Many Christians observe Sunday as “The Lord’s Day.” Some Christians observe Saturday, The Seventh Day Sabbath. To understand which day Christians should observe, let’s start at the very beginning, at creation week.
God rested on the seventh day of creation (Genesis 2:2). Then he “blessed the seventh day and sanctified it” (verse 3). It was right after God created man, that he created the Sabbath. It was part of his plan for mankind from the beginning. The seventh day is the day God blessed and set apart. The Bible nowhere says that God removed his blessing from the seventh day, or transferred his blessing to another day.
The Sabbath existed and was binding on the Israelites when they wandered in the desert. While they were wandering on the way to Mount Sinai. The Israelites were instructed to keep the Sabbath and chastised for not doing so (Exodus 16:23-30). As stated, this was before the law was given. The fourth commandment, which clearly shows the Sabbath is the seventh day, was so important to God that he placed it at the center of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:8-11).
Jesus himself upheld the Sabbath command. He observed Sabbath on the seventh day of the week, “as was his custom” (Luke 4: 16-22). The disciples rested on the Sabbath while Christ was in the grave. Luke records that they did so “according to the Commandments” (Luke 23:56). For those who teach, the commandments were nailed to the cross, this is contrary to the notions of the disciples, since this obviously was after the crucifixion. Jesus was Jewish, his religion was Judaism, Jesus loved the Sabbath day, unlike many of his followers who view it as legalism and bondage. The Sabbath is a gift from a loving creator God. The God of Israel and mankind.
The apostle Paul preached on the Sabbath (Acts 17:2). He did this in the synagogues and other places (Act 13:14-15; 16:13). Gentiles also observed the Sabbath (Acts 13:42, 44). It should be noted that Paul and his message are often viewed through the window of church history. Paul should be studied against his religious background, Judaism. He was a Pharisee (Acts 23:6). Note this is many years after his conversion on the road to Damascus (Acts 9). Far too many Christians interpret Paul as if he departed from Judaism after he accepted Christ, not so. Paul was an observant Pharisee.
Many Christians today are being robbed out of the blessing God gave mankind of his Sabbath Day. It is a picture of the ultimate goal of any Christian (The Kingdom of God/Heaven if you will).Jesus said he did not come to destroy the law and the prophets but to fulfill them (Matthew 5:17). Jesus fulfilled the law by obeying it, and also interpreting the law properly. Jesus, the Christ has something to say to those who would say we don’t have to keep the Sabbath, “Whosoever therefore shall break one of the least of these commandments and teach men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven…” (Matthew 5:19).
Saturday is the seventh day of the week, no matter what encyclopedia or dictionary you look it up in.
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