What About the Sabbath Day?

A letter from the Dallas area arrived here about the middle of December. The envelope did not have a return address, and the letter lacked a signature—except what looks like an email address. She needn't have worried about her name being mentioned. I only do that if the person is a public figure who has written a book or spoken at a lectureship—or, like the woman at St. Louis University, who was proud to admit her role in killing babies.

The letter was handprinted very neatly, and the author of it appears to be in earnest—but in error regarding her conclusions. By the time I finished it, the only thing missing seemed to be an invitation to read Ellen G. White's material, which plagiarized other writers of her day; she also had editors even though what she wrote was allegedly straight from the Lord. (Anyone who wants more information on that subject should read The White Lie by Walter Rea, which was published in 1982—and fully documented.) But we will not go there because she did not go there.

"What About the Sabbath Day?"

Two-thirds of the first page of the letter proved to be complimentary concerning two articles recently published in Spiritual Perspectives. One of them mentioned the principle cited in the article that the time we meet for worship on the first day of the week is an expedient. It could be 10:00 A.M., 2:00 P.M., or any time in the evening. Each congregation determines what works best for them.

Based on that point, her first question was, "How about worship on the Sabbath day?" My first thought was, "Are you Jewish?" No, the intention is not to appear smart-alecky, but to call attention to a Biblical truth—that the Sabbath day was given by God to the Israelites. One passage the lady never mentioned was Exodus 31:16-17:

"'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.'"

This covenant was not made with anyone but the children of Israel. God did not command any other nation to observe the Sabbath day, nor is it a sign between Jesus and Christians. Nothing similar to these words can be found anywhere in the New Testament.

But if anyone chooses to dispute this point, he has two problems to deal with immediately. The second one, regarding Galatians 5:1-4 will be dealt with later. Here we want to consider the man who gathered sticks on the Sabbath (which obviously constituted work) from Numbers 15:32-36. They kept the man under guard until they could petition God to discern what to do with him. The Lord told Moses he was surely to be put to death and that the congregation should stone him outside the camp, which they did.

Now, anyone who insists on following the Law of Moses must also accept the penalty for disobedience prescribed in that Law, which presents a problem. The laws in most countries would arrest any group of people following this command. "Why did you stone this man?" a judge asks. "He was mowing his lawn on the Sabbath, your honor." This scenario highlights the problem. The Law (including the Sabbath) was designed for the children of Israel; that covenant was not made with all people of all lands for all time. That law was nailed to the cross (Col. 2:14).

Christians have never been under the Law of Moses, which the Book of Hebrews calls the first covenant; it further describes it as faulty (8:7). The Mediator of the new covenant is Jesus, Who is a better mediator than Moses (cf. 1 Tim. 2:5). And He has a better covenant, which was established on better promises. This new covenant makes no mention of keeping the Sabbath day; neither does it provide any penalty for violating the Sabbath day.

Worship on Saturday

The next topic is churches of Christ who are offering services on Saturday. "I wondered where they got the authority to do so." I do not know all the churches who offer worship on Saturday, but if it is like Richland Hills, it has more to do with convenience than principle. Richland Hills does not need authority for anything they do; they are a liberal congregation and do whatever they feel like doing. I have written several articles about Rick "Abihu" Atchley (as I call him) over the years, and he is as liberal as the day is long.

However, the sister who wrote the letter said she began "to research by re-studying the Book of Acts, while looking for a pattern. The question, 'What about Ananias?' was the one that led me to realize that Christians met in the synagogues every Sabbath day to worship God." Even if she were right, she has not proved her case because she still cannot find a command for Christians to worship on the Sabbath day.

One conclusion of her research was that Ananias was still keeping the Law. That is not what Acts 22:12 teaches (the verse cited). It says that he was "a devout man according to the law, having a good testimony with all the Jews who dwelt there." This description does not mean he observed the Sabbath or the Day of Atonement. Cornelius was devout, also. On Pentecost, devout men were present from every nation.

Ananias was raised as a devout Jew, and he still walked according to his moral upbringing. For some reason, the Jews liked him, but he was fully aware that the chief priests had authorized Saul to bind Christians (Acts 9:13-14). Ananias had been raised according to the Law of Moses, but he was "a disciple" of Jesus. He may have kept some of the traditions of the Jews, but nothing specifically states that he observed the Sabbath day.

"Ananias and the other disciples at Damascus were meeting in the synagogues on the Sabbath day before and after the conversion of Paul (Acts 9:19-20)." Neither verse confirms that allegation. Verse 19 states that after his conversion, Saul spent some time with the disciples at Damascus. Verse 20 adds that he immediately "preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God." Nothing indicates that the church was meeting in synagogues.

For a time, the Jews allowed Saul to speak at their gatherings, but when he confounded the Jews, preaching that Jesus is the Christ, they plotted to kill him (Acts 9:22-23). The same thing had happened previously in Jerusalem. Acts 2:47 informs us that the new Christians were "praising God and having favor with all the people." Shortly thereafter, however, the apostles were told "not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus" (Acts 4:18).

The sister who wrote the letter seems to think that Jews and Christians worshiped together at the synagogue, but she has not and cannot prove it. Acts 9:31a is cited to prove her point: "Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified." She does not, however, state why. Does she think that the disciples and the Jews resumed meeting in synagogues now that the troublemaker Saul was gone? Does she think that churches and synagogues are the same?

She must—because she points out that Paul acknowledged that the Jews knew that "in every synagogue I imprisoned and beat those who believe on you" (Acts 22:19). Again, the assumption is that Saul came into this mixture of Jews and Christians and started beating the Christians. So, what did the Jews do? Just watch? Would they not have jumped to their defense if they regarded them as brethren? What makes sense is that Paul found Christians and took them to the synagogues to be punished—with the Jews there backing him up.

The same is true with Acts 26:9-11. Paul took them to the synagogue to be punished. The Christians would have had to be pretty stupid to keep showing up at the synagogues every Sabbath in order to be punished again. The text does not say that they were there of their own free will. Saul found them and brought them there for punishment.

The Book of Acts in no way supports the idea that Christians were worshiping in the synagogues on the Sabbath day. There is no pattern, but if there were, it would still need to be in conjunction with a command, and no such command exists regarding the Sabbath day in the New Testament.

Paul visited synagogues on the Sabbath with a view toward preaching the gospel to the Jews. Frequently, Jews who were visiting were allowed to speak. In Acts 13, no church yet existed; Paul was just bringing the gospel to the Jews first—at the synagogue where he knew they would be gathered together. The church, since it did not yet exist in Antioch of Pisidia, cannot be referred to in verse 14. In Acts 13:42-44, the whole city assembled together to hear Paul on the Sabbath. Why? Were they all Jews? No, but that's when they knew the Jews met. Nothing in Acts 15:21, 17:1-2, or 18:4 indicates the presence of Christians in the synagogues.

Conspicuous By Its Absence

After the Book of Acts, no mention is made of synagogues—except the synagogue of Satan in Revelation 2:9 and 3:9. Neither does the word Sabbath—except for Colossians 2:16, which can be discussed if the need arises. One would think that the Sabbath commandment would be repeated with a force equal to what we find in the Old Testament. No one would need to traipse through the Book of Acts looking for a pattern amongst verses that fail to establish one if she could produce one Scripture with a command for Christians to keep the Sabbath day. But there is none.

Think about it. Not once do Jesus and His apostles warn brethren: "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." The Corinthians met on the first day of the week (1 Cor. 16:2). Is it possible that, with all the other problems they had, they kept the Sabbath perfectly, also? Peter never mentions keeping the Sabbath. Neither do James, Jude, or John. Why not? John closes his first epistle with, "Little children, keep yourselves from idols." Like the fourth commandment, the one against idolatry is just as old, but John only repeats one of them.

Several are repeated in Romans 13:8-10 and James 2:11. Individually, such sins as stealing (Eph. 4:28) and adultery are named (Heb. 13:4). What is the only one of the ten commandments not repeated in the New Testament? That's right—keeping the Sabbath day. Could the reason be that it was a sign between God and the children of Israel instead of God and the Christian?

When God desires an observance, He has never been shy about commanding it. The Passover is described in detail—especially as to when to observe it. God likewise spells out what must be done on the Day of Atonement (Lev. 16). He is remarkably silent about Christians remembering the Sabbath day, however. And He ascribes no penalties for violating it in the New Testament. What should be done to the farmer who plants a crop on the Sabbath? Should he be withdrawn from (and on what basis?)? Or should he be stoned? It will be interesting to see what answers, if any, deal with these practical questions.