Sabbath -2

Jesus and His Apostles Kept the Sabbath


The Old Testament is a shadow and a copy of the New Testament. Thus, the law of the Old Testament was a shadow of the good things that were to come in the New Testament times (Heb. 10:1). The Sabbath day in the Old Testament was called "the Sabbath of Jehovah" (Ex. 31:13; Ezek. 20:12), while the Sabbath day in the New Testament was called "the Sabbath of Jesus" (Matt. 12:8; Luke 6:5).


The Sabbath day, according to the Old Testament law, was only a copy; the Sabbath day of the new covenant, kept in Christ, is the reality. In the New Testament times, the apostles kept the Sabbath day by worshiping God in spirit and in truth, following Jesus Christ's example. Jesus kept the Sabbath as His custom.


Luke 4:16 『He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom....』


In the New Testament times, the Sabbath day is referred to as "Jesus' [the Lord's] day" because the true Lord of the Sabbath is Jesus Christ. "For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath" (Matt. 12:8; Luke 6:5). The apostles kept the Sabbath day as the "Lord's [Jesus'] day."


Rev. 1:10 『On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit...』

As the times of the Old Testament passed away and the New Testament times began, the way in which God's people were to keep the Sabbath day was changed; however, the day the Sabbath was to be commemorated was never changed. (In the Old Testament times, God's people offered burnt offerings and could not even kindle a fire in their houses, while in New Testament times, people worshipped God in spirit and in truth.) The day itself could not be changed because it was on the seventh day that God had rested from all of His creating work. The apostles kept the Sabbath day as their custom, reasoning from the Scriptures as follows:


Acts 17:2 『As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures...』

Acts 20:6-7 『But we sailed from Philippi after the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas, where we stayed seven days. On the first day of the week we came together to break bread...』


As it is written in the above verses, the apostles kept the Sabbath day.


It is proven throughout the Scriptures that the Sabbath day?the seventh day, Saturday, Jesus' day?was kept until the apostolic age. So why do so many present-day Christians hold services on Sunday [the first day] and not on the Sabbath day? According to history, Sunday service originated from pagan sun-god worship. The Romans had been worshiping the sun god on the first day [Sunday], recognizing it as "the day of the sun," even before the birth of Jesus.



The Sabbath Was Changed to Sunday

After the apostles died, Christianity spread to western regions, including Rome. The gospel was preached to sun-god worshipers, and in the early 4th century, even the Roman emperor had heard the message of Christ. The emperor happened to be a leader of the sun-god worshipers, and when he converted to Christianity, many sun-god worshipers began to attend Church. As time passed, the faith of the Christians weakened, and they began to accept the customs of the sun-god worshipers. During this turn-over, they even began to rest and to worship on the first day of the week [Sunday]. In A.D. 321, Constantine, a Roman emperor, decreed an edict:

"All judges, city-people and craftsmen shall rest on the venerable day of the Sun."

Some argue that the abolishment of the Sabbath compelled many people to convert to Christianity, but we must not forget that altering God's commandments was Satan's scheme. Satan, the devil, opposes God and has historically harassed God's people, using various methods.


He tried to destroy the Church of God through severe persecution. But, taking a close look at history, the more that God's people were persecuted, the more that they depended on God. When Satan changed his methods of persecution, however, and praised the Church, he tempted the Christians to combine their faiths together. They were given back the properties that had been taken from them, ministers were exempted from military service, and the Church was even given the right to emancipate slaves. Through all of these outwardly positive changes to the Church, the Christians unwittingly fell into Satan's schemes and knelt down before him. They turned their backs away from God, like an ignorant bear who doesn't realize that his gallbladder is going to be stolen, only focusing on the sweet candy he is being tempted with.

God clearly said that only he who does the will of God can enter the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 7:21-23). Which day should we worship God to please Him, Sunday which most people keep, or the Sabbath, Saturday, which God commanded His people to keep? It is unnecessary to reveal the answer, because the Sabbath day is clearly Saturday.


The Church of God Established by God

The Church of God, established by God, does not follow man-made rules, only God's laws. They recognize that no one is able to give salvation except God, the Creator of the heavens and the earth. Jesus already revealed that those who follow the laws of men cannot be saved.

Mark 7:6-9 『He [Jesus] replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: "'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men." And he said to them: "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!"』

The Church of God was established on the foundation of the apostles who followed the teachings of Jesus Christ, and it has not changed since its inception. The true Church follows the laws which Jesus and the apostles observed.


No matter how many members a church has, if the church has different doctrines than those of Jesus Christ, it could not have originated from Jesus. We keep the Sabbath day?the memorial day of the Creator?not observing the law of the Old Testament, but following the law of the new covenant which Jesus and the apostles obeyed.


The saints, who will be saved on the last day, the day of God's judgment, are those who follow in Jesus' footsteps. The Sabbath day, one of Christ's footmarks, is a very precious commandment of God.