April came and went, and now May is almost over! Where does the time go?!
I am still struggling with Revelation, so a study on it is not yet feasible for me. I do, however, want to tackle it eventually.
For now, a discussion about the Sabbath has been nudging at me. What about the fact that most of us worship on Sunday (the 1st day of the week) rather than on Saturday (the 7th day)?
I grappled with this question for several years, until I prayed about it and allowed the Holy Spirit to help me through Bible study. Following is my conclusion. However, I would still like to know what you think, so please comment if you have thoughts on the subject.
Resting on the Sabbath was one of the Ten Commandments given to Moses for the Israelites. The Ten Commandments are still a terrific moral compass for us to live by, but they were the beginning of the Old Law. Under the New Covenant, given to us by God through the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, and the gift of the Holy Spirit, Christians are not bound by the Old Law.
Galatians 3:19-25 What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator. A mediator, however, does not represent just one party; but God is one. Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. But the Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe. Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.
So the law was given to help guide God's people until the coming of Jesus Christ.
So when should we worship?
I believe the Word instructs us to worship and praise God in all things we do and say. It is good for us to set aside a day to remember what our Lord has done for us, and in 1 Corinthians we are instructed to set aside a portion of our income for the Lord's work on the first day of each week.
1 Corinthians 16:2 On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made.
This was the custom of the early churches, to set aside offerings to help those within the churches and spread the gospel. When Paul says "when I come", he is speaking of when he visits to collect the offerings so he can distribute them to the other churches as needed.
The apostles also met on the first day of the week to break bread, as told in Acts 20:7. On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight.
I do not believe it matters which day you choose to worship or observe as your Sabbath day of rest. We are told in Titus not to argue over such things.
Titus 3:9 But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless.
In Romans, Paul gives instruction about how Christians should live and sets the foundations of the Christian faith. In regard to holy days, he has this to say:
Romans 14:5-6a One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord...
In Colossians, he goes one step further:
Colossians 2:16-17 Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.
So our hope and faith is in Christ, not in which day we choose to celebrate Him. The Sabbath was "a shadow of the things that were to come". Christ Jesus. Now that He has come, we are to follow Him in the way the Holy Spirit leads us.
In summary: We are to be Christians every day, and fellowship with other Christians on whatever day we choose, while continuing to set aside our offerings on the 1st day of the week. More important than how and when we worship is that we worship Christ. Believers should focus on faith in Christ alone. Our worship, traditions, and ceremonies can help bring us close to God, but we should not criticize fellow Christians whose traditions and ceremonies differ from ours.
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