For although almost all churches throughout the world celebrate the mysteries on the Sabbath [7th day - Saturday] of every week, yet the Christians of Alexandria and at Rome, on account of some ancient tradition, have ceased to do this."(Socrates, Ecclesiastical History, b.5, ch.22, found in Nicene and Post-Nicene fathers)
It is evident from the New Testament itself (Acts 16:13, Matthew 28:1, Luke 23:56), which we will confirm throughout this website, and from the many historical writings we have like above, that the true believers and followers of Jesus Christ kept the 7th day sabbath as per the 4th commandment. But as we can see above, the professed Christians in Alexandria and Rome did not keep the Biblical sabbath. Instead, they started keeping Sunday in honor of 'some ancient tradition'. What 'ancient tradition' could this be?
After the city of Jerusalem was destroyed, Antioch in Syria became the 'capital' of Christianity. From here, Bible truth as was handed down by God flowed from Antioch to the rest of the world. But Satan set up a counterfeit system in Alexandria and Rome. Alexandria was the place for worldly 'learned men', and was also the place where Jews were compromising with pagan philosophy. The city of Rome was the 'world capital' for paganism, which ended up influencing the church at Rome. Then, an alliance was made between Alexandria and Rome. So what was the result of this? The day of the sun god (Sunday) became the day to honor in place of God's holy 7th day Sabbath.
Satan had inspired leaders and learned men in both Alexandria and Rome to exalt ancient tradition over Bible truth. Clement, the teacher of Origen, boasted that he would not teach Christianity unless it was mixed with pagan philosophy (Mosheim, Commentaries, cent.2, vol.1, p.341).
In the second century, the desires of the sun-worshiping Roman emperorsand the Alexandrian theologians ran parallel. There was an ambitious scheme being devised by Satan himself to blend all religions into one, of which "the sun was to be the central object of adoration." (Milman, The History of Christianity, vol.II, p.175-176). Pagan philosophy also had a big influence on the early church writers (also known as the 'church fathers'), which Schaff confirms in his book 'History of the Christian Church', vol.II ...
"We can trace it [Pagan Philosophy] in Clement of Alexandria and Origen, and even in Augustine, who confessed that it kindled in him an incredible fire."(Schaff, History of the Christian Church, 2d Period, vol. 2, par. 173)
The bishops of Rome come into the picture and from the height of their pedestal of influence, push both the desires of the pagan emperors and the methods of Alexandria's evangelism out to the world. A weekly holiday sacred to the worship of the sun, is honored instead of God's holy 7th day Sabbath.
Victor I, bishop of Rome, entered into a pact with Clement [the teacher of Origen] around 190AD, to help make Sunday the prominent day of worship in the churches. Then as the Roman Church grew into power and dominance and God's true church was driven into the wilderness, Sunday became the prominent day.
"The majority of bishops had (in the second century) decreed that the 'feast of the resurrection' could only be celebrated on a Sunday." (Hefele, History of the Christian Councils, vol. 1, pp. 300-313)
Before Clement, there is no record of Sunday being called 'The Lord's Day'- This is because the Bible says that Jesus is 'Lord of the Sabbath' [7th day]. Therefore the 'Lord's day' according to the Bible is the 7th day Sabbath.
The bishop of Rome appealed to the popular desires of the day, be they ever so incorrect. Sunday was proclaimed to all the nations around the Mediterranean. And the bishops knew they had the backing of both Pagans and the professed Christians who had become worldly. By this the bishop of Rome would assert that he had the right to appoint holy days. And by this he would confuse and perplex other church communions more simple and scriptural than he. Only those who have read carefully the history of the growth of papal power will ever know how powerfully the controversy concerning Sunday worship served in the hands of the bishops of Rome.
The Church of the East declared with great spirit and resolution that they would not depart from the truths handed down to them via the scriptures. Then the thunders of excommunication from the bishop of Rome began to roar. The bishop of Rome broke communication with them, pronouncing the clergy of the East unworthy of the name of brethren, and excluded them from all fellowship with the church at Rome (see Mosheim, Institutes of Ecclesiastical History, b.1, cent.2, pt.2, ch. 4, par 11). This is when the gulf was created between the eastern and the western churches, a gulf which widened as the bishop of Rome grew in power.
And so through the scheming and brutal forces of Satan, the Papal Church of Rome becomes the only VISIBLE church in the world for centuries to come, as God's true church is driven into the wilderness(Revelation 12:14).
Friends, this is where Sunday worship comes from. It does not come from the Bible, as you will see throughout this website. It comes from Pagan sun worship that the Roman Catholic Church adopted, 'Christianized' and literally forced upon the world. While the true Christians who kept the 7th day Sabbath of the 4th commandment were forced into the wilderness. Even the apostle Paul warned the church in his day that 'wolves' would come in, and that a 'falling away' from pure Bible doctrine would take place:
Acts 20:29 ...'For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.'
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 ...'Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.'
We can see in early church history just how this prophecy was fulfilled. Gnosticism began to rise up under the influence of philosophers, as we have mentioned above, and a great effort was made to reconcile Christianity with Paganism. At the same time, a strong anti-Jewish sentiment became more widespread, which added to the turning away from God's true 7th day Sabbath.
We can also point to Emperor Constantine as a major contributor to SUN-day worship. His 'supposed' conversion to Christianity resulted in him being very zealous in building up the power and prestige of the church of Rome. Through his influence, great numbers of Pagans were adopted into Christianity, and as a result, their sun worship paraphernalia were brought in with them. And at this time, many Pagan customs were Christianized by the church of Rome so as to swell the ranks of the Roman church and make it more powerful.
As a result of the great adoration for SUN-worship. Constantine even enforced the very first Sunday law ... "On the venerable Day of the Sun let the magistrates and people residing in cities rest, and let all workshops be closed." (edict of Constantine, AD 321)
The Roman Catholic Church forcefully carried the tradition of Sunday throughout the world during the centuries that followed, and it became embedded into the various denominations that we now have today ...
"But since Saturday, not Sunday, is specified in the Bible, isn't it curious that non-Catholics who profess to take their religion directly from the Bible and not from the Church, observe Sunday instead of Saturday? Yes, of course, it is inconsistency but this change was made about fifteen centuries before Protestantism was born, and by that time the custom was universally observed. They have continued the custom even though it rests upon the authority of the Catholic Church and not upon an explicit text from the Bible. That observance remains as a reminder of the Mother Church from which the non-Catholic sects broke away like a boy running away from home but still carrying in his pocket a picture of his mother or a lock of her hair." (John A. O'Brien, The Faith of Millions, p.400-401)
Dear friend, Sunday is not a sacred day according to the Bible or our God. Sunday was a day devoted to sun worship and was then adopted by the church to unite Paganism with Christianity. And as you read through this site, you will see that the true Sabbath day that is still in effect today is the 7th day, our Saturday.
At the time of Jesus Christ, only pagans worshiped on Sunday. Across the Roman Empire, adherents of Eastern mystery cults worshiped the Persian god Mithras, the Egyptian god Serapis, and other false solar deities on Sunday. Meanwhile, true Christians worshiped the true God on Saturday. It was Jesus Christ’s “custom” to preach on the Sabbath (Luke 4:16). After Christ’s death, Paul and the other apostles followed Christ’s example in preaching to both Jews and Gentiles on the Sabbath (Acts 13:42). Christians continued to obey God’s command to keep “the seventh day” as “the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.”
During the second century, however, certain Christians sought to blend into the pagan society by worshiping on Sunday. By a.d. 230, Catholics were divided on which day they should observe. One early Catholic, Origen, wrote: “But what is the feast of the Sabbath except that of which the apostle speaks, ‘There remaineth, therefore, a Sabbatism,’ that is, the observance of the Sabbath by the people of God? Leaving the Jewish observances of the Sabbath, let us see how the Sabbath ought to be observed by a Christian. On the Sabbath day all worldly labors ought to be abstained from. If, therefore, you cease from all secular works, and execute nothing worldly, but give yourselves up to spiritual exercises, repairing to church, attending to sacred reading and instruction … this is the observance of the Christian Sabbath.” This Catholic leader was referring to the seventh day of the week.
Enforced Sunday worship began with the Roman Emperor Constantine. In a.d. 321, he issued an edict forbidding work on “the venerable day of the sun.” In a letter following the Nicene Council of a.d. 325, Constantine spoke of the enforcement of Sunday worship for Easter services: “At this meeting the question concerning the most holy day of Easter was discussed, and it was resolved by the united judgment of all present that this feast ought to be kept by all and in every place on one and the same day.” In other words, Easter was to be kept on Sunday, and the Jewish observance of Passover was expressly forbidden.
Constantine wrote to those who ignored the decrees of the Nicene Council in another letter regarding Sabbath worship: “Forasmuch, then, as it is no longer possible to bear with your pernicious errors, we give warning by this present statute that none of you henceforth presume to assemble yourselves together. We have directed, accordingly, that you be deprived of all the houses in which you are accustomed to hold your assemblies: and our care in this respect extends so far as to forbid the holding of your superstitious and senseless meetings, not in public merely, but in any private house or place whatsoever. Let those of you, therefore, who are desirous of embracing the true and pure religion take the far better course of entering the Catholic Church …. [F]rom this day forward none of your unlawful assemblies may presume to appear in any public or private place. Let this edict be made public.” After Constantine gave his edict, worship on any day except Sunday became illegal.
Almost 40 years later, in a.d. 363, the Council of Laodicea determined, “Christians must not Judaize by resting on the Sabbath [that is, Saturday], but must work on that day, rather honoring the Lord’s day …. But if any shall be found to be Judaizers, let them be anathema [cursed and excommunicated] from Christ.”
There is no question as to who changed the day of worship. It was the Catholic Church, enforced by the Roman Empire.
Since the Catholic Church instituted the change and is the largest organization now observing Sunday, let’s turn to its materials first for information about why it believes Sunday is sacred. The simple answer is this: because the Catholic Church made the change. The Catholic Doctrinal Catechism states: “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.”
Catholics identify the changing of the day of worship as a sign of Catholic authority!
Catholics, in fact, feel the Protestants should keep the Sabbath as long as they reject the authority of Rome. The Catholic Doctrinal Catechism states: “Question: When Protestants do profane work upon Saturday, or the seventh day of the week, do they follow the Scripture as their only rule of faith? Do they find this permission clearly laid down in the Sacred Volume? Answer: On the contrary, they have only the authority of tradition for this practice. In profaning Saturday, they violate one of God’s commandments, which He has never abrogated—‘Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day.’”
There is no scriptural authority for true Christians to worship on Sunday. The Roman Catholic Church instituted Sunday worship to distance itself from biblical Christianity and gain pagan converts. So those who worship on Sunday are essentially saying the pope has the authority to change the Word of God.
Since the Bible clearly establishes the seventh day of the week as the Sabbath up to the time of the crucifixion, there can be no biblical authority for Sunday observance unless we find it clearly and plainly stated in one of these eight New Testament passages. We should examine them carefully, honestly, prayerfully.
1. Matthew 28:1: "Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the weekbegan to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb." Matthew wrote these words, under inspiration of the Holy Spirit, several years after the New Testament church came into being.
This scripture tells us plainly that three days and three nights after all that was done away had been securely "nailed to the cross," the Sabbath was still the day before the first day of the week—still the seventh day of the week.
One point is here plainly proved. Many tell us that the Sabbath command is merely for "one day in seven"—that it does not have to be the seventh day of the week, but merely the seventh part of time. They argue that Sunday, being one day out of seven, fulfills the command. But this passage states in plain language that, three days after all abolished things had been done away, the Sabbath still existed and that it was the seventh day of the week. But was the day changed later?
2. Mark 16:2: "Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen." This first day of the week was, according to verse 1, "when the Sabbath was past." This text, then, proves the same thing as Matthew 28:1. The Sabbath was still the seventh day of the week.
3. Mark 16:9: "Now when He rose [was risen, KJV] early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons." This text, poorly translated, speaks of Jesus' appearance to Mary Magdalene later the same day (see "The Resurrection Was Not on Sunday" and/or "After Three Days" for a better translation).
Nothing here calls the first day of the week the Christian Sabbath. Nothing here calls it "the Lord's Day." Nothing here hallows Sunday or says God made it holy. Nothing here commands us to observe it. Nothing here sets it apart as a memorial of the resurrection, or for any purpose. It contains no command or example of rest on this day—no authority for observing Sunday.
4. Luke 24:1: "Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared." This text reiterates the same event recorded by Matthew and Mark. It also shows that on the first day of the week these women came to do the work of a common weekday, after having rested the Sabbath day "according to the commandment" (Luke 23:56).
The Holy Spirit inspired this statement. God knew the Sabbath was not abolished, and had Luke write this approximately thirty years after the establishing of the New Testament church! God inspired Luke to say that the "rest" these women took on the Sabbath day was "according to the commandment"—a statement that would not be possible had the commandment been abolished.
This text, then, establishes Sunday as a common workday, and that, at the time of its writing, the command to keep the Sabbath had not been abolished.
5. John 20:1: "On the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark. . . ." This, written more than sixty years after the crucifixion, is merely John's version, describing the same visit to the tomb. It confirms the facts above.
6. John 20:19: "Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, 'Peace be with you.'" Let us examine this carefully, for some claim this was a religious service called to celebrate the resurrection.
Notice this is the same first day of the week that followed the Sabbath. It was Jesus' first opportunity to appear to His disciples. For three and a half years, He had been constantly with them, on all days of the week. His meeting with them, of itself, could not establish any day as a Sabbath.
Were they meeting together to celebrate the resurrection, thus establishing Sunday as the Christian Sabbath in honor of the resurrection? The text gives the reason they were together: "for fear of the Jews"! The Jews had just taken, tried, and handed their Master over to the Romans for crucifixion. They were afraid! The doors were shut and probably bolted because of their fear. In addition, they were there because they all lived together in this upper room (Acts 1:13). Finally—and conclusively—they did not assemble to celebrate the resurrection because they did not believe Jesus was risen (Mark 16:14; Luke 24:37, 39, 41).
Nothing in this text calls this day the "Sabbath," the "Lord's Day," or any sacred title. Nothing here sets it apart or makes it holy. Scripture gives no authority here for changing a command of God!
7. Acts 20:7: "Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight."
Here, at last, we find a religious meeting on the first day of the week, but it was not a "Sunday meeting," that is, a church service. . Notice, Paul continued his speech until midnight, and verse 8 says, "There were many lamps in the upper room where they were gathered together." It indeed occurred after sunset, before midnight, thus on the first day of the week. This meeting and Paul's preaching—at most, it was what we would call a Bible study today—took place during the hours we now call Saturday night.
However, it is clear from subsequent verses that Paul and his companions treated this first day of the week, beginning at sundown, as a normal workday. Paul's companions sailed around a peninsula from Troas to Assos (verse 13)—a distance of fifty or sixty miles—while Paul, afoot, walked overland more than 19 miles (verses 11, 14). His companions were engaged in the labor of rowing and sailing a boat while Paul was preaching that Saturday night. Then, at the break of day Sunday morning, he set out to walk from Troas to Assos—a good hard day's work! He would not do this except on a common workday!
Does this text not say, as many claim, that the disciples always held communion every first day of the week? Not at all! This scripture says nothing about anything being done weekly or customarily. It simply relates the events of this one particular first day of the week. The first-century church kept the Lord's Supper once each year on the Passover (I Corinthians 11:24).
That "the disciples came together to break bread" means merely that they gathered to eat a meal. This expression was commonly used to designate a meal in past times (see Luke 24:30; Acts 2:46; 27:35 for further examples of "breaking bread). Scripture interprets it only as eating a meal, not as a Communion service.
8. I Corinthians 16:2: "On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper that there be no collections when I come." Often we see this text printed on the little offering envelopes in the pews of churches, and many preach that this text sets Sunday as the time for taking up the church collection for doing God's work and paying the minister and church expenses.
This verse says nothing of the sort!
Verse 1 tells us what kind of collection is being made: "Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also." First, it is a collection—not for the preacher, evangelism, or church expenses—but "for the saints." The members of the church in Jerusalem were suffering from drought and famine. They needed, not money, but food.
Notice that Paul had given similar instruction to other churches. He tells the Romans:
But now I am going to Jerusalem to minister to the saints. For it pleased those from Macedonia and Achaia [where Corinth is located] to make a certain contribution for the poor among the saints who are at Jerusalem. . . . Therefore, when I have performed this and have sealed to them this fruit, I shall go by way of you to Spain. (Romans 15:25-28)
It was not money, but fruit that was being prepared for shipment to the poor saints at Jerusalem! The Greek word can also refer to grain, wine, and other produce that can be stored a long time without spoiling.
In I Corinthians 16:2, does Paul say they should give money at a church service? Not at all! He says, "Let each one of you lay something aside, storing up. . . ." Note this! He is telling them to put something aside for a special use, to store it—at home! Why? Because Paul did not want there be any collecting done when he arrived. He wanted this gift for the Jerusalem church to be ready for shipment.
"And when I come, whomever you approve by your letters I will send to bear your gift to Jerusalem. But if it is fitting that I go also, they [more than one] will go with me" (verses 3-4). Apparently it was going to require several men to carry this collection, gathered and stored up, to Jerusalem. If it were a tithe or offering for the minister or to spread the gospel, Paul could have carried the money alone.
Thus, once again, the first day of the week is a workday, a day for gathering fruit and food out of the orchards, fields, and gardens, and for storing it up. This labor was to be done on the first day as soon as the Sabbath was past!
Upon honest examination, not one of the texts speaking about "the first day of the week" sets it apart as a rest day. Not one makes it holy, calls it the Sabbath or by any other sacred title. In every case, the first day of the week was a common workday. In none of them was there a religious meeting and preaching service being held on the hours we now call Sunday. In none of them can we find a single shred of Bible authority for Sunday observance!
The Babylonians were the first to start the seven-day week, and they brought it to the Latin-speaking Romans, who named each day after a god. Germanic and Nordic people did the same, but replaced the Roman gods with their own corresponding gods.
The similarities between the two can be seen today for every day but Sunday. With Christianity, Latin-derived Romance languages changed the dedication from “sun’s day” to “lord’s day” (domingo in Spanish, dimanche in French, and domenica in Italian). “Sun’s day” stuck, however, in the languages that would become modern English.
One of "Christianity's" false doctrines that is based upon their flawed reckoning of these events is "the Lord?s Day." Catholic and Protestant churches around the world are full of sincere but deceived people who believe that Christ changed the day of rest from Sabbath to Sunday. How is He supposed to have done that? By His resurrection!
If it were proved that He rose from the grave on the Sabbath, what would happen to the foundation of this doctrine? It would disappear! Their theologians would have only the flimsiest "proof texts" to stand on (I Corinthians 16:1-2; Revelation 1:10)!
Nowhere in the New Testament is the perpetual Sabbath covenant abolished (Exodus 31:12-17), for God made the Sabbath for all mankind (Mark 2:27). To the contrary, Jesus kept it (Luke 4:16), Paul kept it (Acts 17:2), and Gentiles kept it (Acts 13:42-44; 16:13)! The author of Hebrews writes boldly, "There remains therefore a rest [KJV margin: keeping of a Sabbath] for the people of God" (Hebrews 4:9).
So we can see very clearly that the correct dates for the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ can become vital to our salvation.
To the Romans, Christianity seemed to be a sect of Judaism because it was also a monotheistic religion; Christians believed in Jesus as the Savior, and kept the seventh day as the Sabbath just as the Jews did. So, the people of the Church in Rome were unable to avoid persecution from the Romans, and they made efforts to inform them of the difference between Christianity and Judaism. In this process, they came to accept Sunday, which the Romans observed, as the day of worship.
Sunday was the day set aside for the worship of Mithra, the sun god. Mithraism, an offshoot of the Persian religion Zoroastrianism, was introduced to Rome around the 1st century B.C. Mithra was described as the"invincible god" or the"god of immortal youth," and Mithraism had a following mostly among the soldiers of Rome. Around the time when Christianity spread in Rome, Mithra the sun god had already been raised to the status of the patron deity of the emperors and the empire, and Mithraism had been recognized as the most predominant and influential religion in Rome. The Church of Rome tried to escape persecution from the Romans by accepting Sunday, which was kept in honor of Mithra, as the day of worship.
Constantine and Sunday Law
Around the 2nd century, the Church of Rome and some churches under its influence adopted Sunday as their day of worship, but the Eastern churches centered in Jerusalem kept Saturday—the seventh day—as the Sabbath according to the teachings of the Bible.
However, as Constantine issued the Edict of Milan in 313 A.D. which declared the equality of all religions, it became a major turning point for Christianity.
After Constantine issued the Edict of Milan, he initiated pro-Christian policies, giving privileges to the clergy and supporting the Church financially. However, it did not mean that he was fully converted to Christianity. He identified his favorite god, Mithras, with Christ, and retained the pagan high priest title"Pontifex Maximus" until his death. Ultimately, he chose Christianity for political purposes to unify the whole empire. To take forward these ideas, Constantine later issued a law requiring complete, public rest from work on Sunday.
This is how the sun worship day was changed into the Christian day of worship.
Constantine's Sunday Law, issued in 321 A.D., resulted in solidifying the position of the Church of Rome. Since Constantine forced all people under the control of the Roman Empire to rest on Sunday by his authority, even the Eastern churches which had continued to observe the Sabbath had no choice but to follow the Church of Rome. Of course, those who desired to preserve the truth adhered to the Sabbath, hiding in deserts and mountains, but it was impossible to prevent Sunday worship from spreading into all churches. This is the origin of Sunday observance, and it has continued to this very day.
However, even though many churches keep Sunday, God's true day of worship cannot be changed to Sunday—the day to worship the sun. God's commandments must not be changed by man for any reason.
Rev 22:18-19 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
God came to this earth according to the prophecies of the Bible, and revealed the truth hidden in darkness to the whole world and let us know the true day of worship we should observe. The Sabbath that the Church of God keeps holy on Saturday, the seventh day, is the pure truth of the early Church which Christ restored at His second coming.
- The disciples had no plans to make Sunday a day of worship.
- There is no hint in the New Testament that the disciples or Jesus changed the day of worship from Sabbath to Sunday.
- Nowhere in the New Testament is there a command to worship on Sunday as a memorial to the resurrection of Jesus.
- Since there is no scriptural evidence that the disciples changed the worship of Sabbath to Sunday, this change must have been accepted in the Christian church after the Bible was written and all the disciples had died
Sunday worship is not the Sabbath Day because the biblical Sabbath Day must be held on Saturday, the seventh day of the week. Because Sunday worship is a practice of people for a long time, they hardly insist that the Sabbath Day should be kept on Sunday. There is nowhere in the Bible saying that the biblical Sabbath Day is Sunday, nor did God ever say that the Sabbath Day is Sunday worship.
Revelation 22:18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll.
We cannot add or subtract to the perfect words of God. Faith is obedience. How can we say we have faith when we do not fully obey the absolute words of God? Among words of God is the Sabbath Day; therefore, we should observe it on the correct day without adding to or subtracting from it.
The Origin of Sunday Worship: Excerpts From Christian History Books
The origin of Sunday worship is man-made. The Roman Emperor, Constantine, ordered to make Sunday as a rest day and it became a custom to be the Sabbath day. It’s not God’s will and command to keep the Sabbath Day on Sunday. Below are several highlights from Christian History Books about the how Sunday worship originated.
Wand, JWC. A History of the Early Church to A.D. 500. Routledge
It is probable that Constantine set out with a deliberate intention to favour the Church, but even it that were so, it was necessary to placate the pagans. Consequently, the policy agreed upon at Milan was a recognition of the complete parity of religions. But as the reigned progressed Constantine supported the Christians more and more, and one can only conclude that his aim was to make of Christianity the cement that was to bind together the whole Empire…
But perhaps the most significant evidence of this policy is to be found in the decree of 321 regulating Sunday observance. That ordinance puts the Lord’s Day on the same level of observance as the pagan festivals and marks it by the cessation of work. It is noteworthy, however, that the day is described by no Christian appellation but simply as dies venerabilis solis, and no pagan could well object to that.
The rescript commanding the celebration of the Christian Sabbath bears no allusion to its peculiar sanctity as a Christian institution. It is the day of the Sun, which is to be observed of the general veneration. The courts were to be closed, and the noise and tumult of public business and legal litigation were no longer to violate the repose of the sacred day.
All judges and city people and the craftsmen shall rest upon the venerable day of the sun. Country people, however, may freely attend to the cultivation of the fields, because it frequently happens that no other days are better adapted for planting the grain in the furrows or the vines in trenches. So that the advantage given by heavenly providence may not for the occasion of a short time perish.
Are We Blessed on Sunday Worship, Which is Not Biblical?
Just because we worship God does not mean that we are already blessed. There is a worship that brings curse and a worship that grants us God’s blessing. In Matthew 7:21-23, it is written that only those who do God’s will can enter the kingdom of heaven. Then, is Sunday worship a will of God? It is not God’s will.
Exodus 20:8-11 Remember the Sabbath day by 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 male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 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.
The Sabbath Day is the seventh day, Saturday. Is not astonishing that so-called Christians who believe in God keep Sunday worship which is not a will of God, yet they want to be saved? Let us guarantee our salvation by keeping the command of God with firm and absolute faith.
The fourth commandment declares the seventh day of the week is a memorial to God’s creation (Exodus 20:11), a day which He made holy before sin began (Genesis 2:1-3), and a day of rest for all humanity (Exodus 20:8-10). However, many Christians challenge this understanding with seven essential arguments used by Christians over the past 2,000 years to justify the observance of Sunday. When collectively assembled, these arguments appear to make a strong case for the observance of Sunday as a holy day if you are not acquainted with the details of each argument. However, when we consider each argument and see what the Bible says, I believe the conclusions that the majority of Christians follow are incorrect.
However, each person has to look at the evidence and determine for himself whether the Bible supports the claim that God has transferred the sacredness of His Sabbath to Sunday.
May I also say that since the Sabbath versus Sunday question has behavioral consequences, I am reminded of this remarkable statement: “When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease being honest.” — Richard J. Humpal, JD
1. The Holy Spirit Came at Pentecost on Sunday
Sunday worship advocates maintain that the Holy Spirit was given to the early church on the Day of Pentecost. (Acts 2:1) According to the Old Testament, Pentecost came of the first day of the week (Leviticus 23:15,16), so the Holy Spirit confirmed that Christians should worship on the first day of the week.
Sunday worshipers insinuate that the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost made the seventh day obsolete and the first day holy. But does it? According to Leviticus 23, we know that Pentecost always fell on a Sunday. The question is how can the observance of Pentecost neutralize the fourth commandment AFTER the cross when it had absolutely no effect on the Sabbath commandment PRIOR to the cross?
Therefore, claiming that the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at an obsolete feast that took place some fifty days AFTER the cross suddenly cancels the divine authority of the Ten Commandments is not logical.
2. Jesus was Resurrected on Sunday
Christians argue that Jesus’ resurrection (John 20:1), appearance on Resurrection Sunday, and appearance a week later on Sunday (John 20:26) suddenly made Sunday holy. Even though Jesus arose from the dead on Sunday morning, there is no text in the Bible indicating that the sacredness of God’s Sabbath was transferred to Sunday because due to Jesus’ resurrection on Sunday. It seems strange and out of character for God to suddenly initiate Sunday observance on Resurrection Sunday and not say anything about it.
Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene on Sunday morning, He also appeared to two disciples on the road to Emmaus, and He appeared to the remainder of His disciples that evening. (John 20:19) Later, Jesus also “appeared” to His disciples by the Sea of Tiberias on a completely different day. (John 21:1) When it comes to abolishing the sacredness of God’s Sabbath, what difference does it make if Jesus appeared to His disciples on Sunday or any other day of the week?
Luke 24:13 indicates the distance between Jerusalem and Emmaus was seven miles. According to the record, Jesus joined two of His disciples as they walked several miles to Emmaus. After discovering it was Jesus who walked with them (and Jesus suddenly disappeared), they walked back to Jerusalem that evening to tell the other disciples that they had seen a risen Jesus.
Luke’s account indicates that the disciples did not regard Sunday as a holy day for possibly three reasons. First, they traveled the seven miles from Jerusalem to Emmaus on Sunday. If Sunday was to be considered a holy day, they were unaware of it because walking seven miles is not in keeping with the commandment to rest on God’s Sabbath. Second, when they discovered that Jesus was alive, they traveled seven miles again and probably arrived in Jerusalem on Monday evening. (Remember, in Bible times, when Sunday ended at sunset, Monday night began.)
Would the disciples have walked 14 miles if Sunday was considered a holy day? Acts 1:12 stated that a Sabbath day’s walk was no more than two miles. Finally, the two disciples had been raised as Jews. As such, they had observed the seventh day Sabbath rest all of their lives. Again, it seems strange that there was no discussion; not a single word mentioned about the sacredness of Sunday as they walked with Jesus to Emmaus.
Think back for a moment. Just five days before walking with His disciples to Emmaus, Jesus and His disciples sat on the Mount of Olives. The disciples were anxious to know about the end of the world (Matthew 24:3) and responding to their concern, Jesus uttered two prophecies. The first prophecy pertained to the upcoming destruction of Jerusalem which was forty years away (A.D. 70) and the second pertains to the end of the world.
When speaking about the forthcoming destruction of Jerusalem, Jesus said, “Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.” (Matthew 24:20) If Jesus foreknew that the sacredness of His Sabbath would be transferred to Sunday just five days after uttering this prophecy, why did He encourage His disciples to pray that they would not have to travel on the Sabbath forty years later?
Given the profound impact and resistance that would have occurred if Jewish converts had been told to suddenly start resting and worshiping on Sunday and working on the Sabbath, the New Testament would have much to say about such an argument. There is an enormous amount of controversy over simple things such as circumcision and food offered to idols – but there is no mention of any controversy concerning the sudden arrival of a new holy day. Zero.
This silence indicates there was no controversy about the sacredness of Sunday between Jews and Christians in the New Testament because neither group considered Sunday to be a holy day during the first century A.D.
3. Paul Ate at the Lord’s Table on Sunday
Sunday keepers also use Paul’s actions at Troas to support Sunday observance. They maintain that Paul preached to believers (Acts 20:7) and believers partook of the Lord’s Table, both on the first day of the week.
If I were advocating Sunday observance, I would not use Acts 20:7 because this argument always backfires when the facts are investigated. To begin, notice the timing of Acts 20:7. At Creation, God established a day as a period of time between two sunsets. (Genesis 1; Leviticus 23:32; John 19:31)
In other words, the evening is used to mark the beginning of the night and the morning is used to mark the beginning of the light. Given God’s method for measuring time, Paul met with the believers in Troas as the first day of the week began, but in our world today, the first day of the week does not begin until midnight. Do you think Sunday keeping Christians should still observe Sunday from sunset to sunset?
“On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave [KJV: on the morrow] the next day, kept on talking until midnight. There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting.” (Acts 20:7,8)
Three facts stand out about this meeting that need thoughtful consideration:
1. Advocates of Sunday worship argue “the believers partook of the Lord’s Table,” but Acts 20:7 does not mention the believers partook of the Lord’s Table. The text only says they “came together to break bread.” Breaking bread does not necessarily mean partaking of the Lord’s Table. “Breaking bread” is an biblical expression for sharing or eating a meal. (Luke 24:35; Acts 27:35)
Notice this passage, taken from Acts 2 because it predates Acts 20 by fifteen or more years: “Every day they [the believers] continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:46,47, insertion mine)
Paul’s preaching was interrupted by an accident at midnight. Eutychus went to sleep sitting in a window and he fell to the ground from the third story. The fall killed him, but the Holy Spirit brought Eutychus to life through Paul. After this miraculous event occurred, Paul went back upstairs, broke bread again and continued talking until daylight. At daybreak he left Troas with his traveling associates because Paul and his associates did not regard Sunday as a holy day! (Acts 20:9-13)
Before we proceed, consider this question: Let’s assume the assertion that Sunday worship is valid for a moment. Does partaking of “the Lord’s Table” on Sunday make Sunday a holy day? Before you answer do not forget that Jesus and His disciples ate the very first “Lord’s Supper” on a Thursday night. (1 Corinthians 11:23-25) After comparing the timing of Jesus and His disciples with that of Paul and his associates, which example is more important? Does either example make either day holy?
2. Additionally, Acts 20:7 does not describe a regularly called church service. The Bible says that Paul regularly worshiped on the Sabbath. (Acts 16:13; 17:2; 18:4; 19:8) Acts 20:7 is a farewell meeting, not a church service on a holy day. The meeting was held during Paul’s final hours in Troas because many of the believers suspected it could be the last time they would see Paul.
3. Is it possible that two meals and a farewell seminar in Troas makes Sunday a holy day? Does any man have the authority to cancel the law of God, the Ten Commandments? The Bible says that Paul left Troas at daylight (verse 11). He continued his journey on the first day of the week because Sunday was not a holy day in his mind.
The evidence in Acts 20 adds up to a simple conclusion: Paul and his traveling associates did not consider the first day of the week to be a holy day over fifteen years after Christ’s ascension.
4. Paul had Believers Bring Their Offerings on Sunday
Another Bible reference that is often used is in 1 Corinthians 16:2. In that text, Paul instructed the believers in Corinth to bring their offerings to the Lord on the first day of the week. Sunday advocates maintain that the first day of the week obviously must be valid because they were assembling together on Sunday.
This assertion is not supported by the text. Here’s the text: “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.” (1 Corinthians 16:2)
Why did Paul make this request? Paul admonished the believers in Corinth to gather up whatever cash they could each week so that when he arrived, he could collect the cash and take it to the suffering saints in Jerusalem.
Paul made this request because barter was the nature and order of business in those days. Paul did not want two things to happen when he arrived. First, he could not sail to Jerusalem with donated animals and a few thousand pounds of material goods. Therefore, Paul wanted all donations to be converted into cash before he arrived.
Second, Paul did not want believers in Corinth to wait until he arrived and then rush out and foolishly convert their possessions into a lesser amount of cash because they were in a hurry to get cash. So, Paul wisely advised that believers start on Sunday of each week, which was regarded as a regular business day, to begin the process of converting their possessions into cash and at a good exchange rate.
Does Paul’s request to the believers in Corinth support Sunday worship or the holiness of Sunday? Not at all. In fact, Paul advocated taking care of business on Sunday, a regular workday.
5. People were Baptized at Pentecost on Sunday
The Bible indicates that 3,000 people were baptized at Pentecost. To some Sunday advocates, this somehow makes Sunday a sacred day. They maintain that on the day of Pentecost, the first message in the New Testament church was given (Acts 2:14), the first converts were added to the church, and the first believer’s baptisms took place (Acts 2:37).”
Baptizing people on Sunday, Tuesday, or Wednesday does not make the day holy. A prayer meeting does not make any day holy. Even if Jesus was baptized on Sunday, this would not make Sunday holy. As far as we can tell, John the Baptist baptized people every day of the week! (Mark 1)
6. Early Christians Did Not Change the Day of Worship to Sunday
Sunday worships who have researched the subject do believe that political history may have influenced the observance of Sunday. However, they do not believe that Constantine changed the timing of the Lord’s day from Sabbath (Saturday) to Sunday or the Council of Laodicea gave an edict which changed the timing. Advocates of Sunday worship use this argument because know that mere mortals cannot change what the Creator Himself has declared to be holy. Men may “think” they can change God’s set times and laws, but no created being has the authority to override Almighty God.
Catholics and most Protestants observe Sunday as a holy day, which means most Christians accept the holiness of Sunday without ever investigating how and why it came to be. There is not one text in the New Testament associating “the Lord’s Day” with Sunday. However, there is one text that associates the Lord’s day with the seventh day Sabbath and it is found in Mark 2:27,28: “And he said unto them, The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath: Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath.”
The Romans hated the Jews so much they finally destroyed Jerusalem in A.D. 70. The Romans also thought the followers of Christ were just another sect of Jews (Christ was a Jew), so early Christians sought to distance themselves from the Jews in various ways after the destruction of Jerusalem. One technique used was to call the seventh day “the Lord’s day” rather than call it “the Sabbath.”
The Romans called the seventh day “Saturday,” so Roman Christians did not want to call Saturday “the Sabbath” because it sounded too Jewish. When Christians in Rome finally broke away from observing the seventh day of the week (around A.D. 150), they applied the term, “the Lord’s day” to Sunday, because they said, “Jesus came from the tomb on that day.”
However, a Bible believing Christian must ask, “Does the apostasy of early Christians in Rome affect the perpetuity of the Ten Commandments?” Did Israel’s apostasy cancel the perpetuity of the fourth commandment? Not according to Jesus! (Mark 2:27,28)
7. Early Believers Met on Sunday
Another argument is that the writings of early church fathers such as Barnabas, Justin Martyr, Didache, Ignatius, Dionysius, Clement of Alexandria, and Tertullian affirmed that believers were meeting on Sundays as the Lord’s Day.
During the past two hundred years, Protestants have used this argument as a smoke screen to hide many essential historical facts from sight, but the historical facts tell a very different story than what is claimed.
During the first century A.D., Christianity spread throughout the Roman Empire because of relentless persecution. The Caesar’s intent was to wipe the Jews off the face of the Earth. Therefore, certain compromises and transformations were made by Jewish converts in different places for the sake of survival. About 120 years after Jesus ascended and 70 years after Jerusalem had been destroyed, Judaism’s influence over Christianity had faded. Meanwhile, a large number of Gentiles in Italy had become believers in Jesus.
As they “joined the church.” they brought with them their peculiar religious baggage. As a result, Christianity in Rome mutated into a Romanesque religion largely free of Jewish influence. By A.D. 150, Christians and believers in Mithra had found a number of areas where compromise and mutual respect were possible.
About this time, a well-educated man by the name of Justin Martyr became a Christian. As a Christian apologist, he tried to soften the hostility that existed between Romans and Christians and the followers of Mithra. One area of compromise concerned religious meetings. The followers of Mithra worshiped on Sunday (actually they partied on Sunday) because Sunday was the birthday of their god.
Christians in Rome, anxious to erase their Jewish identity, found a good reason to celebrate with the followers of Mithra on Sunday, since Jesus was resurrected on Sunday! Hence, Justin Martyr wrote:
“But Sunday is the day on which we all hold our common assembly because it is the first day on which God, having wrought a change in the darkness and matter, made the world; and Jesus Christ our Savior on the same day rose from the dead.” (Justin Martyr, First Apology of Justin Martyr, Ante-Nicean Christian Library, (Boston 1887) p, 187 Chap 67)
The justification Martyr used for holding a common assembly on Sunday is interesting. First, he cited the separation of darkness and light on the first day of Creation as grounds for holding a common assembly, and then the resurrection of Jesus. Martyr offered no Scriptural authority for holding a common assembly on Sunday, but his remarks did suggest how wary Christians divorced themselves from their Jewish roots.
In those days, Christianity had no “central office” or headquarters and each geographical location adjusted their beliefs and doctrines as they chose. During the last part of the second century A.D., Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, became alarmed at a number of heresies that had infiltrated the Christian movement. He was aware of how the Christians in Rome had begun to meet on Sunday and abandon the seventh day Sabbath and he spoke out against it. He wrote:
“For He [Christ] did not make void, but fulfilled the law [Ten Commandments].” (Irenaeus, Against Heresies, Vol 1 Ante-Nicean Christian Library, (Boston, 1997) p, 471 insertions mine)
Tertullian, another early church father, wrote extensively concerning Christian doctrine. He, like Irenaeus, was alarmed at the practices of certain Christians, especially those who lived in Rome. In regard to the seventh day Sabbath he wrote:
“Thus Christ did not at all rescind the Sabbath. He kept the law [Ten Commandments] thereof. . . He restored to the Sabbath the works which were proper for it.” (Tertullian, Book IV, Chap 12, Vol 3 Ante-Nicean Christian Library, (Boston, 1997) p, 362 insertion mine)
Considerable discussion on Sunday observance took occurred in those early days. Archelaus, a bishop wrote in his disputation with Manes:
“Again as to the assertion that the [seventh day] Sabbath has been abolished we deny that He [Christ] has abolished it plainly. For He Himself was also Lord of the Sabbath.” (Archelaus, The Disputation with Manes, Vol 4 Ante-Nicean Christian Library, (Boston 1887), p, 217 insertions mine)
By A.D. 320, confusion and compromise had taken a heavy toll on early Christian doctrine. Christians had been scattered by persecution to every province throughout the Roman Empire. Christians in Alexandria, Egypt (the South) were beginning to defend views that were different from those in Rome (the North).
Church authority was discussed, debated, and argued. Most church leaders agreed that church doctrine needed to be more clearly defined and controlled, but who was going to be in control? Many questions and issues were raised for which there was little agreement.
Distance, culture, education, language, and social factors were beginning to define Christendom according to geography. Thoughtful men anticipated the result would be a highly fractured church. Christianity needed a strong leader and the emperor, Constantine, soon concluded he was it! He believed he had been divinely appointed to lead the universal Christian Church.
When Constantine ascended to the throne as sole ruler of the empire about A.D. 312, he had transformed himself into a Christian solely for political advantage. Constantine was cunning and he saw Christianity as a means of unifying the Roman Empire. When he endorsed the “Roman version” of Christianity, Constantine set a powerful sequence of events into motion that he could not begin to imagine. In future years, the church in Rome would eventually dominate Christianity.
I hope that this historical information will help you understand how Sunday observance began in Rome. The Romans were the first to merge Sunday observance into Christianity. Strange as it may seem, early advocates of Sunday observance never claimed or used divine authority for this action. In fact, the early Roman Christians did not consider Sunday labor as sinful or contrary to God’s will.
Of course, this attitude stands in stark contrast to the fourth commandment which forbids work on the “Jewish” Sabbath. Sunday in Rome had been regarded as a holiday long before Christianity arrived in Rome and merging the worship of Mithra and the worship of God on Sunday became a matter of convenience. Therefore, Sunday was not a day of rest or deep spiritual reflection when Christians adopted it as their day of worship.
When Constantine became “a defender of the faith,” he had his army baptized into Christianity by marching them through a river. To promote the universal acceptance of a day of rest, Constantine implemented a Sunday law in March, A.D. 321. This law was a clever compromise. Constantine patronized Christians and pagans alike by declaring a national day of rest.
The political benefit of this law was well received by all Romans. Constantine endorsed the desire of the Christian church in Rome by setting Sunday aside as a day of rest and this law also favored a large population in Rome who worshiped the pagan god of Mithra on Sunday. So, the Sunday law meshed with customary Roman practice and it aligned the desires of the church at Rome and everyone in Rome was quite happy with a national day of rest. Notice that the decree issued by Constantine does not mandate worship on Sunday:
“Let all judges and all city people and all tradesmen, rest upon the venerable day of the Sun. But let those dwelling in the country freely and with full liberty attend to the culture of their fields; since it frequently happens, that no other day is so fit for the sowing of grain, or the planting of vines; hence the favorable time should not be allowed to pass, lest the provision of heaven be lost.” (Cod. Justin, III Tit 12, L.3., March 7, A.D. 321)
Although Christians in Rome were already meeting on Sunday when Constantine sent out his decree, other Christians in other locations were not. Most Christians were still observing the seventh day Sabbath. Socrates writes near the turn of the fourth century:
“Such is the difference in the churches on the subject of fasts. Nor is there less variation in regard to religious assemblies. For although almost all churches through the world celebrate the sacred mysteries on the Sabbath of every week, yet the Christians of Rome and Alexandria have ceased to do this.” (Socrates, Ecclesiastical History, Book V, chap 22, Ante-Nicean Christian Library, Vol II, (Boston, 1887) p, 132)
Even Constantine’s decree did not shut out the importance of the seventh day Sabbath. Something else would have to occur before that could be accomplished. The leaders from the church in Rome needed an elaborate doctrine that dealt directly with the issue of the “Lord’s Day” to present a strong case before a divided body of Christians. Eusebius, another apologist of the era, was a Christian confidant and advisor of Constantine. He masterminded a doctrine for Sunday observance that remains largely intact today. Carefully notice his anti-Semitic argument for the observance of Sunday:
“Wherefore as they [the Jews] rejected it [the Sabbath law], the Word [Christ] by the new covenant, translated and transferred the feast of the Sabbath to the morning light, and gave us the symbol of true rest, viz., the saving Lord’s day, the first [day] of light, in which the Savior of the world, after all his labors among men, obtained the victory over death, and passed the portals of heaven, having achieved a work superior to the six-days creation.
On this day, which is the first [day] of light and of the true Sun, we assemble, after an interval of six days, and celebrate holy and spiritual Sabbaths, even all nations redeemed by him throughout the world, and do those things according to the spiritual law, which were decreed for the priests to do on the Sabbath. And all things whatsoever that it was the duty to do on the Sabbath, these we have transferred to the Lord’s day, as more appropriately belong to it, because it has a precedence and is first in rank, and more honorable than the Jewish Sabbath.
All things whatsoever that it was duty to do on the Sabbath, these we have transferred to the Lord’s Day.” (Eusebius’s Commentary on the Psalms 92, quoted in Coxe’s Sabbath literature, Vol I, page 361 insertions mine)
Did you notice the last sentence in Eusebius’ argument?
Eusebius is the first man to claim in writing that Christ changed the day of worship. However, Eusebius then testifies that he (and others, namely Constantine) had “transferred all things, whatsoever that it was duty to do on the Sabbath” to Sunday. Also notice that Eusebius offered no Scriptural authority for this change. Further, no church father or authority from that time period seconded the claims of Eusebius and notice that Eusebius did not quote from any other source.
As it turned out, Eusebius took the thorny problem of worship in hand and became the father of a false doctrine which favored the apostate practice of the church in Rome. If a mortal can declare on his own authority that the law of the eternal Almighty God is null and void, the mortal is both delusional and evil.
Who has higher authority – God or man; the Creator or the created? It is my observation that corporately speaking, Christians have repeated the failure of the Jews. As a body we have dismissed and altered “thus saith the Lord.” If Jesus were on Earth today, He would say of Christians the same thing He said of the Jews, “They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’” (Matthew 15:9)
History and Logic Do Not Support Sunday Worship
We have examined seven arguments Sunday-keeping Christians use to justify worshiping on Sunday. History and logic verify that none of the arguments are valid. When it comes to Sabbath versus Sunday, Christians face three general obstacles:
1. Christian Culture
Ever since the second century, apostate Christians have been advocating for Sunday worship. Today, 1.3 billion Catholics and Protestants worship on Sunday, carelessly regarding Sunday as “the Lord’s day” when there is no support for the sacredness of Sunday in Scripture or early church history. Going against the flow, Christian culture, and the wisdom of “the experts” who hold advanced degrees from seminaries is difficult for an ordinary person to do.
2. Lack of Education
Since Catholics and a large majority of Protestants worship on Sunday, very few Christians have a good reason to examine the roots of Sunday worship. Moreover, many people worshiping on Sunday do not regard Sunday as a “sacred day.” For them, Sunday is a day for going to church, but other than that, it is a day for recreation, working, or doing whatever a person wants to do. This disconnect between the sacredness of Sunday and worshiping on Sunday has created the following thought: “It doesn’t really matter which day of the week we worship on as long as we maintain a close relationship with the Lord.”
I would agree that one can (and should) worship the Lord every day of the week, but the requirement stated in the fourth commandment is altogether another matter. The fourth commandment demands that we cease from our labors and rest on the seventh day. God also commands that we include those who are within our gates. The fourth commandment is not about a weekly holiday, it is about spending time with God. Is God’s Sabbath a day of denial? See for yourself: “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” The mouth of the Lord has spoken.” (Isaiah 58:13,14)
Most of us who observe the seventh day as a holy day find it awkward and difficult to overcome Christian culture and heritage. When you add the pressure of social stigma and consequences that often come with being different (weird), some Christians think that it is best to leave the Sabbath question alone. It’s easier to go along with a world in rebellion than to be an outcast from your own family and/or church family.
3. Sinful nature
The biggest hurdle militating against obeying God’s law is our own sinful nature. We are naturally opposed to doing whatever God commands. Paul wrote, “Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.” (Romans 8:5-7, italics mine)
When these three obstacles are combined and if we go along with the seven superficial arguments that some Christians use, it becomes easy to see why Sunday remains a holy day for most Christians. For 20 centuries this rebellion has been ongoing even though God clearly declares otherwise in the Ten Commandments.
It is undisputed among Bible scholars that Jesus observed the Sabbath on the seventh day. Even those who believe that the Sabbath should not be kept in the way described by the Ten Commandments understand that Jesus did, in fact, keep it in that way. It might be claimed by those who believe that Sunday is now the correct day for “rest” that He only kept the Sabbath because it was His tradition, because He was a Jew, or because He had not been resurrected yet. Let’s examine what Jesus, the perfect example for mankind, did and said about the Sabbath.
We see that He observed the Sabbath as part of the way He lived His life, both as a young boy and in His ministry. He both observed the Sabbath Himself and preached on the Sabbath. “So 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 to read…. Then He went down to Capernaum… and was teaching them on the Sabbaths” (Luke 4:16, 31). Though He observed and preached on the Sabbath, He also taught that the Sabbath was not to be a burden the way the Pharisees wrongly kept it, and He condemned them for the strict, unbiblical prohibitions they had added, which made it a burden.
For example, when the Pharisees condemned Jesus for healing on the Sabbath, He rebuked them and said, “It is lawful to do good on the Sabbath” (Matthew 12:12). When the Pharisees rebuked Him for allowing His disciples to pick a handful of grain on the Sabbath, He condemned the burdensome, unscriptural prohibitions the Pharisees had added—which were never approved by God—and told them that they were missing the whole point of the Sabbath (Mark 2:23–27). He told them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (v. 27). In other words, the Sabbath was made as a gift for mankind, not a burden. Jesus Christ showed and taught how to keep the Sabbath properly. He even called Himself “Lord of the Sabbath” (v. 28). Jesus gave no indication of abolishing the Sabbath, but rather set the perfect example of how to keep it—an example His Church followed—and spent part of His ministry on teaching how to keep it correctly.
Does the New Testament Teach Sunday Observance?
Many teach that after Jesus’ resurrection the Church began keeping Sunday, the first day, instead of the seventh-day Sabbath. Does the Bible prove this? There are a total of eight scriptural passages that refer to the “first day of the week.” Let’s take a look at them.
Six of those scriptural passages simply describe what happened the day after Jesus’ was resurrected as the disciples discovered His empty tomb in the early dark hours of the first day of the week (He was in the grave three days and three nights, from early Wednesday evening to the beginning of Saturday evening). None of them speak of a new day of worship being set aside for the Church.
One of those passages, John 20:19, is treated by a few as a “first Sunday observance.” But is it? The verse reads, “Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’” The meaning here is obvious and explicitly says they “were assembled, for fear of the Jews”—not instantly doing away with one of the very Commandments of God and defying everything Jesus had taught them as “Lord of the Sabbath.” Rather, they were hiding and afraid, because Jesus was not in His tomb and they were being accused of stealing His body (Matthew 28:13–15). This gathering was no more a church or worship service than when they met in the same way on a Monday only eight days later (John 20:26).
And the remaining two passages in no way set the first day of the week apart as the day to rest, worship, and keep holy instead of the seventh day. They are simply descriptions of events.
Acts 20:7–12 is one such reference. Some have claimed that it describes a Sunday worship service—however, if we read carefully, we see that “the disciples came together to break bread” (v. 7). In other words, the purpose of their gathering was to eat a meal together, which is what “to break bread” meant in the first century (e.g., Acts 27:33–35), just as it does today. During and after the meal, Paul spoke to them until midnight. The context reveals that this was after the Sabbath, on Saturday night—by biblical reckoning, the first day of the week—and Paul was going to be leaving first thing in the morning. Many seventh-day Sabbath keepers in the Living Church of God experience this same scenario even today, enjoying dinner together on a Saturday night and continuing their fellowship late into the evening. This was not depicting the first-century Church doing away with the seventh-day Sabbath and keeping Sunday.
The last verse used by many Sunday-keeping churches in an effort to alter the Sabbath command is 1 Corinthians 16:2. The Living Church of God publication Which Day Is the Christian Sabbath? contains the following insight:
In 1 Corinthians 16:2, the Apostle Paul requested, “On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come.” This is no endorsement at all of Sunday worship. Notice that the practice was meant to stop when Paul came to Corinth! And notice that these verses say nothing about gathering for a weekly worship service to do this collecting. This was not a collection of money, but of food to assist the poor in Jerusalem suffering from drought and famine (cf. Romans 15:25–28). Until Paul’s arrival, each individual was asked to “store up” his contributions—surely in his home. Paul knew that the collection would be bulky enough that it would take several people to transport it to Jerusalem (1 Corinthians 16:4)—not what one would expect if money were collected.
The attempt to use these three verses to support Sunday observance is nothing more than an effort to justify a practice that was instituted by men in the centuries following the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. However, if we honestly examine the Bible’s approximately 170 references to God’s Sabbaths, we can understand His perspective on the subject.
The First-Century Church Observed the Sabbath
The reality is that the book of Acts, the inspired, primary record of the first-century Church, shows clearly that Christ’s followers continued to systematically keep the seventh-day Sabbath—never Sunday. For instance, Acts 13 says that Paul “went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down…. Then Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand” he began to preach the Gospel to them (vv. 13–16). But notice what happened next. “When the Jews went out of the synagogue, the Gentiles begged that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath” (Acts 13:42). So, what did he do? Did he take this perfect opportunity to set the record straight and proclaim that the Church of God now keeps Sunday and they could hear him again the very next day? No. Rather, it is recorded, “On the next Sabbath almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God” (v. 44).
We see this over and over again. When Paul started the Gentile church at Thessalonica, “as his custom was, [he] went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures” (Acts 17:2). Then, in the Greek city of Corinth, “he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded both Jews and Greeks” (Acts 18:4). Paul, Silas, and Timothy baptized people on the Sabbath day (Acts 16:13–15). Thankfully, we also have some of Paul’s teaching about the Sabbath recorded in Hebrews 4. The record shows that the first-century Church continued to observe and actively teach the seventh-day Sabbath, even to new Gentile, non-Jewish converts.
Sunday Was Ordained by Men to Replace the Sabbath—Not by God
So, why do most Christians today observe Sunday? The primary reason is that it was forced on Christianity by the church at Rome in an effort to accomodate pagan practices and bring more pagans into the fold. The church at Rome believed that if it observed Sunday instead of the “Jewish” Sabbath, more of the pagans who already observed Sunday would be willing to convert to Christianity. History shows that this was done centuriesafter Jesus and the Apostles died.
Research for this is highlighted in Which Day Is the Christian Sabbath?Here is an excerpt:
Renowned historian Will Durant writes, “The serious temper of the Jewish Sabbath was transferred to the Christian Sunday that replaced it in the second century” (The Story of Civilization,vol. 3, p. 599, 1972).
How did this happen? A Roman Catholic study course tells us that “The [Catholic] Church simply transferred the obligation from Saturday to Sunday” (“Session 19,” Father Smith Instructs Jackson). The Catholic Mirroragrees: “The Catholic Church... by virtue of her Divine mission, changed the day from Saturday to Sunday” (September 23, 1893). In fact, the Catholic Church’s Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome publishes a book by Dr. Samuele Bacchiocchi, a non-Catholic scholar, which proves this very fact! Its preface is written by Vincenzo Monachino, chairman of the university’s Church History department. He writes, “We [the Roman Catholic Church] gladly mention the thesis that Bacchiocchi defends regarding the birth-place of Sunday worship: for him this arose most probably not in the primitive Church of Jerusalem,wellknown for its profound attachment to Jewish religious traditions, but rather in the Church of Rome. The abandonment of the Sabbath and the adoption of Sunday as the Lord’s Day, are the result of an interplay of Christian, Jewish and pagan-religious factors” (From Sabbath to Sunday: A Historical Investigation of the Rise of Sunday Observance in Early Christianity,pp. 5–6, 1999, emphasis added).
Richard Ames writes the following in “Who Changed the Sabbath to Sunday?,” appearing in the July–August 2020 Tomorrow’s World Magazine:
The first-century Christian Church worshipped on the seventh day of the week, which we now call Saturday. But when Roman Emperor Constantine, a pagan sun-worshipper, enforced his own version of Christianity in his empire, he mandated Sunday worship. He gave the following edict in 321 AD: “Let all magistrates and people of the city… rest on the venerable day of the Sun” (The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, “Roman Legislation for Sunday,” vol. XI, p. 147).
Just a few years later, the Roman church also passed a startling decree in the Council of Laodicea, declaring, “Christians shall not Judaize and be idle on Saturday, but shall work on that day; but the Lord’s day they shall especially honour, and, as being Christians, shall, if possible, do no work on that day. If, however, they are found Judaizing [keeping the seventh-day Sabbath], they shall be shut out from Christ” (A History of the Councils of the Church, vol. 2, p. 316). In other words, Christian Sabbath-keepers were declared heretics.
In short, the Sabbath commandment was never changed by God, and it is to be kept by His Church. In fact, according to the Bible, the Sabbath is one of the very signs of God’s people.
The Sabbath Is a Sign Between God and His People
God places great value on remembering the Sabbath and keeping it holy. He has built it into His perfect “law of liberty” and emphasizes the importance of the Sabbath throughout Scripture. God calls the Sabbath, ordained at creation, a sign of His people.
God says in Exodus 31:13, “Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the LORD who sanctifies you.” He continues in verses 16–17, “Therefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.”
But that is not the only place where He calls the Sabbath a sign. Through the prophet Ezekiel, God says, “Moreover I also gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between them and Me, that they might know that I am the LORD who sanctifies them…. ‘I am the LORD your God: Walk in My statutes, keep My judgments, and do them; hallow My Sabbaths, and they will be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the LORD your God” (Ezekiel 20:12, 19–20).
These promises were not limited to the people of Israel. God extends the same blessing of recognition to Gentiles and those excluded from Israel when they “keep My Sabbaths, and choose what pleases Me” (Isaiah 56:1–8).
The Sabbath was observed by the Church that Jesus began in the first century, and while many have made attempts to change it or abolish it (Daniel 7:25), the Church of God has continued and will continue to observe it, even in the face of persecution. The Sabbath day was set apart as holy at creation (Genesis 2:1–3). Its observance is commanded as one of the Ten Commandments. It was observed by Jesus, His apostles, and the Church of God found in Scripture. And we see from the above passages in Exodus and Ezekiel that it is the seventh-day Sabbath, not Sunday, that sets God’s people apart.
But there is an additional detail found in the above passages that needs to be noted. Notice that they often say, “Sabbaths”—plural. God did not just set apart the seventh day to be observed; there are also seven annual Holy Days and Festivals that God commanded His people to observe forever.
The Sabbath shifted from Friday/Saturday to Sunday, which was the day to honor the pagan sun-god, Ra.
Remember the ‘sun’ reference from above? If you recall, the ninth plague in Egypt was darkness falling upon all the land. Ra, the sun-god, was the most worshipped Egyptian god, giving sunlight. Moving the Sabbath day to Sunday eased and transitioned many of the Gentiles to accept Constantine’s newly preferred religion. It became a mixture that was more easily consumed by the pagan nations to accept the newly legalized Christianity.
Was the Sabbath Day Change the Only Observance That Shifted?
No, the Sabbath day change wasn’t the only shift. Easter (the name originating from a spring festival celebrating rebirth and fertility) replaced Passover, and the Fall Feasts were forgotten.
This separation directly contradicts Paul’s point in Romans 11 and Ephesians 2.
- “…if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches. …remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.”—Romans 11:17-18
- “Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh… that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.—Ephesians 2:11-13
What is the Purpose of the Sabbath Day?
- “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 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, 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.”—Exodus 20:8-11
The word “Sabbath” at first glance seems to be a day of the week. However, there is a deeper Hebrew meaning behind the word. In this passage, the Lord instructs that for six days, we are to “labor” and “do all work.” In Hebrew, the word for labor (or serve) is “avad.” The word for do all work (or business) is “melakah.”
This means that the Sabbath is to follow a six-day period of serving and doing business. We are meant to work. In fact, the Lord designed us for a purpose and to work for His Kingdom.
- “Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.”—Genesis 2:15
- “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.”—Colossians 3:23-24
Yet, the Sabbath day is not about laziness or doing nothing. In Hebrew, Shabbat, or shavat, comes from the root word shav that means to turn and ‘press in’ to the tent or house. In other words, we are to cease from our normal activities and business and return to the Lord, pressing in… to the tent, house, or tabernacle, and be with Him.
Furthermore, this is a picture of the deep love and covenant relationship the Lord longs to have with us. We are not to observe out of legalism but in response to the covenant.
- “Therefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.”—Exodus 31:16-17 (emphasis added)
So then, the purpose of the Sabbath is to turn from regular activities and set aside time to return and press in to our Covenant Creator, Lord, and King; to come into His presence—the dwelling place, the tent of meeting.
This aligns with what Jesus said in Mark 2:27-28, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore, the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.” Jesus is saying that the Sabbath day is to remember our covenant and be renewed in His presence.
In Summary
The Sabbath day, according to scripture, is the seventh day of the week—sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. There is no reference in the Bible that it is to be Sunday. However, many Believers observe it on Sunday.
The roots of the Sabbath day change go back to the first few centuries of the early Church, when leaders wanted to remove the “Jewishness” from Christianity. Remember, there is always a spiritual battle behind everything manifested in the physical world.
This removal of roots impacts the way many view the Lord, His Word, and His covenants with Israel. Furthermore, it impacts the authority of the Church in today’s world.
The Catholic Church teaches that the Sabbath is to be celebrated on Sunday. This practice originated very early in the history of the Catholic Church. Biblical evidences reveals that the early disciples worshipped on the seventh day Sabbath (see Luke 23:56; Acts 13:14,27,42-44; 15:21; 16:13; 17:2; 18:4). Over the first centuries the veneration of Sunday gradually became the standard day of worship, although Saturday was still held in high regard by many early Christians. In 321 A.D. emperor Constantine made the first law recognizing the sacredness of Sunday.
One the venerable day of the Sun let the magistrates and people residing in cities rest, and let all workshops be closed. In the country however persons engaged in agriculture may freely and lawfully continue their pursuits because it often happens that another day is not suitable for gain-sowing or vine planting; lest by neglecting the proper moment for such operations the bounty of heaven should be lost. Codex Justinianus, lib. 3, tit. 12, 3; translated in History of the Christian Church, Philip Schaff, D.D., (7-vol.ed.) Vol. III, p.380. New York, 1884
For a while many Christians observed both the Sabbath and Sunday. Worship on Sunday gradually became more exalted while Sabbath worship was viewed as a relic of Judaism and was eventually discared entirely by the church.
Why do Catholics worship on Sunday?
In September of 1893, Cardinal Gibbons published a series of articles in the Catholic Mirror, the official voice of the papacy in the United States. In these articles Cardinal Gibbons reveals why Catholics worship on Sunday instead of Saturday:
The Catholic Church for over one thousand years before the existence of a Protestant, by virtue of her divine mission, changed the day from Saturday to Sunday. Rome's Challenge, p. 21
In The Convert's Catechism of Catholic Doctrine we find:
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. 336), transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday.
--PETER GEIERMANN, The Convert's Catechism of Catholic Doctrine, Second Edition, 1910, p. 50.
Why do Protestants worship on Sunday?
Most Protestant churches have followed the Sunday tradition despite the fact that there is no Biblical evidence of any change in the day of worship from Sabbath to Sunday. At the Council of Trent, in the sixteenth century, the Protestant Reformation was denounced on this point by the Archbishop of Reggio:
The Protestants claim to stand upon the written word only. They profess to hold the Scripture alone as the standard of faith. They justify their revolt by the plea that the Chruch has apostatized from the written word and follows tradition. Now the Protestant's claim, that they stand upon the written word only, is not true. Their profession of holding the Scriptures alone as the standard of faith is false. Proof: The written word explicitly enjoins the observance of the seventh day as the Sabbath.Rome's Challenge, p. 26.
Further evidence:
It was the Catholic Church which, by the authority of Jesus Christ has transferred this rest to the Sunday in remembrance of the resurrection of our Lord. Thus the observance of Sunday by the Protestants is an homage they pay, in spite of themselves, to the authority of the [Catholic] church. --Monsignor Segur, Plain Talk About the Protestantism of Today, page 213.Sunday is a Catholic institution, and its claim to observance can be defended only on Catholic principles. . . . From beginning to end of scripture there is not a single passage that warrants the transfer of weekly public worship from the last day of the week to the first. Catholic Press, Sydney, Australia August, 1900.
Sunday is our mark of authority. The church is above the Bible, and this transference of sabbath observance is proof of that fact.The Catholic Record, London, Ontario, September 1, 1923.
Most significant are what the Roman Catholics have said, because more than admitting, they boast of having exercised their power to “change times and law” (Daniel 7:25). The Pope is called the Vicar of Christ, meaning in place of Christ. The Catholic Church has always led the ecumenical movement and is working feverishly behind the scenes even now. The Catholic Church leads this “MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS” [protesting daughters] (Revelation 17:5). Note in the quotes how the Catholics mock the Protestants who claim they follow the Bible but are really submitting to the authority of the Catholic Church by observing Sunday!
Roman Catholics
“You will 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 [Catholics] never sanctify.” (Cardinal Gibbons’ Faith of Our Fathers, p. 111).
“Sunday is a Catholic institution and its claim to observance can be defended only on Catholic principles… From beginning to end of Scripture there is not a single passage that warrants the transfer of weekly public worship from the last day of the week to the first.” (Catholic Press, Sydney, Australia, August 1900).
“Question: Which is the Sabbath day?
“Answer: Saturday is the Sabbath.
“Question: Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday?
“Answer: We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Churchin the Council of Laodicea (A.D. 336) transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday.” (The Convert’s Catechism of Catholic Doctrine, by Peter Geiermann, 50).
“Nowhere in the Bible do we find that Christ or the apostles ordered 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 seventh 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.” (Catholic Virginian, October 3, 1947. p. 9).
It is always somewhat laughable, to see the Protestant churches, in pulpit and legislation, demand the observance of Sunday, of which there is nothing in their Bible.” (Peter R. Kraemer, Catholic Church Extension Society, 1975, Chicago, Illinois.)
Methodist
“Sabbath in the Hebrew language signifies rest, and is the seventh day of the week… and it must be confessed that there is no law in the New Testament concerning the first day.” Charles Buck, A Theological Dictionary, “Sabbath.”
“The reason we observe the first day instead of the seventh is based on no positive command. One will search the Scriptures in vain for authority for changing from the seventh day to the first.” Clovis Chappell, Ten Rules for Living, p. 61.
Presbyterians
“Some have tried to build the observance of Sunday upon Apostolic command, whereas the Apostles gave no command on the matter at all…. The truth is, so soon as we appeal to the litera scripta [literal writing] of the Bible, the Sabbatarians have the best of the argument.” “The Christian at Work”, April 19, 1883, and Jan. 1884.
Anglican
“Where are we told in Scripture that we are to keep the first day at all? We are commanded to keep the seventh; but we are nowhere commanded to keep the first day…. The reason why we keep the first day of the week holy instead of the seventh is for the same reason that we observe many other things, not because the Bible, but because the Church, has enjoined it.” Isaac William, D.D., Plain Sermons on the Catechism, vol. 1.
Episcopal
“The Bible commandment says on the seventh day thou shalt rest. That is Saturday. Nowhere in the Bible is it laid down that worship should be done on Sunday.”
Baptist
“There is nothing in Scripture that requires us to keep Sunday rather than Saturday as a holy day.” Harold Lindsell (editor), Christianity Today, Nov. 5, 1976.
“To me it seems unaccountable that Jesus, during three years’ discussion with His disciples, often conversing with them upon the Sabbath question . . . never alluded to any transference of the day; also, that during forty days of His resurrection life, no such thing was intimated . . . Of course I quite well know that Sunday did come into use in early Christian history . . . But what a pity that it comes branded with the mark of Paganism, and christened with the name of the sun-god, adopted and sanctioned by the Papal apostasy, and bequeathed as a sacred legacy to Protestantism” (Dr. Edward Hiscox, before a New York ministers’ conference, Nov. 13, 1893, as reported in the New York Examiner, Nov. 16, 1893).
“If it [Sabbath] yet exists, let us observe it…And if it does not exist, let us abandon a mock observance of another day for it. ‘But,’ say some, ‘it was changed from the seventh to the first day.’ Where? when? and by whom? No man can tell. No, it never was changed, nor could it be, unless creation was to be gone through again: for the reason assigned must be changed before the observance, or respect to the reason, can be changed! It is all old wives’ fables to talk of the change of the Sabbath from the seventh to the first day. If it be changed, it was that august personage changed it who changes times and laws ex officio – I think his name is Doctor Antichrist.’ (Alexander Campbell, The Christian Baptist, Feb. 2, 1824, vol. 1. no. 7, p. 164.)
American Congregationalist
“The current notion that Christ and His apostles authoritatively substituted the first day for the seventh, is absolutely without any authority in the New Testament.” (Dr. Layman Abbot, in the Christian Union, June 26, 1890)–American Congregationalist
Evangelicals
“The Sabbath was binding in Eden, and it has been in force ever since. This fourth commandment begins with the word ‘remember,’ showing that the Sabbath already existed when God wrote the law on the tables of stone at Sinai. How can men claim that this one commandment has been done away with when they will admit that the other nine are still binding?” (Dwight L. Moody, Weighed and Wanting, pp. 47-48).
There’s nothing in Scripture that requires us to keep Sunday rather than Saturday as a holy day.” (Harold Lindsell, editor, Christianity Today, Nov. 5, 1976).
No wonder Paul warns in 2 Corinthians 11:15 about “his [satan’s] ministers”!
How can there be a more fitting conclusion that Christ’s own words in Mark 7:7-9: “‘And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men … All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.”
And the preincarnate Christ’s own words in Exodus 31:13-17: “You shall keep the Sabbath … it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on the Sabbath day, that person shall be cut off from among his people. Work shall be done for six days, but the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord … Observe the Sabbath throughout [your] generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever.”
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