Christian discussions & debates about the Sabbath & Sunday have been
bedeviled by a number of misconceptions on both sides. A few have been:
1) That the Sabbath is connected especially with worship.
2) That there is some identifiable point in history at which
the church
decided to change from observance of Saturday to that of Sunday.
3) That the religious significance of the Sabbath involves looking to
the past and not the future.
4) That the practical idea of resting on the Sabbath is of secondary
religious significance.
5) That Sunday is a Christian version of the Sabbath.
6) That Christians aren't really free.
I'll try to be brief about these.
1) In the OT the Sabbath is of course to be observed by rest
but is not
a special time for corporate worship. Thus the idea that the proper time for
worship is to be decided with reference to the Sabbath is already debatable.
This did become a regular time for services in the synagogue, which made sense
in a culture like that of the Roman Empire in which ordinary people worked 7
days a week but the Jews were allowed, as a legal religion, to observe the 7th
day. & of course this is why - as Allen notes below - Paul often went to
synagogues on the Sabbath: That's when he'd have an audience.
2) By the time of Justin Martyr in the mid 2d century it seems to have
been common practice at least in gentile Christian congregations for the weekly
Eucharist to be held on the 1st day of the week. Later on it seems
to have been
assumed that the church made a conscious decision to this effect. But I don't
know that there is evidence of any great debate about it at the time or any
explicit decision by any church council to the effect that a change should be
made. It just was. Perhaps someone more expert on church history can fill in
here.
3) The rationale for Sabbath observance in Ex.20:11 looks back to the
1st creation story of Genesis. But in that story the 7th day in fact looks
forward to the fulfillment of creation. Orthodox Jews still today celebrate
"the Bride Shabbat" as a type or foretaste of the time when the Kingdom of God
will come in its fullness. & that's why so many of Jesus' healings take place
on the Sabbath: Since the Kingdom of God is breaking into the world
in him, the
Sabbath was precisely the right time for these Messianic signs to be performed.
What the Sabbath in the OT was pointing toward has arrived, at least
proleptically & - as the Letter to the Hebrews says with the whole
package of OT
observances - that means that the type is obsolete.
4) Sabbath observance as the 3d Commandment (according to the correct
numbering :)) seems something of an anomaly: It may have been an important
ceremonial matter but how does it fit with "No other gods before me" & not
taking God's name in vain? But in fact the idea that people should rest from
their labors at certain times is a reminder that we can't ensure our lives by
continual work but must depend on God: Workaholics are idolators. This idea
remains valid whenever we choose to rest.
5) The Christian day of worship is a time to hear the gospel and share
the Lord's Supper. It is not fundamentally "a day of rest" like the Sabbath,
though many Christians have thought it was & have wanted to establish various
Sunday closing laws &c. If Christians had understood this clearly & realized
that they weren't just changing from one day to another then there would have
been less confusion.
6) Christians should listen to what Paul says in Galatians instead of
always trying to tone down the radical message of freedom from the law that he
proclaims here. For the present topic, Gal.4:10-11 should be noted. Col.2:16
is also relevant: "Therefore do not let anyone condemn you in matters of food
or drink or of observing festivals, new moons, OR SABBATHS."
Christians are free to worship any time they want to. Sunday is fine
but if there were some reason for a congregation to have its regular worship
service on Tuesday evening, that would be fine too. & as in 4) above, rest is
necessary, but Thursday can serve for that as well as Saturday.
The idea that we are saved by Christ plus something else is
probably the
most pervasive Christian heresy. That's what Paul's opponents in Galatia were
pushing. & any idea that observance of Saturday, or Sunday, or any other day,
is required by God, & not merely a matter of good order in church &/or state
feeds into this heresy, whatever fine distinctions one may try to make.
Shalom,
George
George L. Murphy
http://web.raex.com/~gmurphy/
"The Science-Theology Interface"
Allen Roy wrote:
> From: "gordon brown" <gbrown@euclid.Colorado.EDU>
> > There are a couple of other reasons for the Sabbath, both pertaining
> > specifically to Israel. (See Exodus 31:13 and Deuteronomy 5:15).
>
> According to Exodus 31:13 the Sabbath was to be a sign that God makes them
> holy.
>
> EX 31:12-13 Then the LORD said to Moses, 13 "Say to the Israelites, `You
> must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the
> generations to come, so you may know that I am the LORD, who makes you holy.
>
> However, don't stop there.
>
> EX 31:14-17 " `Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. ... 15
> For six days, work is to be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest,
> holy to the LORD. ... 16 The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath,
> celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. 17 It will
> be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the LORD
> made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from
> work and rested.' "
>
> In other words, the Sabbath is a sign that God makes them holy because God
> is the Creator and the Sabbath is the celebration of the Creation week.
>
> We need to back up to verse 12 to get the context of Deut. 5:15.
>
> DT 5:12 "Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the LORD your God
> has commanded you. 13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 14 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 ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor the alien
> within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest, as you
> do. 15 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the LORD your God
> brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm.
> Therefore the LORD your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.
>
> God is not saying that they are to keep the Sabbath in memorial of being
> brought out of Egypt. Rather He wants them to observe the Sabbath that
> celebrates His Creatorship because the Creator is the very one who brought
> them out of Egypt.
>
> > The New
> > Testament does not tell us when to worship, although there are clues that
> > the early Christians worshipped on the first day of the week.
>
> By the same token it does not tell us when not to worship. However, The
> book of Acts list many times that Paul taught and attended the Synagogs on
> the Sabbath:
>
> Acts 13:14 "But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in
> Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and sat down."
>
> Acts 13:42 "And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles
> besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath.
>
> Acts 13:44 "And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to
> hear the word of God."
>
> Acts 16:13 "And on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side,
> where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women
> which resorted thither."
>
> Acts 17:2 "And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath
> days reasoned with them out of the scriptures,"
>
> Acts 18:4 "And he reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the
> Jews and the Greeks."
>
> Acts 19:8 "And he went into the synagogue, and spake boldly for the space of
> three months, disputing and persuading the things concerning the kingdom of
> God.
>
> I count at least 20 Sabbaths kept by Paul. And 17: 2 says that it was
> Paul's manner/custom to worship on the Sabbath.
>
> How many times did he meet on the First day?
>
> > From Romans 14:5,6 we learn that there were some who regarded one day
> > above another and others who regarded every day alike. Each was supposed
> > to accept the other.
>
> RO 14:5 "One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man
> considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own
> mind. 6 He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord."
>
> It is worthy of notice that the choices given here are 1. One day special
> and 2. All days alike -- i.e. all are special [holy]. What it does not
> deal with is one person taking one day special and other person taking
> another single day special. Therefore, we cannot draw from this text that
> it is ok for one person to have one day as special and another person to
> have another day as special. It's a single day verses all days.
>
> > I am pleased that we don't have to be legalistic about this matter.
> > Otherwise I would be concerned about whether or not the guys who drew the
> > International Date Line got it right.
>
> What is Legalism? Legalism is the attempt to try to EARN salvation by
> trying to keep the law. Along with most every other Christian group, SDAs
> believe in Salvation by faith alone in Jesus. But why then "keep" the
> Sabbath if not to earn Salvation?
>
> Jesus said, If you love me keep my commandments. Only those who already
> have found salvation through faith are likely to be the ones who truly love
> Jesus. Therefore, only those who have salvation by faith will want to keep
> Jesus' commands. Out of love for Jesus I will love God with my entire being
> and love my fellow man just as I love myself. This means that, out of love
> for Jesus, I won't have any other god/s. Out of love for Jesus I won't used
> his name in vain. Out of love for Jesus, I won't make images to worship.
> Out of love for Jesus, I will honor my mom and dad. Out of love for Jesus I
> won't murder, steal, lie, commit adultery nor covet against my fellow
> mankind. It also means that out of love for Jesus, I will keep the 7th day
> Sabbath in honor of the fact that Jesus is the Creator [John 1:1].
>
> It's that simple.
>
> Allen
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