no one, but obedience out of a heartfelt genuine love of Jesus and having His faith and wanting for that reason to keep his commandments is not legalism, all commandment keeping is legalism if not springing from a heart converted by Jesus Christ and the fruit of love in our heart. David in Psalms said his commandments are a delight and should not be a grievance to keep. What heart is it that says obedience to God is legalism? It is the motive and the only way to get the right motive is for Jesus to come into our hearts and change our hearts and fill us with love, again that fruit of the Holy Spirit. Galatians 5: 22
EL Mohel Castorena
Supporter
Act 20:7 And upon the (first of the week,) when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight. The Greek shows: σάββατον sabbaton = Saturday - First of Week is to say "on one Saturday." check Greek OT Septuagint. As a Mohel when we do Kiddish(Breaking of bread and pass the wine) this is Friday at sunset and Sabbath last till Saturday sunset. And was done for many years. Saturday was changed by Pope Sylvester (A.D. 314-335) in a historic statement, often quoted by his successors in defence of the Roman Sabbath fast, clearly supports this conclusion: "If every Sunday is to be observed joyfully by the Christians on account of the resurrection, then every Sabbath on account of the burial is to be regarded in execration of the Jews (exsecratione Judaeorum). In fact all the disciples of the Lord had a lamentation on the Sabbath, bewailing the buried Lord, and gladness prevailed for the exulting Jews. But sadness reigned for the fasting apostles. In like manner we are sad with the saddened by the burial of the Lord, if we want to rejoice with them in the day of the Lord’s resurrection. In fact, it is not proper to observe, because of Jewish customs, the consumption of food (destructiones ciborum) and the ceremonies of the Jews. CH 6 of "ROME AND THE ORIGIN OF SUNDAY" bySamuele Bacchiocchi, Ph. D., Andrews University
Gabriel Nganga
Supporter
Hi everyone reading. It is very sad indeed reading some of the arguments given here concerning the sabbath. I want to point out that God's seventh day sabbath is binding to this very day, and for Christians more so. The problem that christians run into when discussing the Sabbath is thinking that it is a Jewish sabbath. Exodus 20:8 l "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 m Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of The Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, o nor your stranger who is within your gates. 11 For p in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it." If you call the God of Israel your God then it is He that commands us to REMEMBER HIS sabbath day to kept it holy. Exodus 20:8. The other thing that Christians forget is that the Bible says all things were made through Him and for Him referring to Jesus Christ. Colossians 1:16: "For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers." All things were created through Him and for Him. This means then that Christ is actually the one who created the Sabbath day and hallowed it. How then can anyone reason that the creator who created the Sabbath day and hallowed it, and went a step further to put it down on tablets of stone with His finger, will care less whether we keep it or not or on which day we decide to keep it? Very simply, when Jesus was tempted of the evil one in the wilderness, the first temptation was to turn some stones into bread. In answer to that Jesus said: Matthew 4:4 But He answered and said, "It is written, c 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by EVERY WORD that proceeds from the mouth of God." Here is the deal: Deuteronomy 5: 22 "These words the LORD spoke to all your assembly, in the mountain from the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, WITH A LOUD VOICE; and HE ADDED NO MORE. And y He wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me." If we argue that the sabbath is for Jews, we can as well do away with the rest of the Law. Before writing the law with His finger on tablets of stone, God SPOKE THE LAW, and if Jesus' words be true, christians should keep the sabbath, too. Jesus was asked once in Matthew 19:6, "Now behold, one came and said to Him, p 'Good 6 Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?' 17 So He said to him, 7 'Why do you call Me good? 8 No one is q good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, r KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS.' 18 He said to Him, 'Which ones?' Jesus said, '"You shall not murder," "You shall not commit adultery," "You shall not steal," "You shall not bear false witness,"19 t "Honor your father and your mother," 9 and, u "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."'. Because jesus did not mention the first four commandments here doesnt mean they are not binding at all. James tells us in James 2:11: For He who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. How Christians will turn around and say that God does not care whether we keep the sabbath or not or whether we keep it on Saturday or Sunday is infact not Biblical. ForHe also said, "Remember the sabbath day to keep it Holy." So therefore, man will live by every word that comes from the mouth of God and YES, He commanded that we remember the sabbath, but it seems some christians want to forget it and they will argue to that end.
Jason Dalrymple
Supporter
I would like to show from history where and who changed the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. Many do not know that it was not Jesus or his disciples who instigated the change. Here are some direct quotes: "Perhaps the boldest thing, the most revolutionary change the church ever did, happened in the first century. The holy day, the Sabbath, was changed from Saturday to Sunday. "The Day of the Lord' was chosen, not from any direction noted in the scriptures, but from the (Catholic)Churches sense of it's own power...People who think that the scriptures should be the sole authority, should logically become Seventh-day Adventists, and keep Saturday holy" St. Catherine Church Sentinel, Algonac, May 21, 1995 "Question: How prove you that the church had power to command feasts and holy days? "Answer: By the very act of changing the Sabbath into Sunday, which the protestants allow of and therefore they fondly contradict themselves by keeping Sunday strictly, and breaking most other feasts commanded by the same church. "Question: Have you any other way of proving that the church has power to institute festivals of precept? "Answer: Had she not such power, she could not of done that in which all modern religionists agree with, she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday the seventh day of the week, a change for which there is no scriptural authority." Stephen Keenan, John Cardinal Catechism On the Obedience Due to the Church, 3rd edition, chapter 2, p. 174 (Imprimatur, John Cardinal McCloskey, Archbishop of New York). emphasis added "Question: Which is the Sabbath day? "Answer: Saturday is the Sabbath day. "Question: Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday? "Answer: We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church, in the Council of Laodicea (A.D. 364), transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday." Peter Geiermann, C.S.S.R., The Convert's Catechism of Catholic Doctrine. P. 50, 3rd edition, 1957. So the question is: Are you following man's tradition or God's? If you study history it is very evident that up until the 3rd century A.D. Christians kept the seventh day holy. Man changed the sanctity of the day, not God. Can man make something holy? Are we "teaching the traditions of man" instead of following the law of the Living God? If Sabbath is not important why does Isaiah, in referring to the "new heavens and the new earth" say that "from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another all flesh will come to worship before me, says the Lord" Is. 66:23? It is also the one commandment that God asks us to "remember". There is no logical/moral reason to keep the seventh-day holy. It is a commandment that we keep because we love and obey the Father who asked us to. Do we have faith that He knows best? My fellow brothers and sisters who keep Sunday "holy", do you really keep it holy according to the Word of God? See Is. 56, Ez 20 and Ex 20. Is it a special time for you and your creator to commune together, or is it just a day we go to church and then mow the lawn or go to baseball practice? These are important questions to ask ourselves. Lucifer questioned God's government and His rules. He claimed that they were not necessary and that He (God) was merely seeking His own exaltation, not the happiness of His subjects. Look where that logic has gotten us! The Word of God is the final authority on any subject, not man's. If you are defending the sanctity of Sunday you are defending a man made "tradition". This is a historical fact that. So the question is: Is Sabbath important? (Are any of God's moral laws important?) and if so, what day does God say is His special day? Can man make something holy? Because we are not saved through the law, do we now make void the law? Revelation 14:12..Last day saints= those keeping the commandments.
Tuco Ron Williams
Supporter
Yeshua Jesus observed the Shabbat all through His existence here on Earth. All of the apostles also observed the Shabbat while they lived. In Deuteronomy 13, it states that if a prophet seduces anyone in Israel from the ways G-d taught them through Moses, they should cling to G-d and not listen to that prophet or dreamer of dreams, even if he or she shows great signs, wonders and miracles, then that prophet is a FALSE prophet and that G-d is testing us if we love Him and will keep His Holy Commandments. Yaakov (James/Jacob), the disciple and brother of Yeshua Jesus states that the Law is the Royal Law (the Law of the King of the Universe). In the book of Hebrews it states that a person who sets aside the Law of Moses (well, not really Moses's Laws, but G-d's Laws given through Moshe/Moses) has to die on the evidence of two or three witnesses. I started observing Shabbat with my family because Yeshua did it - He should be our ultimate example and we should try to follow everything that He did, whether we be Jew, Israelite or Gentile. Observing the Shabbat is good - it is a gift from G-d. It is the first thing in the Scriptures that G-d called kadosh or holy (set apart for Him and His purposes). Why is there such an opposition and rejection of it? I do not understand. Paul (Rav Shaul, who was a Jewish rabbi) observed Shabbat and spent a great deal of time in synagogues convincing that Yeshua Jesus is the promised Messiah to both Jews and Gentiles. Do we think that Paul preached against something that he himself observed faithfully until his death? Perhaps we misunderstand what he wrote, because what he wrote in the "new testament" has to agree with Messiah Yeshua's teachings, and that Messiah Yeshua's teachings have to agree with the scriptures that existed back then, which was ONLY the Hebrew Scriptures. If Yeshua taught or even insinuated that Shabbat had been done away with, then He would be a FALSE Messiah. Brethren, do you recall what the charges were against Stephen, the charges that got him killed? The charges in the book of Acts states that (paraphrased) that he kept on speaking against the Temple and the customs of Moses (a misnomer, actually - they were referring to the Torah or the Teachings and Instructions handed over to him by G-d Himself) and that Yeshua would destroy the temple -- but then again, that testimony was put forward by false witnesses. Hence, the charges were false, and was actually the same charge that Paul was accused of, as a form of poetic justice from G-d. Are we to perpetuate that same falsehood against the Shabbat and the other commandments of G-d? Are the commandments of G-d so bad, that we refuse to accept them as valid for us? Didn't Israel, including the believing prophets like Isaiah and other righteous believers in G-d go into exile for not following His commandments? Why do we think we are exempt? Fulfill doesn't mean the same thing as Abolish, brethren. Check any reputable dictionary and you will see. Examine the scriptures from a Hebraic perspective, my brothers and sisters, not from the lens of the Romans and the Greeks. Yeshua was, is and always will be Jewish, and the Scriptures by and large is Hebraic in essence and character. Following the Laws of G-d is a good thing, and FILLED UP with even more meaning and purpose and beauty in Yeshua Jesus, our Messiah & Savior. Let's not be lawless, because following the Laws of G-d in appreciation of what our Messiah Yeshua has done for us is not sin and will not bring us under bondage - keeping the law as a means of salvation is, because salvation is found in no one (and nothing) else than Messiah Yeshua. Let not the L-rd cast us out to the place where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth, with the singular statement: "Truly, I say unto you, I do not know you! Away from me you workers of Lawlessness!" The Shabbat is good, and its L-rd is Yeshua. Are we to nullify His L-rdship of His day and follow a Roman Catholic edict? Shalom.
Elisabeth Woltman
Supporter
I have read all the commentaries and answers in relation to the Sabbath being Saturday or Sunday and in my opinion the answer is very simple. As Christians we re Christ's brothers and sisters. Christ was a Jew who did observe the Sabbath on Saturday, the day that His father rested and sanctified it. There is no such a thing as the Old Testament was for Jews and we are to follow the New Testament, and even if as somebody might suggest, it is the case, when Christ taught in synagogues, He was basing His teaching on the laws of the Old Testament or Torah. It was the Catholic church that by it's authority changed the days. God has sealed Sabbath and the Sunday worship is the Catholic's church mark. At the end it is always the case of the free choice whether we take the Seal of God or the mark of the Beast. Blessings
Dale Richardson
Supporter
The bottom line is this: God wrote the bible through men except for the 10 commandments. This means that they were of such importance that God wrote them himself. They were written in stone to show the unchangeable nature of them. Now, for the only thing in the bible that God actually wrote himself, I would expect that any change in the law come from God himself. There are biblical records of Jesus keeping the Sabbath. If the law giver (Jesus) was silent about any change, I'm going to go with there isn't any change. He also said in Matthew 5:17 that he came to uphold the law. Truth be told, when you look at the bible there isn't one iota of support for Sunday worship other than some human being said so. Commandments of God are greater than the traditions of men. In addition, God kept the Sabbath at creation. I'm gonna go with that He wasn't a Jew. Neither were Adam and Eve. Jesus said that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. That includes mankind. It was given to man to honour his creator.
Ariel HaNaviy
Supporter
In one sense, believers ARE free to worship God any day of the week—and we SHOULD be worshipping him EVERY day of the week, right? However, our Messianic freedom should not separate us, but cause us to "pursue what makes for mutual upbuilding” (Rom 14:19). Sunday keepers often turn to Rom 14:5 in support of choosing one day over another. I do not believe this verse allows for such a reading. I can say that I have studied many varied commentaries on this passage (Calvin, Murray, Dunn, Lloyd-Jones, Bruce, Barth, Hendrickson, Stuhlmacher, Cranfield, Nanos, Hegg, MacArthur, Stern, Lancaster, Janicki, and others), and in my estimation as a Bible student, Rom 14:5 does not seem like a likely passage teaching freedom from Sabbath worship (viz, Sabbath vs. Sunday). I feel the best way to interpret verse 5 is within the larger context (read with Rom 14:6), and that would make it a verse about voluntary fast days. I base my position on a number of historic and textual clues: • The Sabbath is God’s covenant sign to Isra'el (Ex 31:13; Ez 20:12). The Gentiles grafted into Remnant Isra'el would have had natural association with seventh day Sabbath worship (Acts 14:1, 15:21). • At the time the book of Romans was written (around 55 to 56 CE), official “Sabbath vs. Sunday” debates were not extant. Sunday would not become the established Christian day of worship until a few hundred years later. • For Paul to casually recommend in one verse, the personal choice to give up seventh day Sabbath in favor of Sunday worship seems highly unlikely, given the weight of received Torah passages (Ex 31:16, 17, etc.), and the establishment of Sabbath in the Jewish communities—of which the sect known as The Way was a part (Acts 24:14). • Thousands of Jews believed in Yeshua by the 1st century, and many were zealous for the Torah (Acts 21:20), making a purported “personal allowance to switch from Sabbath to Sunday worship via this verse” a virtual historical improbability. In my estimation, if the verse in question were truly about Sabbath vs. Sunday, then a number of problematic details begin to arise: • To leave the decision in the hands of those who are “fully convinced in their own mind” appears to be a weak way to establish congregational bylaws for a leader the likes of Paul. • Jewish and Gentile believers are to rejoice together (Rom 15:10). How could the newly emerging messianic communities maintain any unity and group cohesion (Eph 4:13) if we had some folks choosing Sabbath, and others choosing Sunday? How could genuine fellowship form in such a setting? And what if the majority is “convinced” Sabbath is correct? Should those “unconvinced” leave and go elsewhere? Or should they ignore their conscience, stay, and yield to the majority “vote”? Conclusions: The early Messianic communities were a sect of Judaism (Acts 24:14). Even a surface level examination of the chapter will show that food and eating topics were the primary context (Rom 14:2, 3, 6, 14, 15, 17, 20, 21, 23). This would make Rom 14:5, 6 about voluntary fast days that some were esteeming, with others not obligating themselves to those voluntary fast days. And within the sometimes-heated social setting of the 1st century Judaisms, issues related to food, special days, and ritual purity were a natural flashpoint for friction between the merging of the Jewish culture and those from the nations who were grafted into Remnant Isra'el (Rom 11:17; 15:5-7). Lastly, regardless of how one interprets Rom 14:5, we can be assured that Paul forbids the weak and strong from judging and despising each other, since they constitute one viable community and are in need of one another (Rom 14:1-4, 10, 13). Also, Paul definitely admonishes the strong to welcome (Rom 14:1) and bear with the failings of the weak and accommodate their opinions (Rom 15:1), while each is to build the other up (Rom 15:2, 7), and avoid destroying the work of God for the sake of food (Rom 14:2).
Gilson Chacko
Supporter
No one can be made righteous by living as per the Law, I kindly pray to mediate on the following word of God. Hebrews Chap. 8 - Jesus is the High Priest of a New Covenant...God made the first covenant obsolete. Luke 22:20 - The cup we drink is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. (All those who have accepted Jesus Christ are part of the New covenant). Romans 10:4 - Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. Matthew 5:17 Jesus Christ dud not come to abolish the law but to fulfill them. (The only person who could fulfill the law). Galatians 3:11 - Clearly no-one is justified before God by the law, because, the righteous will live by faith Last but not least, Hebrews 10:1 - The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming Matthew 22:36-40 - All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments - 1st - Love God 2nd Love Others. Conclusion : We do not have to go back to Jewish Mosiac Law that cannot make us righteous anymore. May God fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.
Claudia Simon
Supporter
It is my belief that the Sabbath (7th day) was actually initiated at creation. God rested the 7th day and hallowed it! It is the 4th commandment of God's moral code and not part of the mosaic ordinances which included many various holy days and sabbath days (which Paul refers to in Corinthians). Paul was not referring to the 10 commandments but to the mosaic laws which included many various holy days and sabbath days, separate from the Sabbath day.
Tracey Moran
Supporter
[Mar 7:9 KJV] 9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. Eze 22: 8 Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths.... 26 Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed [difference] between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I AM PROFANED AMONG THEM...38 Moreover this they have done unto me: they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my sabbaths. What did our Saviour teach us? [Mat 4:4 KJV] 4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. (Notice that man lives by every word, not just the Jews) [2Ti 3:16-17 KJV] 16 All scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. (All scripture would include God's eternal commandments) Since we have started keeping the Sabbath, God has healed our marriage, blessed our family, and opened our eyes to how precious His Word is. We have drawn closer to Him and to one another. He promised blessing when we obey, and guess what...HE DOES NOT LIE! It is the most beautiful day of rest in Him, and with one another, and it points not only to His Creation (Ex 20:11), and Redemption (Deut 5:15), but also the rest that we have entered into through our Messiah. Heb 4:9 There remaineth therefore a rest (sabbatismos, i.e. "a keeping sabbath") to the people of God. As Christians, let us do what our Master did, not only just professing with our mouths to follow Him, but actually walking the walk that He walked. Let us stop following the traditions of man that profane Him, and let us walk in humble obedience to our King, Saviour and God. He is worth it! Jer 16:19 O LORD, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and [things] wherein [there is] no profit.
Bongani Cele
Supporter
This is a historical question, and not a biblical one, and hence the answer must be historical. I will include this verse: Daniel 7:25 NIV He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time. No matter how much they try to squeeze in Sunday worship, it is simply not biblical. It was prophesied by Daniel that an empire/church will come which will change the "times" and "laws". Times about what? Laws regarding what? People observe Sunday instead of Saturday simply because the Roman Catholic church says so. James Cardinal Gibbons, The Faith of our Fathers, 88th ed., pp. 89. "But you may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never sanctify." Stephen Keenan, A Doctrinal Catechism 3rd ed., p. 174. "Question: Have you any other way of proving that the Church has power to institute festivals of precept? "Answer: Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her-she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday, the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority." Daniel Ferres, ed., Manual of Christian Doctrine (1916), p.67. "Question: How prove you that the Church hath power to command feasts and holy days? "Answer. By the very act of changing the Sabbath into Sunday, which Protestants allow of, and therefore they fondly contradict themselves, by keeping Sunday strictly, and breaking most other feasts commanded by the same Church.' James Cardinal Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore (1877-1921), in a signed letter. "Is Saturday the seventh day according to the Bible and the Ten Commandments? I answer yes. Is Sunday the first day of the week and did the Church change the seventh day -Saturday - for Sunday, the first day? I answer yes. Did Christ change the day'? I answer no! "Faithfully yours, J. Card. Gibbons" The Catholic Mirror, official publication of James Cardinal Gibbons, Sept. 23, 1893. "The Catholic Church,... by virtue of her divine mission, changed the day from Saturday to Sunday." Catholic Virginian Oct. 3, 1947, p. 9, art. "To Tell You the Truth." "For example, nowhere in the Bible do we find that Christ or the Apostles ordered that the Sabbath be changed from Saturday to Sunday. We have the commandment of God given to Moses to keep holy the Sabbath day, that is the 7th day of the week, Saturday. Today most Christians keep Sunday because it has been revealed to us by the[Roman Catholic] church outside the Bible." Peter Geiermann, C.S.S.R., The Converts Catechism of Catholic Doctrine (1957), p. 50. "Question: Which is the Sabbath day? "Answer: Saturday is the Sabbath day. "Question: Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday? "Answer. We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday." Martin J. Scott, Things Catholics Are Asked About (1927),p. 136. "Nowhere in the Bible is it stated that worship should be changed from Saturday to Sunday.... Now the Church... instituted, by God's authority, Sunday as the day of worship. This same Church, by the same divine authority, taught the doctrine of Purgatory long before the Bible was made. We have, therefore, the same authority for Purgatory as we have for Sunday."
kalu hser
Supporter
When human reasoning surpass God's word, it is where the problem comes. Eve reasoned that this fruit is good for food, it looks nice, and it can make me wise, so why can't I eat it? While God said "do not eat it". When God says, that's it. You don't try to reason with Him, because He knows the best for us. Cain thought the same thing, he thought that the sacrifice of fruits will be best, while God asked them to sacrifice the lamb. It is where he fell. King Saul reasoned the same, when God asked him to kill all the enemies, he reasoned that some of the goods are suitable for sacrifice. God doesn't want any things except our loyalty and obedience to Him. if we think Sunday is suitable for Sabbath worship, won't the Seventhday be more suitable and good for us to keep it as Sabbath? Because God told us to keep the Sabbath, it's for our good. If God thinks any day is possible He would have said that 'you can keep any day as Sabbath'. Or He would have said 'the first day is the Sabbath of the Lord'. Who are we to say that Sabbath is changed to the first day, or that we can keep anyday as Sabbath, while the Bible clearly says that the Seventhday is the Sabbath of the Lord? To Usurp the power of God by changing His commandments will bring undesirable consequences. We can learn from Adam and Eve's experience, Cain, and King Saul. History shouldn't be repeated if it's not for good. As children of God, God wants complete obedience so that His will can be accomplished in our lives. Therefore, we should think carefully, don't stay on human's reasoning, just focus on what God's word says.
Sylvia Donk
Supporter
Well I am very lucky that I am not under the Law and that the law is for the Jewish people, so I do not have to keep the Sabbath or the 4th commandment. So, the other commandments are also not important. I can do what I want to do. The Lord forgives me everything. I do not have to change. It is also not important that there is written in the 4th commandment "Remember". I do not have to remember, that is not for me. That is why many people keep the Sabbath on Sunday. The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. Isn't this clear enough? We can see what we want to see. But can we change His Word? Has He changed His commandment? Why should He change one commandment and not the other 9? What about revelation 14:12, here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. Who are they?
Bruce Tessen
Supporter
Most importantly is that you set aside a Sabbath unto God, whether Saturday or Sunday. Here's a thought... every day ought to be a Sabbath unto the Lord.
Anonymous
We know that the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ brought a new way of life for all Christians. The scriptures are very clear in Col. 2:16 - 17 which says; 16 Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. 17 In the past these things were like a shadow that showed what was coming. But the new things that were coming are found in Christ. So the matter is not in which day but that the Lordmis worshipped in spirit and in truth. John 4:23
Jude Allen
Supporter
Daniel 7:25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time. In the Convert’s Catechism of Catholic Doctrine, we read: Q. Which is the Sabbath day? A. Saturday is the Sabbath day. Q. Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday? A.We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church, in the Council of Laodicea, (AD 336) transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday…. Q.Has the [Catholic] church power to make any alterations in the commandments of God? A. Instead of the seventh day, and other festivals appointed by the old law, the church has prescribed the Sundays and holy days to be set apart for God’s worship; and these we are now obliged to keep in consequence of God’s commandment, instead of the ancient Sabbath. —Rt. Rev. Dr. Challoner, p. 211. In An Abridgment of the Christian Doctrine, Q. Have you any other way of proving that the Church has power to institute festivals of precept? A. Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her. She could not have substituted the observance of Sunday the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority. –Rev. Stephen Keenan, (1851), p. 174.
D W
Supporter
Jesus fulfilled, completed, brought to completion the "Old." When one accepted Him as the Jewish Messiah, one acknowledged that. Jesus IS the Sabbath, the Ten Commandments, the 1,000 commandments, the 613 rules and regulations, the Law, and he ended in His coming the oral traditions dreamed up by the Jewish hierarchy. HE fulfilled ALL of that. YOU don't have to do it anymore! Judaism will resume doing it when they come into their Kingdom of God on earth in Jerusalem, during the 1,000 year reign of Jesus on the Throne of David! "Not one word shall pass until all be fulfilled" is talking about that Kingdom of God on earth, NOT today! The REDEEMED in Revelation 5:9 and 14:3 are JEWS who confessed Jesus as their Messiah and will be resurrected and glorifully enter into that earthly Kingdom in Jerusalem! AND............that's not all! Look: Of course Paul met in synagogues! That's where Jews were gathered! He was ministering to them their NEW Jewish Covenant of GRACE, not Law, not sabbaths. In Acts 13 Paul shakes the dust off his feet and goes to Gentiles because of the stubbornness of the Jews --- they were refusing the gift of Grace! Of course there were Jews in the synagogues every Sabbath, Acts 15:21! Of course he reasoned with Jews and Gentiles in Acts 18:4! In the synagogue! Where else would they all assemble? Did not the fact that he taught in the synagogue GRACE offend the Jews? Did not they try to kill him for doing do? We simply cannot, must not, mix the Jewish Covenants in the Hebrew Bible, the Jewish Covenant in Matthew, with the Christian Covenant preserved and presented to us by the Apostle Paul! They don't mix! They stand alone, in each case to the glory of God for His specific timing and purpose. Don't throw scripture into a blender!
Meluleki Maphosa
Supporter
Just thought I could add to this debate with the facts below: Check the sources for yourself. These days its very easy with the internet. Q. How prove you that the church hath power to command feasts and holy days? A. By the very act of changing the Sabbath into Sunday, which Protestants allow of; and therefore they fondly contradict themselves, by keeping Sunday strictly, and breaking most other feasts commanded by the same church. Q. How prove you that? A. Because by keeping Sunday, they acknowledge the church’s power to ordain feasts, and to command them under sin; and by not keeping the rest [of the feasts] by her commanded, they again deny, in fact, the same power. –Rev. Henry Tuberville, D.D. (R.C.), (1833), page 58. In A Doctrinal Catechism, Q. Have you any other way of proving that the Church has power to institute festivals of precept? A. Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her. She could not have substituted the observance of Sunday the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority. –Rev. Stephen Keenan, (1851), p. 174. In the Catechism of the Council of Trent, The Church of God has thought it well to transfer the celebration and observance of the Sabbath to Sunday! –p 402, second revised edition (English), 1937. (First published in 1566)
Junius Phua
Supporter
If the Sabbath, which was ordered by God Himself, is done away, would there be anyone on this earth who would have the RIGHT to change or move it to a Sunday? IF your answer is, that God gave instructions to change or adjust HIS own laws (in the New Testament), could we have just misinterpreted the scriptures? How can an ALL KNOWING God just change, from time to time (depending on the situations in the years to come), his own laws. Like this example, How can a wise man be called wise if he just eats his own words right after he have declared it. Before we interpret God's Word (the Old and the New Testament) let us please consider that God is unchangeable, He is ALL KNOWING. Didn't God said that He knows the beginning till the end and the things to come?-(Isaiah 46:9-10) Although it would be normal for humans to change or adjust its laws from time to time to suite each others needs, would it not demean the stature of God being the All Knowing God If indeed He changes HIS own rules from time to time as if He doesn't know what is to happen in the future? God is far beyond man's level and there is NONE like Him. It would be right and wise to exalt Him to the highest place and declare that He is the Almighty God, an ALL KNOWING GOD because He is worthy. And since our God is the MOST HIGH ALMIGHTY ALL KNOWING GOD, then why would we think that He would just "change" (adjust to suite into situations on a certain period of time) His own laws after He establishes it as if He didn't know what was coming? Would it not be appropriate to say that our God sets laws that are UNSHAKEABLE (not affected by any situation nor any age) from generations to generations proving that indeed our God knows the beginning, the end and what is to come? I praise God for keeping us all that we may continue to search for the right answers to the real truth for it is the will of God. But let us not forget to show LOVE as we search for the real truth because even if we speak the tongues of angels but do not have LOVE, we are nothing.
gaddaparala kumar
Supporter
God Bless You, Genesis 2:1-3 ESV - 1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. The Ten Commandments: Exodus 20:8 Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. Sabbath of the old covenant Numbers 28:9 “‘On the Sabbath day, make an offering of two lambs a year old without defect, together with its drink offering and a grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah[c] of the finest flour mixed with olive oil. 10 This is the burnt offering for every Sabbath, in addition to the regular burnt offering and its drink offering. Jesus kept the Sabbath (Sabbath of the New covenant) Luke 4:16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, Luke 4:31 Then he went down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and on the Sabbath he taught the people. Jesus commanded to keep the sabbath until the end of the age Mathew 24:3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” Mathew 24:20 Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. Because Jesus is the lord of the Sabbath mathew 12:8 For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” Paul warned to keep the lords day to enter the lords sabbath A Sabbath-Rest for the People of God Heb 41 Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. 2 For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed.[a] 3 Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said, “So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.’”[b] And yet his works have been finished since the creation of the world. 4 For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: “On the seventh day God rested from all his works.”[c] 5 And again in the passage above he says, “They shall never enter my rest.” 6 Therefore since it still remains for some to enter that rest, and since those who formerly had the good news proclaimed to them did not go in because of their disobedience, 7 God again set a certain day, calling it “Today.” This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”[d] 8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10 for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works,[e] just as God did from his. 11 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
Peter Kunda
Supporter
In Genesis 2:2-3, "By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done." Therefore, the seventhday should be keept holy as a day of rest from all works and rememberance of God's creation. However, the holy word does not state that neither Saturday nor Sunday is the Sabbath day. These interpretations are simply traditional. In my opinion, the seventh day can be any such day that one decides to rest from all work and keep holy in honour of the LORD. We read further in Exodus20:8-11 that "Remember the Sabbath day and keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in the them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy."
Anthony Clinton
Supporter
There are 10 commandments in the Scripture that were given to Moses by God. Nine of them are the same throughout the ages but one had a Higher meaning. That one being the fourth commandment "You shall keep Holy the Sabbath day"! Heb 4 goes into a lengthy explanation of the higher meaning of this fourth commandment. The key being that a person enters into a rest from works and that comes by faith. This Higher meaning makes the Old Testament context the shadow of the actual meaning. The higher meaning of the Sabbath would not be revealed until Paul, the Christ appointed apostle to the Gentiles, was given this revelation and we all come to know it by that which is Scripture in Heb 4. Now the fact that the Apostle Paul did not leave Gentiles a detailed explanation of all the Sabbath requirements speaks volumes to us by its absence. If the Saturday Sabbath was vital to the Gentiles who would have not known anything about it unless they had studied Jewish laws and History, he would have certainly left Gentile Christians the teaching to follow in his epistles. He devoted three chapters on the gifts of the spirit and nothing on the Sabbath ordinances. Rom 14 is what the apostle left us as a record of what we are to follow regarding the Sabbath. Some have tried to explain this truth away by their suggestion that somehow this is not related to the actual Sabbath. The fact is, his term, "every day alike" when referred to the choice of a worship day must include the Sabbath. Every day is seven days a week, and in those seven days some keep the Sabbath. Some who choose to call every day the same and might choose any day of the week to worship God are allowed to make that choice. The context of this scripture comes because some were judging Christian masters regarding their servants about the matter and Paul says those who were being judged “He will stand because God is able to make him stand”! The one who wishes to esteem one day above all the others (obviously a Sabbath keeper) let him also do so. The point there is not to judge the one who does not esteem a special day because under such judgmental religious venom in the final analysis God will make them stand strong under such ferocious condemnation.
Heather Willcockson
Supporter
The way I have come to understand things is this: we know that the earth was created in six days and God rested on the seventh day. This is biblical fact which goes back to Genesis. However, in the days of early Christianity, during the time of the Roman Empire (before its division), when Constantine became a Christian and declared Christianity to be the religion of the empire, many practices that were common practices of the religion before this time were not abandoned. As a result, Christianity in that time became a mutated form because they refused to give up a lot of the practices in that day, such as worship on the day devoted to the roman god of the sun. Many Jews during that time did not want to be identified with the early "radical" Christian movement because they feared for their lives, and so they did as the Romans did in order to be spared. It took a long time for things to chill out, and so nothing changed for a number of years. Since many of the European countries that exist today (including all of the countries who had colonized early America) are offshoots of the tribes of the Roman Empire after its division, many of the denominations that exist in those countries still do as the Romans did. That is why Sunday worship is done.
Karim Hosein
Supporter
In my understanding of things, this very question (and most answers so far) is flawed because it makes many assumptions about what we believe. It assumes that we worship on one day, Sunday. It assumes we “do Sabbath” (whatever that may mean to different people/denominations) on Sunday. It assumes the Sabbath was changed (and the one day of worship) and that we are (all) taught that Sunday is the Sabbath day of rest. I believe there are four major questions here (and several minor ones). Which day is the original Sabbath day Which day is the current Day of Rest Which day is the traditional day for the churches of Christ to meet for worship Which day is the traditional day for the churches of Christ to break bread The “Sabbath” [Hbrw; שַׁבָּת]or the ‘seven’ is clearly the seventh day of the seven (week) otherwise it would be called the ‘first’ of the ‘seven’ (eg Acts 20:7 “They met together on the first day of the ‘sabbaton’ [Grk; σαββάτων] to break bread.”) The answer to the first question is Saturday or the seventh day of the week is the “Sabbath” day which was commanded of the keepers of the covenant given at Mount Sinai through Moses to the tribes (children) of Jacob. The second and third questions have the same answer but the third is easier to explain. Acts 2:42-47, 6:1, 16:5, 17:11, 19:9. The church met for worship daily. A better answer to the second question lies in the book of Hebrews and the Pauline letters but is taken from the Old Testament (Psalm 95:7-11). Heb 3:7-4:11 explains to us that for us who hold to the teachings of our Lord, their is a Sabbath Rest and that is “Today.” The fourth question was answered in part as, “what day did the church met for worship,” (as it says they broke bread daily) but also by Jesus himself. 1Co 11:24-26. Communion was indeed daily but not necessarily once per day but “as often as you drink it…” for every time you eat the bread and drink the cup you proclaim the Lord’s death. Indeed, nowhere are we commanded to have communion on the Sabbath but Jews did the Sh’ma at every meal on every day. Nowhere are we commanded to enter the temple to hear the word on the Sabbath alone but the Sh’ma tells us to teach each other daily, everywhere we go. “Present yourselves as living sacrifices this is your spiritual act of worship.” Rom 12:1 “If anyone should come after me, he must take up his cross daily.” Luke 9:23 If one is looking for the one day of the week to come together with God’s holy people to worship him and have communion, I believe he will not find Biblical support. Acts 2:42-47 Worship, fellowship & breaking of bread is daily and a lifestyle change and not a weekly ritual.
Johnnatta Giles
Supporter
There so much to this! Let me give you what the Holy Spirit told me out of this subject. The sabbath day was to be kept Holy until the Lord of the Sabbath fulfilled what the Sabbath was meant for. Please read these scriptures that talks EXACTLY about all of this. Note when it talks about the Jews never entering God's rest even when He created the Sabbath for them. This day was so much more than when to worship God it had more deeper meaning to it for why it was created. Hebrews 4:1-12 Colossians 2:14-16. If you dig for this you will be led to other scripture that connects with each other. Hopefully you have a study bible like an NIV STUDY BIBLE it will help a lot! Christians started to come together on "The Lords Day". The day Jesus rose from the dead. Revelations 1:10, Acts 20:7, 1 Corinthians 16:2. The Sabbath we enter is by our obedience to God. As long as we obey and grow we rest in His Sabbath with Him. As far as Sunday goes the apostles made it a day of Worship and Fellowship and thats why we go to church on sunday now. God wanted us to rest with Him. Remember that there are two commandments Jesus Holds Higher than them all and that is love the Lord your God with all your heart and Love thy neighbor. Of course He wants us to keep the others. But the new Sabbath is under the New covenant of Jesus. And the new Sabbath requires obedience in order to keep it. Remember what it says in Colosians 2:14-16. We are under a new and better covenant.
Steve clonts
Supporter
It doesn't matter if God himself shouted from heaven what day the Sabbath should land on. "A man convinced against his will, will be of the same opinion still." If the Bible was completely clear about the subject of what day Sabbath worship should be, then there wouldn't be any need to discuss it here. Obviously it's not. I read the King James Version of the Bible many times, and it's unclear about a specific day. (Although those who insist upon Saturday will disagree) So suppose I'm wrong, just for argument's sake. In the end, God will say, "Well done thou good and faithful servant, thou has been faithful over a few things, I will make thee a ruler over many things. Enter thou into the rest of thy Lord". Those who take the Bible and try and interpret my salvation around it are in a sense trying to play God. They're like the men who confronted Jesus with the woman caught in the act of adultery. "He that is without sin let him cast the first stone". Isn't that what those who say that our salvation is based on a specific day are saying? That I'm only saved if I worship God in the exact same way and in the exact same dedication of spirit as you, the guy who worships on Saturday? But if I do it on Sunday or any other day of the week, my salvation is in question? That's my point.
rychter falcao
Supporter
In the Old Testament, God stated, "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you." (Exodus 20:8-10, NASB). It was the custom of the Jews to come together on the Sabbath, which is Saturday, cease work, and worship God. Jesus went to the synagogue on Saturday to teach (Matt. 12:9, John 18:20) as did the apostle Paul (Acts 17:2; 18:4). So, if in the Old Testament we are commanded to keep the Sabbath and in the New Testament we see Jews, Jesus, and the apostles doing the same thing, then why do we worship on Sunday? First of all, of the 10 commandments listed in Exodus 20:1-17, only 9 of them were reinstituted in the New Testament: five in Matt. 19:18, murder, adultery, stealing, false witness, and honor parents; in Rom. 13:9, coveting; worshiping God properly covers the first three commandments. The one that was not reaffirmed was the one about the Sabbath. Instead, Jesus said that He is the Lord of the Sabbath (Matt. 12:8). Upon the completion of Creation, God rested on the seventh day. However, since God is all-powerful, He doesn’t get tired. He doesn’t need to take a break and rest. So, why did/does it say that He rested? The reason is simple: Mark 2:27 says, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath." In other words, God established the Sabbath as a rest for His people--not because He needed a break but because we are mortal and need a time of rest--a time to focus on God. In this, our spirits and bodies are both renewed. The Old Testament system of Law required keeping the Sabbath as part of the overall moral, legal, and sacrificial system by which the Jewish people satisfied God’s requirements for behavior, government, and forgiveness of sins. The Sabbath was part of the Law in that sense. In order to "remain" in favor with God, you had to also keep the Sabbath. If it was not kept, then the person was in sin and would often be punished (Ezekiel 18:4; Rom. 6:23; Deut. 13:1-9; Num. 35:31; Lev. 20:2, etc.). But with Jesus’ atonement, we are no longer required to keep the Law. We are not under Law but grace (Rom. 6:14-15). The Sabbath is fulfilled in Jesus. He is our rest. We are not under obligation, by Law, to keep it; and this goes for the Sabbath as well. It is not a requirement that we keep the Sabbath. If it were, then we would still be under the Law; but we are not.
Jhong Manansala
Supporter
Most Christians around the world nowadays do Worship every Sunday because of the Lord Jesus. Jesus came back to life on Sunday. We do it every Sunday in celebration and commemoration of the Lord's resurrection.
Connie Rosario
Supporter
Since I learned that the fourth commandment is the keep the Sabbath holy, I've been so confused by everyone equating rest and worship with going to church. I believe that when Jesus returns, he is not going to think one iota about what denomination you're in. Or whether you attend a Sunday, Saturday, or even a Wednesday church service. What will be important is whether you have been serving the Lord and obeying him. I believe that if I'm working hard at home or a job, and being out there spreading the kingdom love and message, and from Friday evening to Saturday evening, just relaxing, not doing any unnecessary chores but devoting myself to prayer and devotion, then I have honored the Sabbath. Even my late preacher stressed, “This building is not the church, you are the church.” But legalistic churches have been judgmental, telling folks if you don't go to church on such a such day, you're doomed. Again, I stress, do not equate the Sabbath with what day your modern church building is open for service. You may say, "We're a Sabbath keeping church, keeping service on Saturday." What you're doing is working on Saturday. The preacher is working, the pianist is working, the deacons are working, whoever mans the nursery is working, even the AV guy; somebody is preparing meals for the potluck, and if you're just attending, you gotta get dressed up and drive. That is not rest, prayer, and devotion. Honoring the Sabbath is not a dictation of when the church is open.
Ed Smith
Supporter
Christ was raised on the first day of the week. This is reason enough to celebrate the Lord's Supper on the first day--not because a Catholic pope chanced it (which he did not do). Early historians said the early Christians met on the first day. The church started on the first day. Count the days from Passover to Pentecost. It turns out to be fifty which puts the church starting on the first day of the week. Ed Smith [email protected]
And Ande
Supporter
It is a matter of "rest". God rested after He created what we can see and do not see. God had a great plan for human kind about this "sabbath" (Mark 2:27). Sabbath day allowed people to rest after all their work, like God did, He rested after His work (it is only a image because God can not be tired, this is a image of what God had prepared for us Heb 4:3) God knew that we all need a sabbath day (day of rest) so He made that possible for us. As we know Jewish people are good business men :) So they worked hard. They respected sabbath day until one day, they saw they could do more money in sabbath day and some of them abandoned this "sabbath" day for their interest. Now I do not want you to think I do not respect my God but here is what I think. When Adam and Eve eat the forbidden fruit, God was not there (I do not ignore His omnipresence), because it was Sabbath day. Well you might ask, where did I find that? Well the thing is I did not find it, but I think like so : God rested (Hebrew word for rest : sâbat) before He created the man, His Sabbath (Genesis 2:2) and we can read in chapter 3 the amazing speech and His wonderful action "where, who, have you...?" Which is the day off when God broke His Sabbath. Keep in mind that God did not work as we do, or think. The first an known verse are "God said, God said... And the Holy Spirit did... So when God asked Adam and Even these questions, we can imagine God broke His own Sabbath to save human kind. He could not rest! Our God is a God of Action! Not a God we see in sculpture, or pattern. - man could rest after his work, on the sabbath day, and Adam did that in order to be in union with His Creator. One day per week (Jewish calendar not our gregorian calendar, so you do the calculation) Adam and Even where in union with God, that was the Sabbath day for man (Mark 2:27) God broke His own Sabbath for a good reason to save us, so do Jesus many times but for a good reason (John 9:14). It is not a matter of money, or give one day per week to God, it is a matter of rest. And really who what to give only one day to God? Who can abstain from spitting on a sabbath day? Hope you understand. I do not write and speak as you do people so be kind :)
Kamille Faith Quiñones
Supporter
In Genesis 1:5, it says "God called the light 'day' and the darkness he called 'night'. And there was evening and there was morning - the first day." If we follow how the Bible counts a day which is from sunset to sunset, then the first day would start from Sunday night and end on the whole day of Monday. For second day – Monday night and Tuesday the whole day. When we continue to count up to the 7th day, the Sabbath day falls on Saturday night and Sunday (before the sunset). I believe our worship service takes place during Sunday morning onward. Therefore, we are keeping the Sabbath day holy.
Samuel Reed
Supporter
Jesus is our Sabbath Rest and he instituted a New Covenant. Jeremiah 31 shows the old Covenant was not permanent. The moral law in the 10 Commandments are still valid because Jesus upheld them, but the day of worship was allowed to be changed as we see the apostles worshiping on the first day, aka the Lord’s Day. We are still expected to give the whole day to the Lord, but the heart of it is to also be allowed to do works of mercy, like church activities. Church activities are ministries to the Lord on his behalf. Things not allowed would be putting someone to work at a restaurant because you’re hungry.
Patricio Villanueva
Supporter
The Lord rested on the seventh day, shabbat, from His work of Creation. Also His Son rested on the seventh day from His work of Redemption. He said: I'll give you one sign, the sign of Johnah. 3 days and 3 nights that is very different from only 3 days. Three days and three nights is exactly 72 hours. Three days could be a "range" from 1 second the first day, 24 hours the second day and 1 second the third day to 24 hrs. + 24 hrs. + 24 hrs. = 72 hours. Not a very exact amount of time that Jesus was going to be in the center of the Earth. 3 days and 3 nights is very exact time, so He told us what John wrote that he died, gave up the ghost, on the middle of the week at "exactly" the 9th hour = 3 PM and was resurrected "exactly" 72 hours later at the 9th hour=3 PM on the day of rest. We call that day Saturday but the Word calls it "the day of rest" or the last day of the week or the 7th day. Somebody changed it later. The book of Daniel mentions it.
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