God’s Commandment the Sabbath day

God’s Word is Holy, keep them as it is

The Sabbath day is a commandment of God.

Those who love God, also love His commandments (John 14:15).

Many Christians go to church and worship God on Sunday. Some go on Saturday and other Christians believe they can worship God on any day. For thousands of years they have been doing this, but what did God command us to do? What is in the Bible? As Christians who love God, how and when should we worship God?

Revelation 22:18-19 “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to them the plagues described in this book And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this book.”

The Bible is God’s holy word. Therefore it warns us not to add our own thoughts to God’s word or take away from the word of God. Despite these warnings many Christians have different theories of what God wants. However, when we study the bible correctly we can know when to worship God.

God Commanded the Sabbath Day

The Bible specifies that we must come to worship God on a Saturday, the biblical Sabbath.

Genesis 2:1-2 “Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.”

The worship day originates from the creation. According to Genesis, God worked for six days, and rested on the seventh day. God then blessed the seventh day and made it holy.

The fourth commandment of the ten commandments states:

“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.”

What day is the Sabbath?

God established the Sabbath day to be on the seventh day of the week.

God placed in the 10 commandments the fact that we should remember the seventh day and keep it holy. He separated it from the rest of the week. Christians today know the importance of following the ten commandments, then why are there so many different opinions of when the worship day is?

Firstly, what day is the Sabbath day?

When we look at the calendar the first day of the week is Sunday and the last day of the week is Saturday.

When we look in the dictionary the seventh day is Saturday and the first day of the week is Sunday.

According to Dictionary & Bible

Definition of Saturday

1. :the seventh day of the week (www.merriam-webster.com)

Definition of Sunday

1. :the first day of the week (www.merriam-webster.com)

Therefore, the seventh day that God blessed and made holy is Saturday. We can confirm this through the Bible.

Mark 16:1-2, 9 “When the Sabbath was over… When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week.”

Mark 16:9 (GNT) “After Jesus rose from death early on Sunday, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene…”

Jesus rose on the first day of the week when the Sabbath had finished. Many Christians around the world believe He rose on a Sunday, and the Bible confirms this. The Bible also states that Sunday is the first day of the week making the seventh day, Saturday (The Sabbath day).

Exodus 31:13 “You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the LORD, who makes you holy.”

Then how important is it to keep the correct day of worship? As God blessed the seventh day, we must know the seventh day correctly so that we may receive the blessings God gave only on the seventh day/ the Sabbath day.

Jesus kept the Sabbath as did His apostles

John 13:15 “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you”

When Jesus came 2000 years ago, everything he did, was an example for us to follow. Jesus Christ was truly righteous, therefore He did not need the blessings of the Sabbath. However, Jesus kept the Sabbath regularly to show us that we should follow in his footsteps.

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.”

The disciples who followed Jesus’ example also kept the Sabbath day as their custom. Even Apostle Paul, who became a Christian many years after Jesus had been crucified, also kept the Sabbath and taught the early church saints to keep it as well.

Acts 17:2 “As was his custom, Paul went into the Synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures…”

Apostle Paul, a great preacher of Christianity, preached fervently though severely persecuted, even to the point of death. He too kept the Sabbath.

Sabbath was changed to Sunday

The Bible states very clearly  that the Sabbath day, the day we must worship God, is Saturday which is the seventh day of the week. Then why are there so many differing opinions between Christians and Bible theorists of when the worship day is?

This is because in 321AD the Christian Sabbath day was changed. After Jesus ascended, the Church began to grow exponentially. Christianity even spread throughout the Roman Empire including Rome itself. However, over the years the church became secularised and began to adopt pagan customs and teachings. In 321AD the Roman Emperor Constantine, a pagan High Priest, established the law that all people must worship on Sunday and made it illegal to worship on Saturday.

The History of Christianity, Time Dowley – Lion Pub. – 1990 “When in 321 Constantine made the first day of the week a holiday, he called it, ‘the venerable day of the Sun’ (Sunday)”.

From then on, the tradition of worshipping God on Sunday began, although it was against God’s teachings.

The World Mission Society Church of God, however, bases its teachings solely on the Bible and keeps the original day of worship, Sabbath day on Saturday.