The other day as I was driving home, I was listening to a Christian radio program. The speaker was talking about the Sabbath. I pricked my ears to listen.
He began in Genesis and explained Genesis 2:1-3 in beautiful terms. God at the close of his creation, rested on the Sabbath as we are to rest in Him. God put special blessings upon this day, blessing and making it holy.
He then moved on to Exodus, how God gave Israel the Sabbath as a special sign of their relationship.
I was thinking "Wow! This is great, hearing this protestant preacher talking about God's holy day!"
But then he moved to the New Testament -- and completely changed his thoughts, and even his voice!
The Sabbath has brought great controversy into the Christian church, he said, and no Christians have ever kept the seventh day, only the Jews kept it. You won't read of anyone except Jews keeping the Sabbath in scripture, he continued, -- the apostles went to the synagogues only because that's where the Jews were and they were to tell the Jews about Christ....
What a bunch of lies. How sad that ministers who claim to preach the gospel should so renounce the day that God blessed and made holy.
Well, the first part was true -- the Sabbath has caused great controversy in the Christian Church.
That controversy goes back hundreds of years, as the apostasy crept in shortly after the apostles all died. It was generated by some desiring to differentiate themselves from the Jews, especially after the Jews fell into great disfavor with the Roman government, then when Rome began to champion Christianity, Sunday was formulized by Constantine and the pope of that era. As the years rolled on Sunday was further enforced by laws and persecutions and forged letters sent from heaven. Yet there were small groups of Christians who continued to observe the Sabbath in spite of the opposition.
During the Reformation, the Sabbath was discovered, but rejected by the main reformers. There's a book written in 1657 by Thomas Tillam called "The Seventh-Day Sabbath Sought Out and Celebrated" in which he even identifies Sunday as the "mark of the beast"! There were groups keeping the Sabbath back then!
Finally as the three angels' messages began to sound, the Sabbath truth became well known -- but again rejected, this time the Christian world building huge walls to insulate themselves from the Sabbath truth -- even to nailing God's commandments to cross as no longer binding.
But what about the speakers other allegations.
Does the bible show Christians keeping the Sabbath?
Yes, it does.
Does it show them keeping Sunday?
No it does not.
There is one meeting in the evening of the 1st day -- which according to Bible reckoning was Saturday evening. And it was night as they had their lamps burning, and a young fellow sitting in a window fell asleep and crashed to pavement below.
The other verses they claim show Sunday verses concern the disciples hiding in the upper room on the days following the crucifixion. That was hardly what one would consider a "church service". They were frightened men, huddled together for "fear of the Jews".
Finally Paul's plan for offerings -- telling people to put money aside in their homes on the first day -- so it would be ready when he came. Again no "church service" here.
But we do have numerous church services on Saturday!
Yes, several were in Jewish synagogues, but at least two were elsewhere.
Acts 13:42 And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath. Gentiles wanting Paul to come preach to them the next Sabbath!
Yet, Paul doesn't say -- wait tomorrow is Sunday the Gentiles Sabbath, I'll come tomorrow. No, that's not what happened.
Acts 13:44 And the next Sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God.
13:45 But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy,So on Sabbath almost all the Gentiles in that city came to worship!
In Philippi, there were no synagogues. There weren't even any Jewish leaders. Only some Gentile women that were meeting by a river.
Acts 16:13 And on the Sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where people often met for prayer; and we sat down, and spoke unto the women which had gathered there.There is absolutely NO indication that Paul tried to change their day of worship. When people gathered for Sabbath worship, it was on Sabbath.
Sabbath is the day Jesus claimed.
He is Lord of the Sabbath Day, and He is the Lord we come to worship.
There's a different "lord" of Sunday.
Mithraism was rivaling Christianity in the centuries after Christ. Their special day was Sunday.
Dr. Gilbert Murray, M.A., D.Litt., LLD, FBA, Professor of Greek at Oxford University. He wrote:
“Now since Mithras was the sun, the Unconquered, and the sun was the Royal Star, the religion looked for a king whom it could serve as a representative of Mithras upon earth. The Roman Emperor seemed to be clearly indicated as the true king. In sharp contrast to Christianity, Mithraism recognized Caesar as the bearer of divine grace. It had so much acceptance that it was able to impose on the Christian world its own sun-day in place of the Sabbath; its sun’s birthday, the 25th of December, as the birthday of Jesus.” History of Christianity in the Light of Modern Knowledge.
