Are Christians Obligated To Observe The Sabbath Day?
By Gerry W
Webb, February 1999.
Revised June 2000.
Introduction
The fourth commandment given by God
to the children of
We
will first look into God's requirements for those who "observe (or
remember) the Sabbath." How was it
to be kept holy since there is no mention of worship or going to the tabernacle
(or synagogue) on the seventh day? We
need to be reminded that the seventh day of the week was only one of the
"Sabbaths" which
A. The Mosaic Requirements on Keeping
the Seventh-day Sabbath
The main obligation of the
Sabbath-day commandment according to Exodus 20:8-11; 23:10-12; 31:12-18; 34:21;
35:1-3; Num. 15:30-41, and Deuteronomy 5:12-15 was for
The civil aspect of the Mosaic Law
regulated many of
If both Christians and Jews are
still required to keep the Sabbath days as given in the Mosaic Covenant, then
the Mosaic civil laws which regulate them should also be in force because God
(YHWH) commanded both. We know that
capital punishment was commanded as punishment for working on the Sabbath,
including picking up sticks and lighting a fire in one's home (or dwelling).
(Cf. Exod. 31:12-18; 35:1-3; Num. 15:32-36.)
This is extreme punishment. Who is going to enforce it? The Jewish synagogue? The Church?
A handful of Reconstructionists?
The
If this Sabbath law was strictly
applied today according to Mosaic law, it would mean that our furnaces could
not go on even if the temperature gets to minus 40 as it often does during the
month of January in
B. The Ending of Sabbath-day
Observance.
We see from the Bible that God's
Sabbaths were:
1. Only signs between God and the
sons of Israel throughout their generations, and which set them apart from
other nations (cf. Exod. 31:12-17; Neh. 9:9-15; Ezek. 20:1-26; Mal. 4:4).
2. Given to remind the sons of
Israel that they were slaves in the land of Egypt, and were brought out by
the mighty hand of the LORD (cf. Num. 15:30-41; Deut. 5:12-15; Dan. 9:11-16).
3. The seventh-day Sabbath was
also associated with God "resting" on the seventh day after creating
the universe (cf. Gen. 2:1-3; Exod. 20:8-11; 31:12-18).
4. God’s Sabbaths were to be days
of complete rest, not even a little labour to make a fire (cf. Exod. 20:10;
31:14-17; 35:2-3; Lev. 23:3,32; Num. 15:32-36; Deut. 5:14).
5. As part of God’s statutes and
ordinances, the seventh-day Sabbath was given to the sons of Israel; it was
not given to their forefathers (cf. Deut. 5:1-3,6,12-15,22; Neh.
9:13-15). This means it had not been
given to Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
6. God’s Sabbaths were to be obeyed while living
in the
7.
God’s Sabbaths were not given to the Christian Church (cf. Acts
15:19-20; Rom. 7:1-6; 9:30-10:4; 14:1-6; Gal. 4:9-11; Heb. 4:1-11). Nowhere in the New Testament are Christians
commanded to obey the Sabbath. If Christians
were to obey the weekly Sabbath, they would have to celebrate it as a complete
day of rest between sundown Friday and sundown Saturday, Israeli time. The Old
Mosaic Covenant, not the New Covenant, would also regulate it. Instead, first century Christians began to
worship God on “the Lord’s Day” which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus
Christ on Sunday, the first day of the week. They gathered together for
worship, listening to the Apostles’ teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread,
communal meals, prayer, and collection for the saints (cf. Acts 2:41-47;
20:7-8; 1 Cor. 11:17-34; 16:1-2; Heb. 10:25; Rev. 1:10). In actuality, Jesus is Lord of every day.
The whole Mosaic Law (including the
Sabbath days) was a "certificate of debt" and was taken out of the
way by being spiritually nailed to the cross of Christ (cf. Deut. 27:26;
Gal. 3:10‑14; Eph. 2:15-16; Col. 1:20; 2:9‑17.) One cannot say that only the civil and
ceremonial parts of the Law constituted the "certificate of
debt." It was the moral part of the
Mosaic Law which mainly indebted mankind to God. This obligation or
"debt" we could never pay. In fact, disobedience to the Law of God
brings judgment and death. Because of the death of Christ on the cross,
however, God cancelled those decrees that were against us. Colossians 2:11-14 relate to a variety of
other passages in Paul's writings which discuss our sinful state as a result of
our breaking God's moral laws (e.g. Rom. 6-7; Eph. 2:1-18; Phil. 3:3). Our previous state of being "dead in trespasses
and sins" was the result of breaking God's moral laws, not the result of
our disobeying
The following reasons from the
Bible declare the ending of Sabbath-Day observances:
(i) The old Mosaic "certificate of debt"
also included what one ate or drank, and how he or she regarded the religious
feasts, or new moon, or a Sabbath day.
The English translations of Colossians 2:16 generally read "... or a
Sabbath day." The literal translation from the Greek, however, reads:
"... or of sabbaths." The word
"sabbaths" is plural and means more than the feast days.2 I believe it included the seventh day that
was a Sabbath day of rest given only to
(ii) The whole
Mosaic Covenant of Law was only given to the sons of Israel in order to
regulate them while in the Promised Land under theocratic rule (e.g. Exod.
20:2; Lev. 26:1-46; Deut. 4:1-14; 5:1-3; 6:1-25). This included God's "seventh-day
Sabbaths" which was to be "a sign" between God and them
throughout their generations, and also to set them apart from all other nations
(cf. Exod. 20:8-10; 23:12; 31:12-18; 35:1-3; Lev. 19:1-4,30; 23:1-3;
26:2; Deut. 4:40,44-46; 5:12-15; Neh. 13:15-22; Ezek. 20:2-24). According to Leviticus 25, the land was to
have a "rest" every seven years, and it was also called "a
sabbath to the LORD." The main
reason the Sabbath-day observance laws were given to the sons of Israel was to
remind them that God brought them out of Egypt where they were slaves (Deut.
5:15). In other words, the Sabbath
commandment was not just linked to God’s work in creation, but also to His work
in
(iii) The end of Sabbath observance is found
within the Decalogue itself. If
one looks carefully at Exodus 16:22-30; 20:10; Leviticus 23:1-39, and
Deuteronomy 5:14 (NASB), he or she will see that the seventh day was to be
"a" sabbath day of the LORD, meaning only one of at least three kinds
of sabbaths. Another sabbath was the
seventh or "sabbatical year" within which the land was to rest (Lev.
25:1-7). The root of the Hebrew word
shabbat (Strong's #7673,7676,7677) is "to sit", and it
primarily means "to rest," or to take an intermission from
work (cf. Exod. 35:2). These are the
sabbaths included in the Sabbath days mentioned in Colossians 2:9-17 which were
merely shadows of things to come through Christ.
(iv) If Sabbath-day observances were still
required, so would the burnt offerings which went along with them (cf. Lev.
19:30; 23:2-3; Num. 28:1-10; 29:39-40; I Chron. 23:30-31; II Chron. 31:2-4;
Isa. 1:13). These were commanded by God
to the sons of
(v) If the
Sabbath-day laws were still in effect today, then according to Exodus 31:12-18;
35:1-3; and Numbers 15:32-36, anyone who profaned the Sabbath by working,
gathering sticks, or kindling a fire in his dwelling from Friday sundown to
Saturday sundown is to be put to death.
Since we do not live under a theocratic state as ancient
(vi) As the “Son of Man,” Jesus not only said that
He was "Lord of the Sabbath (Matt. 12:8; Mark 2:23-28; Luke 6:5),"
but also that "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath
(Mark 2:27)." If the harsh Mosaic
restrictions concerning the Sabbath-day were still in force today for all
Christians, then one would have to contradict Christ and say that man was
indeed made for the Sabbath.
(vii) Concerning the issue of healing people on the
Sabbath, we need only to look at Jesus' response to the legalistic Pharisees in
Matthew 12:1-37 (cf. Mark 2:23-3:6; Luke 6:1-11 and 13:10-17). Jesus was
accused of working on the Sabbath when he healed people. As the Son of God, Jesus viewed the welfare
of people as more important than religious laws. Principles such as doing good and dispensing
mercy and justice were more important to Him than formal outward laws (cf. Ps.
51:16-17; Isa. 42:1-4). In addition, the
New Testament taught that the person of Jesus was greater than the physical
temple in
(viii) In order to get around the problem of the
"Sabbath-Day" observance as being part of the Ten Commandments (or
Decalogue), some Christians teach that it was part of the Jewish ceremonial
law, not the moral. I believe it relates
to both.
(ix) Jesus Christ is the only person who has ever
fulfilled all the requirements of the Mosaic Law (cf. II Cor. 5:21; Gal. 4:4;
Heb. 4:15), including proper observance of the Sabbath. For example, according
to Luke 4:16, Jesus entered the synagogue on the Sabbath which "was His
custom."
(x)
(xi) In Romans 14:1-23, the Apostle Paul
says: "... One man regards one day above another, another regards every
day alike. Let each man be fully convinced in his own mind...(NASB)." In other words, for the Christian, the Apostle
is saying that no day is to be regarded holier than another. Although the Torah
was read every Saturday in the synagogues, the early Gentile Christians were
never commanded to be circumcised, or to rest on Saturday as the Jews were (cf.
Acts 15:1-21).
(xii) The early Christians began to worship God
on Sunday (or the Lord's Day), because the first day of the week became
associated with Christ's resurrection (cf. Matt. 28:1-10; Luke 24:1; John 20:1;
Rev. 1:10). We see from Acts 20:7 and I
Corinthians 16:1-3 that the early Church gathered together on the first day of
every week in order to "break bread," and also to take up a
"collection for the saints."
Nowhere in the New Testament is the Church commanded to gather together
to worship on the Jewish seventh-day Sabbath. If the early Christians were in the habit of
congregating on Saturday, then why would the apostle Paul tell the Corinthian
Christians to gather together again the next day just to take up a collection? I believe it is false for the
History records that the early
Christians were worshipping on Sunday as far back as the first and second
centuries A.D. For example:
"But every
Lord's Day, gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving
after having confessed your transgressions, so that your sacrifice may be
pure." (Didache c. 80-140)
"No longer
observing the Sabbath, but living in the observance of the Lord's Day." (Ignatius,
c. 105)3 Ignatius here reveals that the “Lord’s Day”
is separate from the Jewish Sabbath.
"I will make a
beginning of the eighth day, that is, a beginning of another world. For that
reason, also, we keep the eighth day with joyfulness, the day also on which
Jesus rose again from the dead." (Barnabas c. 70-130)4
"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 c. 160)5
"There was no
need of circumcision before Abraham. Nor was there need of the observance of
Sabbaths, or of feasts and sacrifices, before Moses. Accordingly, there is no
more need of them now." (Justin Martyr c. 160)
"We do not
follow the Jews in their peculiarities in regard to food nor in their sacred
days." (Tertullian c. 197)
"Let the one
who contends that the Sabbath is still to be observed as a balm of
salvation,... prove to us that in times past righteous men kept the Sabbath, or
practiced circumcision, and were thereby made 'friends of God.' God created
Adam uncircumcised and non-observance of the Sabbath..." (Tertullian
c. 197)
"Just as the
abolition of fleshly circumcision and of the old Law is demonstrated as having
been consummated at its specific times, so also the observance of the Sabbath
is demonstrated to have been temporary." (Tertullian c. 197)6
"On the day of
our Lord's resurrection, which is the Lord's Day, you should meet more
diligently, sending praise to God who made the universe by Jesus... On this
day, there is the reading of the Prophets, the preaching of the Gospel, the
oblation of the sacrifice, and the gift of the holy food." (Apostolic
Constitutions, compiled c.390)7
(xiii) Finally,
according to Matthew 11:28-30, and Hebrews 3 and 4, the antitype "Sabbath
rest for the people of God" is a relationship with God, and it is entered
through faith. That is where we find rest for our "souls." In
other words, we are to cease from our own works, and instead, rest in God and
the completed work of Christ on our behalf (e.g. I Cor. 1:2-9). This is true for both our salvation and our
sanctification.
In addition to the seventh-day
Sabbath, there were other days which were to be "holy" and set apart
for rest and worship. They were also
"holy convocations" or high sabbaths, and were celebrated as part of
the Jewish Feasts (cf. Lev. 23:4-44; I Chron. 23:25-32; II Chron. 2:4; 8:12-13;
31:3; Isa. 1:13-15; Hos. 2:11). These
other sabbath days are included in the festivals mentioned in Colossians
2:14-17, and were also merely "shadows" of greater things to
come. The fact is, Jesus is the
substance that fulfilled the types.
In his book Christian Be Free,
a former Seventh-day Adventist minister comments:
Only by accepting the death and resurrection
of Jesus as sufficient to redeem us can we again worship God as Creator. Either
we accept the righteousness of Jesus as sufficient or we are in as deep trouble
as were the Jews who, while observing the Jewish Sabbath, failed to enter into
God's Rest. God does not redeem us from the curse contained in the Mosaic
Sabbath commandment only to put us back into bondage to that same law again, as
Galatians 3:1-4 shows very clearly.
...God's real Rest was
the kind offered by Jesus when he said, "Come unto me, all ye that labor
and are heavy laden and I will give you rest" (Matt. 11:28)... As one
looks to Jesus, and trusts him to guide, and is willing to be disciplined and
matured through trials and hardships, Jesus will give his Rest.8
The above quote concurs with such
verses as Philippians 4:4-9 and I Peter 5:6-7.
Dr. Laura Schlessinger is a Jewish convert,
family therapist, and popular radio talk-show host who gives wise practical
advice to callers' problems. In her new
book on the Ten Commandments, she writes:
The bridge between the sacred and the mundane
or profane is us [mankind]. Adam and Eve were created between all other things
on earth and the Sabbath day. The Sabbath is ordained for spirituality, but
only our actions can bring that potential to reality or not...
While the Jewish tradition retains the
celebration of the Sabbath on the seventh day, Saturday, Christians commonly
refer to Sunday as the Sabbath. Both groups find the source of their practice
in their Scripture. For Jews, it is primarily based on the commandment in the
Decalogue, which, in the book of Exodus, portrays the Sabbath as a
commemoration of God's redemptive acts as demonstrated in the Exodus from Egypt
(Exodus 20:8-11; Deuteronomy 5:12-15). For Christians, the Lord's Day is rooted
in the Resurrection of Jesus, which took place on the first day of the week
(Luke 24:1; John 20:1). The two celebrations express different theologies but
ultimately circumscribe the same concept of holiness or sanctity.9
The following are my observations of
the above quote:
(i) Dr. Laura seems to neglect the major reason
for the Jewish Sabbath which was to have a day of "complete rest" (cf.
Exod. 31:12-18; 35:2).
(ii) Although the people of Israel were commanded
to obey the Decalogue absolutely, Dr. Laura sees spiritual principles in the
Sabbath-day commandment. She interprets it according to Jewish tradition, not
literally according to the letter.
(iii) She rightly understands that the seventh-day
Sabbath was primarily given to the children of Israel in order for them to
commemorate weekly "God's redemptive acts" in delivering them from
Egypt (cf. Deut. 5:15).
(iv) She rightly understands that Christians set
apart the first day of the week, or the Lord's Day, in commemoration of the
resurrection of Jesus.
Conclusion
We conclude that Christians are not
obligated to observe the Jewish seventh-day Sabbath. If there was any celebration of a seventh day
between the time of Adam and Moses, it would have been done in order to
commemorate God's creation and "resting" on the seventh day after six
days of work. However, the first time
the word "Sabbath" is mentioned in the Bible is Exodus 16:23, about
one month before the Mosaic Law was given at Mount Sinai (cf. Exod. 16:1;
19:1-2). According to Deuteronomy 5, it
was given by the LORD God to Moses in order for Israel to commemorate her
deliverance from Egypt. The Saturday
Sabbath is obviously not for Christians to remember because we do not have
ancestors who were delivered from the country of Egypt (cf. Deut. 5:1-15;
6:12). A better alternative is to accept
that the whole Mosaic Law has been displaced and superseded by the work of
Christ on our behalf.10 The universal moral commandments
are repeated in the New Covenant. The
seventh-day Jewish Sabbath is not one of them.
Christ's higher commandments and the
royal "Law of Love" are now in effect.11 The New Covenant has come with the reception
of the Holy Spirit, thus making the Old Covenant with its Sabbath regulations
obsolete (Heb. 8:6-10:22). Christians do
not put emphasis on outward observance; rather, they worship God in Spirit and
in truth (cf. John 1:17; 4:23-24).
Christians now worship God on the first day of the week which is a
reminder and celebration of new life through the resurrection of Christ. In addition, we find rest for our souls by
resting in God and the completed work of Christ on our behalf (cf. Heb. 4:1-11;
Phil. 3:8-9).
Many of the Reformers mistakenly
held that Sunday (or the Lord's Day) is the replacement of the Jewish Saturday
Sabbath. I understand they did this to support their belief that part of the
Mosaic Law is still binding on believers. (If that is true, why does not the
Church also try to enforce the harsh punishments that God commanded for
breaking them? Why have laws if they
cannot be enforced?) The Reformers may
also have taught this in order for their state church to wield power over its
citizens.
Although Christians are not
obligated to keep the Jewish Sabbath, they nevertheless should set one day
apart every week, usually Sunday, for relaxation or recreation, to have a break
from six days of regular work,12 to spend time with their families, and to gather together with other
Christians for worship, fellowship, and "breaking of bread." The book of Hebrews is quite clear on this
point that we should not forsake the assembling of ourselves together (Heb.
10:25). After all, how can we
"stimulate one another to love (Heb. 10:24)," unless we meet together
with other Christians? As far as the
issue of playing sports on the Lord’s Day is concerned, the New Testament seems
to be silent. I do not think there is
anything wrong with swimming and playing sports on the Lord’s Day because they
are forms of recreation and are good for the body. A problem arises, however, when Christians
begin to replace the time needed for worship, meditation, fellowship, and the
“breaking of bread.”
In this essay I have shown that, as a holy day of rest
and worship, the seventh-day Sabbath was only given to the children of Israel
as they were about to enter the Promised Land.
I have also given evidence from history that first-century Christians began
to worship God on Sunday, the first day of the week, because, as “the Lord’s
Day,” it celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ (see page 5). How, then, are
we to understand the singular Greek word “sabbatou” that is used three times in
the New Testament (cf. Mark 16:9; Luke 18:12; 1 Cor 16:2), and the plural Greek word “sabbatōn” that is used
six times (cf. Matt. 28:1; Mark 16:2; Luke 24:1; John 20:1,19; Acts 20:7), both of
which are translated “week”? First of all, I understand there was a group
of Judeans during New Testament times that fasted on two separate days of the
week (i.e. Monday & Thursday). Just
like the self-righteous Pharisee mentioned in Jesus’ parable in Luke 18:12, did
the Judeans fast twice a week, or did they fast twice on the one and the same
“Sabbath”? It is recorded in early
Christian literature that the Judeans fasted the second and the fifth Sabbaths
(see A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian
Literature, third edition. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago,
2000. Revised and edited by Frederick
William Danker, p. 910). The use of the Greek word “sabbatou” (Strong’s Concordance
#4521) seems odd because the Jewish Sabbath is observed on Saturday, not on
Monday or Thursday. Some Christians
believe that not only is Sunday “the Sabbath,” but any day of the week that is
regularly set apart “for worship in any of certain other religions, e.g. Friday
in the Moslem week” (see The New Lexicon Webster’s Encyclopedic Dictionary
of the English Language, Canadian Edition, Lexicon Publications, Inc., New
York, 1988, page 875).
Second, the context of Mark 16:9 may help to clear up
the problem. Jesus was placed in the
tomb the day before the Sabbath (cf. Mark 15:42), “And when the Sabbath was
over... very early on the first of the week, they came to the tomb when the
sun had risen (16:1-2 NASB).” Mark 16:9 states: “Now after He had risen early
on the first day of the week, He first appeared to Mary Magdalene (NASB).” I don't think the translators are in error
for translating “first of the week” from the Greek words that literally read,
“first of sabbatōn.” Why the use of the word “first (Gr. mia)”? It certainly wouldn’t make sense to relate it
to the first hour of the Jewish Sabbath that begins at sundown Friday evening.
It seems that Mark 16 verses1-2 and 9 are pivotal in proving that Christ rose
early on Sunday morning, the first day of the Sabbath/s (week). There does not
seem to be any corresponding word to our English word “week.” Further, with reference to First Corinthians
16:2, what does laying aside on the first of every Sabbath mean? Does it mean that offerings were to be set
aside every Saturday or Sunday?
According to Acts 20:7, Christians gathered together on “the first day
of the week (Gr. sabbatōn)” to break bread. The first day of the week is obviously
Sunday, not Saturday. According to
Alfred Edersheim, the Jews had a week that was divided into 7 days with the
seventh only as having a name; the other days were merely noted with a numeral
(cf. The Temple Its Ministry and Services, 1994, p.159).
After all is said and done,
observing one day over another doesn't make anyone a better Christian. According to such passages as Matthew
15:7-20; Mark 7:1-23; Acts 10:9-16; Romans 14: 1-19; Galatians 4:9-11, and Colossians
2:16-17, no Christian should pass judgment upon another Christian for eating or
not eating certain foods, or esteeming one day above another.
1. Compare Gen. 2:2-3; Exod.
12:15-16; 13:6; 23:12; 16:23-31; 19:3,30; 31:12-18; 35:1-3; Lev. 19:3,30;
23:1-44; 24:8; 25:1-13; 26:2; Num. 15:32-36; 28:9-10. Compare also with II Kings 11:5-9; I Chron.
9:32; 23:31; II Chron. 2:4; 23:4-8; 31:3; Neh. 10:31; 13:15-22; Isa. 56:2,6;
58:13-14; 66:23; Jer. 17:21-27; Ezek. 20:9-24; 46:1-5, 12; Matt. 12:1-13; Mark
2:23-28.
2. Compare Exod. 16:22-30; 20:8-11;
23:12; 31:12-18; 35:1-3; Lev. 19:1-8; 23:1-44; 24:8; 25:1-55; 26:2; Num.
15:32-36; Deut. 5:12-15; II Chron. 2:4; Ezek. 20:9-24; 23:38; 45:17; Matt. 11:28-12:13; Mark 2:23-28; John 19:31.
3. David W. Bercot, Editor. A
Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs. Peabody, Mass: Hendrickson
Publishers, 1998, p. 405.
4. Ibid., p. 227.
5. Ibid., p. 405.
6, Ibid., p. 571-572.
7. Ibid., p. 406.
8. Samuel Pestes. Christian Be
Free. Wheaton, Ill: Tyndale House Publishers Inc., 1981, pp. 26,38,39.
9. Dr. Laura Schlessinger with Rabbi
Stewart Vogel. The Ten Commandments: The Significance of God's Laws in
Everyday Life. Harper Collins Publ., 1998, pp. 100-101.
10 Compare Matt. 5:38-42; John 1:17;
Rom. 7:4; 8:1-4; 10:1-13; 14:1-23; II Cor. 3:2-18; Gal. 3:1-29; 4:3-11, 21-31;
Col. 2:9-17; Heb. 8:6-13. For more information on this issue refer to my essay
entitled, "Law And Grace, Or Law Versus Grace?" revised February
1999. As with circumcision, one who puts himself back under any of the Jewish
Sabbath laws is "...under obligation to keep the whole [Mosaic] Law (Gal.
5:1-4)."
11 Compare Mark 12:28-34; Luke
10:25-37; John 13:34-35; Rom. 12:9-21; 13:8-10; Gal. 5:1-6:2; Eph. 4:17-32;
James 2:8.
12. From Genesis 2:2-3 we see a principle
that one day in seven should be taken off from work. We should not be legalistic about which day
that is (cf. Rom. 14:1-23; Gal. 4:9-11; 5:1-18; Col. 2:9-17). God gave no command concerning the Sabbath
until Exodus 16, which is the first time the word "Sabbath" is
mentioned. The word "Sabbath" basically means, "to rest;"
it does not mean seventh (cf. Exod. 16:22-26; 31:12-15; 35:2; Lev.
23:3,32). If it did mean seven, then
the Torah would be wrong because certain feast days held on the first, tenth,
fifteenth, and twenty-third day of the seventh month were called
"Sabbaths." In fact, the
eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles was also a sabbath-rest (cf. Lev.
23:23-39). The Jews observe every
Saturday as their weekly Sabbath-rest, the Moslems Friday, and most Christians
have Sunday or the Lord's Day for relaxation and collective worship. Jesus told
the Jews that He was "Lord of the Sabbath (Matt. 12:8; Mark
2:27-28)." The New Testament goes further and teaches that Jesus is Lord
of the universe because He created it (cf. Matt. 28:18-20; John 1:1-4; Phil.
2:9-11; Col. 1:13-20; 2:9-10; Heb. 1:1-13).
In actuality, Jesus is Lord of every day.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus
revealed the true intent of the Mosaic Law (cf. Matt. 5:21-22,27-28;
7:12). Jesus is the only human being who
has fulfilled both the letter and the intent of the Law. The Jewish Sabbath was a mere type or shadow
of what was to come; "but the substance belongs to Christ." The most important thing for us is to come to
Jesus for spiritual rest (cf. Ezek. 34:11-31; Matt. 11:22-30; Heb. 3:1-4:16).
Arnold, Eberhard. The Early Christians. Grand Rapids: Baker Book
House, 1979 (original 1926), quote from Justin Martyr, "First
Apology", pp. 224-225.
Bercot, David W. Editor. A Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs.
Peabody, Mass: Hendrickson Publishers, 1998, pp. 227, 405-407, 571-572.
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