Is there such a thing as a Christian Sabbath?

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Bible Study 11:00 AM - Fellowship 12:00 -12:30 Pm - Afternoon Preaching 12:30-1:30 PM

by: David Hethorn

06/29/2022

4

Thought for the Day, June 29, 2022, 
The Christian Sabbath
Is there such a thing as a Christian Sabbath?  
The Biblical accounting of days is an evening and a morning.  (Ge.1.5)  As we know, there are seven cycles of these days which make up one week: day one through day seven.  Being these days begin a little differently than we are familiar with today it is necessary to point out that the seventh day of the week begins on our Friday evening and ends at the beginning of our Saturday evening.   This order of days has not changed since creation.  In the day that the LORD declared that HE finished or ended His creation, then He rested.   There in Ge. 2.2 it reads ... and he rested.  Rest in the Hebrew language is sabbath.    
The English word Sabbath is first used in the Bible in Exodus 16.23.  There the LORD chided Israel for gathering more manna than was their daily need.  Only on one day, the day before the Sabbath day, Israel was to gather in a double-portion of manna to eat because the LORD would rest on the next day, the Sabbath day. In other words He ceased with sending manna on the seventh day of the week. From creation to the history of Ex.16.23, ONLY the LORD is said to have rested on the Sabbath.  No man is said to have observed a Sabbath day UNTIL the giving of the Law at Sinai.  (cf. Ex. 20.8-11)  Such rest was historically unknown to all that lived prior to the giving of the Law at Sinai.  If Adam, Cain, Abel, Seth, Lamech, Noah, Shem, Ham, Japheth, and all of those prior to Sinai knew anything of Sabbath it was that the LORD rested in it.   Otherwise, there is no evidence that any man, prior to the giving of the Law at Sinai, observed the Sabbath, much less, that there was a commandment for man to observe the Sabbath.
The giving of the Law at Sinai marks the first occasion when man was commanded to rest on the seventh day. To whom was this Law specifically directed?  It was directed to Israel, not the gentiles.  Ex.20.2, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.  Again, Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD ...Deu.6.4.  Since the Sabbath was given to Israel then how can it be a Christian observance?  But our Lord Jesus observed Sabbath!  The early disciples of the first churches observed Sabbath and went to synagogues and the Temple!  It must be Christian, right?  Well, our Lord Jesus and His disciples did not observe Sabbath because they were Christian, but because they were Jews of the nation of Israel.  With this in mind, I believe it is correct to point out that Christ’s disciples’ attitude toward the Sabbath and the whole law of Moses began to change after Christ’s ascension into glory.  It was during the history of the Acts of the Apostles that the messianic Jews began to see over the next 40 years the necessity to leave behind the old practices of what now is called Judaism to follow after the commandments of Christ.  In this way the believing Jews joined together with the believing Gentiles in one body, by one Spirit, in one government, eating the same things and worshipping the same God on any day they deemed fit to gather together in the name of the Lord Jesus.  The Sabbath observance, the dietary laws (Acts 10.13), the religious Sabbath holidays (Col.2.16), tithing (!!!), and circumcision were past for the New Testament faithful whether they were Jew or Gentile.  So, Christian Jews and Gentiles have no Sabbath day observance.  
Let’s not confuse the issue.  Sunday is not a Sabbath. It should never be called a Sabbath!  That notion is a Catholic and Protestant error! How can the first day of the week be the seventh day of the week? Where is it in the New Testament that the saints began to call the first day of the week the Sabbath?  Now, we know that a pattern of the churches assembling together on the first day of the week became a regular practice.  After all, this was the day that the Lord Jesus was raised from the dead.  This was a great day for the saints of God.  But they met, first of all, because of the necessity to fellowship, not because of a commandment to meet on any particular day. The truth is, churches may assemble together on any day they choose.  
So, to whom was the 7th Day Sabbath given?  Israel.  Are Christians bound to observe Sabbath?  No.  Is Sunday the Sabbath?  No.  And there is no such thing as a Christian Sabbath!  
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Thought for the Day, June 29, 2022, 
The Christian Sabbath
Is there such a thing as a Christian Sabbath?  
The Biblical accounting of days is an evening and a morning.  (Ge.1.5)  As we know, there are seven cycles of these days which make up one week: day one through day seven.  Being these days begin a little differently than we are familiar with today it is necessary to point out that the seventh day of the week begins on our Friday evening and ends at the beginning of our Saturday evening.   This order of days has not changed since creation.  In the day that the LORD declared that HE finished or ended His creation, then He rested.   There in Ge. 2.2 it reads ... and he rested.  Rest in the Hebrew language is sabbath.    
The English word Sabbath is first used in the Bible in Exodus 16.23.  There the LORD chided Israel for gathering more manna than was their daily need.  Only on one day, the day before the Sabbath day, Israel was to gather in a double-portion of manna to eat because the LORD would rest on the next day, the Sabbath day. In other words He ceased with sending manna on the seventh day of the week. From creation to the history of Ex.16.23, ONLY the LORD is said to have rested on the Sabbath.  No man is said to have observed a Sabbath day UNTIL the giving of the Law at Sinai.  (cf. Ex. 20.8-11)  Such rest was historically unknown to all that lived prior to the giving of the Law at Sinai.  If Adam, Cain, Abel, Seth, Lamech, Noah, Shem, Ham, Japheth, and all of those prior to Sinai knew anything of Sabbath it was that the LORD rested in it.   Otherwise, there is no evidence that any man, prior to the giving of the Law at Sinai, observed the Sabbath, much less, that there was a commandment for man to observe the Sabbath.
The giving of the Law at Sinai marks the first occasion when man was commanded to rest on the seventh day. To whom was this Law specifically directed?  It was directed to Israel, not the gentiles.  Ex.20.2, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.  Again, Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD ...Deu.6.4.  Since the Sabbath was given to Israel then how can it be a Christian observance?  But our Lord Jesus observed Sabbath!  The early disciples of the first churches observed Sabbath and went to synagogues and the Temple!  It must be Christian, right?  Well, our Lord Jesus and His disciples did not observe Sabbath because they were Christian, but because they were Jews of the nation of Israel.  With this in mind, I believe it is correct to point out that Christ’s disciples’ attitude toward the Sabbath and the whole law of Moses began to change after Christ’s ascension into glory.  It was during the history of the Acts of the Apostles that the messianic Jews began to see over the next 40 years the necessity to leave behind the old practices of what now is called Judaism to follow after the commandments of Christ.  In this way the believing Jews joined together with the believing Gentiles in one body, by one Spirit, in one government, eating the same things and worshipping the same God on any day they deemed fit to gather together in the name of the Lord Jesus.  The Sabbath observance, the dietary laws (Acts 10.13), the religious Sabbath holidays (Col.2.16), tithing (!!!), and circumcision were past for the New Testament faithful whether they were Jew or Gentile.  So, Christian Jews and Gentiles have no Sabbath day observance.  
Let’s not confuse the issue.  Sunday is not a Sabbath. It should never be called a Sabbath!  That notion is a Catholic and Protestant error! How can the first day of the week be the seventh day of the week? Where is it in the New Testament that the saints began to call the first day of the week the Sabbath?  Now, we know that a pattern of the churches assembling together on the first day of the week became a regular practice.  After all, this was the day that the Lord Jesus was raised from the dead.  This was a great day for the saints of God.  But they met, first of all, because of the necessity to fellowship, not because of a commandment to meet on any particular day. The truth is, churches may assemble together on any day they choose.  
So, to whom was the 7th Day Sabbath given?  Israel.  Are Christians bound to observe Sabbath?  No.  Is Sunday the Sabbath?  No.  And there is no such thing as a Christian Sabbath!  
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4 Comments on this post:

Pastor Dave

The below argument is often made by the Hebrew Roots Movement concerning the Sabbath. I have heard it before but it holds no water. There are several references to the Apostle's meeting on Sunday as well as the assemblies of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is referred to as the "Lord's Day" in Rev. 1:10. We are everywhere in the N.T. commanded to keep the moral law of God and each of the ten commandments is repeated in the N.T. save "keeping the Sabbath." While I do not doubt that the Sabbath day will be restored in the future Kingdom it is not so certainly established in this age. The argument is "all believers until Constantine" kept the Sabbath. Now I will prove that is not true by quoting pre-Constantine church fathers often referred to as the Ante-Nicene Fathers. "No longer observing the Sabbath, but living in observance of the Lord's Day. Ignatius 105AD "And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read...But Sunday is the day on which we all hold our common assembly because it is the first day on which God...made the world. And Jesus Christ our Savior rose from the dead on that same day." Justin Martyr 160AD " You who reproach us with the sun and Sunday should consider your proximity to us. We are not far off from ou Saturn and your days of rest. "Tertullian 197AD Long before Constantine every came on the scene Christians were worshiping on Sunday.

Jesus kept the Sabbath, the Apostles kept it and all early believers until Constantine changed it in 321AD. Christians don’t want to keep it because they want to be separated from their Jewish (Hebraic) roots and would rather worship pagan days and Festivals. Why not just throw your Bibles out because half it you don’t want to follow even though it was not the Law of Moses it is the Law of God written with His own finger. One day every knee will bow to the Messiah and all will keep the Sabbath day.

Pastor Dave

No doubt Matt. .24:20 has some difficulty in interpretation. It could relate to the fact that Jews were limited in their travel to about a mile on the Sabbath day thus unable to escape an enemy, or that they would be generally gathered in places of worship making them easier targets, nevertheless, it was a warning to the Jew. The law of Moses belongs to Israel, God's moral law is written in the heart of every man, Rom 2:14, 15. The Sabbath belonged to Israel alone, it was written their law, however, the principle of a day of rest is certainly applicable to all men. The O.T. writings are for our learning and for example (Rom. 15:4; I Cor. 10:11). The Sabboth written in the law is certainly a "principle" we can apply as Gentiles. The Sabbath was Saturday to a Jew but the principle of a day of rest can be applied to any day of the week we chose to rest on. The Sabbath Day, because the Law of Moses is ended, no longer applies to the Jew and never applied to the Gentile.. Now regarding the question of lawlessness. The Theological word is Antinomian which means "against law". We are never left lawless as Rom. 15:4 states, Gentiles are left out of the Law of Moses, that alone belonged to the Jewish nation and marked them out from the rest of mankind, Deut. 4:8. When we come to the N.T. we find the moral law of God repeated and the expectation that all men are to obey it, but we do not see the Sabbath given as a statute for all believers to practice or obey. Thank you for your comments.

Klina-Renee

Matthew 24:20 says we are supposed to pray our flight is not in winter or on the sabbath day. Any idea why? I do see that mark 13:18 says winter but does not mention the sabbath. This topic is confusing to me. I also have a big concern about lawlwssness but realize it's not the letter we are to follow but the spirit. I see a lot of spiritual symbolism in the statutes of moses also.