I purchased an interesting book yesterday entitled, The Lord’s Day - A Theological Guide to the Christian Day of Worship, written by Paul K. Jewett who was a Professor of Systematic Theology at Fuller Theological Seminary when the book was published in 1971. From what I can gather in the early reading of this book, Jewett writes from a Reformed Theology perspective. He received his training at Wheaton College, Westminster Seminary (Philadelphia) and Harvard University (Ph.D.).
The summary on the back cover is as follows:
In this study the author acquaints the reader with the principal matters which bear upon the subject of the Christian day of worship. Following the order of redemptive history, he begins the discussion with a brief account of the Jewish Sabbath and proceeds to a consideration of the Lord’s Day, making Jesus’ view of the Sabbath a bridge between the two.
The Sabbath was originally given the Israelites by divine revelation through Moses. Perceiving that the Sabbath rest was fulfilled in Christ, early Jewish Christians were indifferent to the continued observance of the seventh day, being fortified in this attitude by Jesus’ own use of the Sabbath. Since this insight was illuminated by the event of the resurrection, early Christian indifference to the seventh day coincides with the observance of the first day in commemoration of the initial fellowship of the disciples with the risen Lord on the evening of Easter.
This investigation leads to a Lord’s Day theology of fulfillment in hope. The study concludes with four principles suggested as minimal guides to the keeping of the Lord’s Day.
What interested me about this book was a section on Seventh-day Adventism. While much of the criticism in former Adventist circles centers on the Sabbath, I was intrigued at the approach a Reformed theologian would take, knowing that he may be more in line with Sunday Sabbatarianism as outlined in the Westminster Confession of Faith. I will reproduce key portions of what Jewett concluded about Adventists below. His conclusions are largely not shared by members of the former Adventist community and indeed, there have been critics within our circles who have claimed that Reformed theology “sets people up” for Adventism and Saturday Sabbatarianism because of its high regard for God’s moral law. The conclusions from Jewett show that nothing could be further from the truth. It does not follow that a high regard for God’s moral law and the Decalogue ends with someone “falling” for Adventism, rather, it ends with the disagreement being over what the Sabbath law pointed to and in Whom this law found its fulfillment. We don’t need to tiptoe around the Decalogue or even abandon all talk of the law as being valuable for the Christian life as many former Adventists have done. We only need to follow the example of Professor Jewett in seeing the battle lines drawn at the person and work of Jesus Christ rather than in a particular commandment.
Here is what Jewett says in his section about Seventh-day Adventists:
Whereas the Reformers were indifferent to the observance of any particular day, there are those in the Christian church who regard the seventh-day Sabbath as perpetually obligatory. This is both the simplest and—as is often the case—the least plausible option, when submitted to the rigors of critical analysis. The seventh-day worshipper puts his finger on the fourth commandment and declares that everyone who worships on the first day is an apostate, though an ignorant and well-meaning one in most cases. To counter this Adventist accusation of apostasy with that of legalism, as is too often done, is to exorcise the Devil by Beelzebub. We cannot say that those who worship on the seventh day are legalists, having no part in the Christian church. A man may or may not be a legalist, whatever day he sets apart for divine worship.
At the obvious level, the problem with the seventh-day position is that it constitutes a truancy from the mainstream of Christian teaching and practice, for which there is no evidence or justification in the sources. The Seventh-Day Baptists and Adventists are telling other Christians that they are wrong in doing what Christians have always done. They are saying that the Christians worshipped on the seventh day and not on the first day; but, as we have seen, there is no convincing evidence that this is so.
At a deeper theological level, theirs is an error at the opposite extreme from that of the Reformers. The Sabbatarian position fails to do justice to the movement of redemptive history. It resolves the question of the day of worship as though the Sabbath rest were wholly a future hope, and does not see the implications of the fulfillment of that hope in Christ, who is our promised rest. It frames a theology of the day of worship as though nothing had happened in redemptive history since God spoke by Moses; it is as though Christ had never come.
Adventists, the primary spokesmen for this position, still cling to the shadow of things to come and do not reckon with the fact that “the body is Christ’s” (Col. 2:17). The thesis that the church should worship on the seventh day, therefore, cannot contribute in an essential way to our effort to frame a theology of the Christian day of worship. We shall simply offer a brief account of the history of seventh-day worship, that the reader may not be wholly uninformed of the heritage of his brethren who revere the seventh-day Sabbath, together with some animadversions on the Adventist approach to Sripture and Christian tradition.
[What follows is a brief history of the early seventh-day Sabbatarians and how their position was embraced by the early Adventists.]
In evaluating this position, we need not conjure up the specter of legalism. As we have said, one can no more infer one is under the law because he worships on the seventh day than that one is under grace because he worships on the first day. The problem is rather the uncritical nature of the arguments for seventh-day worship. Take, for example, the thesis that Daniel 7:25 refers to changing the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday, or Ellen White’s interpretation of the book of Revelation: “...in the last days the sabbath test will be made plain. When this time comes anyone who does not keep the Sabbath will receive the mark of the beast and will be kept from heaven.” (The Great Controversy, p. 449). How can one interact critically with such arguments? One can only accept them without question or leave them, much as he would leave arguments for a flat earth.
...
Not only are Adventist writers seemingly oblivious to scientific information about the age of the earth and the antiquity of man, but the manner in which they handle the testimony of history leads in like manner to a cul-de-sac. Every piece of evidence that Christians have worshipped on Sunday is either explained away or cited as evidence of apostasy. Thus it appears a priori certain that the voice of tradition can only support the Seventh-day Adventist position. Did the Reformers teach the observance of the first day of the week? Yes, of course, say the Adventists. And what a tragedy that they should have “stopped short in their work of reformation! One more tradition of the medieval church should have been rejected—the false sabbath” (cited from Richard B. Lewis, The Protestant Dilemma). “The Reformers failed to forsake this heresy along with transubstantiation, purgatory, Mariolatry, and other errors of Rome” (cited from Lewis). And it really matters not how primary the evidence for Sunday worship may be, in contrast to that for transubstantiation, purgatory, and Mariolatry. The great antiquity of such evidence simply proves to the Adventists that the apostasy of worshipping on the first day is much more ancient than the heresy of transubstantiation, purgatory or Mariolatry.
[What follows is an account from Lewis where he claims “Sunday has always been the day of heathen worship. It has always been dedicated to the sun god..."]
Thus to stigmatize the observance of Sunday by Christians as having its origin in pagan sun worship is perhaps “the most unkindest cut of all,” for it rests upon palpable historical inaccuracies. It is a well-known fact that from a hoary antiquity men have worshipped the sun, but at the commencement of the Christian era there was no particular association of this cult with the first day of the Jewish week. The day was not called “Sunday” when Christians began to worship on it; and the oft-repeated statements that the first Christians worshipped on “Sunday” really means that they worshipped on the day which subsequently came to be called Sunday, when the days of the week were named for the planets. This usage, the so-called Planet Week, is a post-Christian one.
To be sure, when the Planet Week was established, the day on which Christians worshipped was also devoted by pagans to the worship of the sun, particularly in the cult of Mithras, since the god Mithras was originally a Persian light god. Christians were then sometimes supposed themselves to be sun-worshippers by their pagan neighbors, because they worshiped on Sunday. (The apologist Tertullian is the first to mention this case of mistaken identity. -see footnote) But there is no reason why those who are themselves Christians should make the same mistake.
Footnote: W. Rordorf suggests that the Christian observance of Sunday may have influenced the Mithraitic practice. That is to say, the evidence points in the opposite direction of the Adventist claim.
Source: A Theology of the Lord’s Day, pp. 106-114
In summary, there are good historical and theological reasons to disagree with the Adventist claim that Saturday observance is an apostolic Christian practice. To minimize the law in an effort to prevent people from joining Adventism is to make a greater error than the Adventist who places undue weight on a single command. There is no need to be afraid of God’s law. As the Psalmist declares, “The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether” (Psalm 19:7-9). And if we think this quote from the Psalms is merely an Old Testament sentiment, let us pay attention to the apostle Paul, who said, “I delight in the law of God, in my inner being” (Romans 7:22) and “Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law” (Romans 3:31).
Very well stated and summarized. While I have always had some issues with the very strict literal interpretation of the sabbath that adventism has, I have also had issues with those who argued against it because “the law was done away with.” Now, I believe the law was fulfilled at the cross, however that doesnt mean it no longer has any part in the life of a believer. And I think what you shared brings out that balance in a very well stated manner. Also in that vein of reasoning I cant help but think that the fourth commandment, like the others plays some part as well. (thought by no means as strict and literal as Adventism has made it) It is the core concept that I think plays a part, which is mainly the blessing (and neccessity, though not the neccessity for salvation) of devoting time (or a day if your so inclined, though that may not be neccesary ) specifically for God, friends and family out out of our busy lives here on earth. It wasnt until I discerned that core concept, that “spirit of the sabbath” if you will that I actually thought of it as blessing. Prior to that it was nothing but drudgery. As a child, I felt like I couldnt do anything, however during my college years, when I realized so much of the legalistic drudgery was unecessary, the core concept of having a day free from work, devoted exclusively to God and his gifts in my life (AKA my wonderful friends!) seemed very beautiful indeed. That is the only reason why I am still a sabbatarian today. A time to pause and look to God, though by no means the only time it should be done during the week. (another mistake some adventists have fallen into)
Anytime, anywhere I will prefer such an attitude regarding the sabbath over the anti-sabbath attitude exhibited by some former adventists which does not rise above the historic adventist sabbath view and mark of the beast theology. I’m very sad when I say this, because I understand very well the bad spiritual effects the legalistic sabbath keeping has on those who are suffering the spiritual abuse.
Greg
Can you give us more quotes as you will progress in reading the book? It is fascinating.
Having been off line for a few days, it is so refreshing to come home and read the above posts on this thread. How much better to have a balanced view of this topic instead of the typical former SDA knee-jerk anti-Sabbatarianism. Is there any difference to applying a spiritual test to the question of the Sabbath on either side of the issue? I have heard prominent former SDA leaders say that a person cannot really be free in Jesus until one gives up Sabbath keeping. And then, traditional SDAs will apply the test of what day one worships on on a round world, as the final test of salvation. Both views are seriously flawed.
Easter weekend is a perfect time to reflect on this issue. When Christ rose from the dead on that wondrous Easter Sunday morn, a new chapter in redemption history was written.
As a former Jew who converted to Christianity, Alfred Edersheim, who wrote a book on the life of Christ which Ellen White borrowed from extensively wrote something to the effect :
“It is not by any specific Biblical command that we assemble as Christians on Sunday morning, but by a logical conclusion of what the meaning of the resurrection really is.”
J Vernon McGhee said: “Saturday is the day that Christ rested in the tomb. We don’t worship a dead Christ, but we worship the living Christ.”
D. James Kennedy said: “ When Christians get in the car on every Sunday morning to go to church, then we are witnessing to the world that we serve a living Christ who rose from the dead on Sunday morning, and we celebrate this every week.”
There is simply no evidence from either the New Testament or from history that Christians were ever commanded to continue keeping Saturday Sabbath. If this was to be the final test of salvation, then certainly, one of the epistles, or even Christ Himself when dictating the letters to the seven churches would have given some kind of reminder to continue to keep the Sabbath.
But at the same time, I see no evidence for the PCA church which I call home to make Sunday Sabbath binding on Christians. But you don’t see the same legalistic spirit regarding this that I saw in traditional Adventism.
The Resurrection Day (the Lord’s Day) is a weekly Easter. Sadly, there are an assortment of antinomian views in former Adventist circles in recent years. Their treatment of the Old Testament canon is most deplorable. As a former Adventist and former antinomianist, I literally cringe when I read statements against God’s moral laws wherever in Scripture they are found. Truly, without law there is no gospel and no sin. In short, without law, there is no need of a Savior. In my case, various forms of antinomianism were an overreaction to the legalistic abuse I was subjected to in Adventism (i.e., “Spirit-led” and “Christ-centered” antinomianism). At first glance, these ideas seem very appealing. However, upon close scrutiny, we discover that any disregard for God’s revealed will for our lives is not a safe course to follow. Thankfully, God doesn’t leave us in the dark about his divine will for our lives. The Bible, both Old and New Testaments, is God’s voice speaking to us.
Since various former Adventist publications and websites are filled with forms of antinomianism, it is easier than ever before to be misled. Regrettably, antinomianism was a part of my belief transition as well. Getting the gospel right should be our top priority. Furthermore, an antinomian stance needlessly alienates us from our Adventist and non-Adventist friends. After all, what is so terrible or horrifying about honoring your parents or not worshipping a false god? Importantly, the Holy Spirit never leads us contrary to the revealed will of God. The Protestant Reformers guarded their view of the Bible from the errors of mysticism, rationalism, and antinomianism. The Dutch flower (tulip) remains an excellent acrostic for teaching the doctrines of grace (akin to the Irish shamrock for teaching the Trinity doctrine).
J Vernon McGhee said: “Saturday is the day that Christ rested in the tomb. We don’t worship a dead Christ, but we worship the living Christ.”
D. James Kennedy said: “ When Christians get in the car on every Sunday morning to go to church, then we are witnessing to the world that we serve a living Christ who rose from the dead on Sunday morning, and we celebrate this every week.”
Communion accomplishes essentially the same thing.
Rom 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Also, it seems to me that we can personally remember the life, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ by simply remembering our very own baptism into the newness of life. A day can’t do what communion or baptism does.
A hearty welcome to this forum! Increasingly, thanks be to our awesome and sovereign God, honest-hearted Adventists are discovering Jesus as their true Sabbath Rest--many for the very first time. Seventh-day Adventists aren’t even observing a shadow as the apostle Paul affirms in Colossians 2:16, Jesus in Matthew 11:28, and the writer of Hebrews in Hebrews 4:9-10. They’re honoring a literal day, not a shadow but as the reality itself. They have made a creation into a holy icon. Truly, when Jesus died, the Sabbath died.
Larger SDA churches sometimes celebrate Easter on Saturday, the saddest day in redemptive history. Apparently, they don’t want their members to even worship together on the Lord’s day, even once every year, because it may set a scary precedent of worshipping on the weekly Easter or Resurrection Day (eventually and supposedly the “mark of the beast” in SDA circles). Adventists overlook the fact that the Israelites kept Sunday at least once a year. This eighth day celebration pointed forward to Jesus being resurrected on Sunday. Please read the following excellent sermon on this topic by Dr. John MacArthur: http://www.biblebb.com/files/MAC/90-225.htm .
A hearty welcome to this forum! Increasingly, thanks be to our awesome and sovereign God, honest-hearted Adventists are discovereing Jesus as their true Sabbath Rest--many for the very first time. Seventh-day Adventists aren’t even observing a shadow as the apostle Paul affirms in Colossians 2:16, Jesus in Matthew 11:28, and the writer of Hebrews in Hebrews 4:9-10. They’re honoring a literal day, not a shadow but as the reality itself. They have made a creation into a holy icon.
Larger SDA churches sometimes celebrate Easter on Saturday, the saddest day in redemptive history. Apparently, they don’t want their members to even worship together on the Lord’s day, even once every year, because it may set a scary precedent of worshipping on the weekly Easter or Resurrection Day (eventually and supposedly the “mark of the beast” in SDA circles). Adventists overlook the fact that the Israelites kept Sunday at least once a year. This eighth day celebration pointed forward to Jesus being resurrected on Sunday. Please read the following excellent sermon on this topic by Dr. John MacArthur: http://www.biblebb.com/files/MAC/90-225.htm .
Dennis Fischer
One would have to wonder after reading all this if indeed Sunday has not been made “a holy icon.” You do provide some very nice Catholic explanations here for the dismissal of the seventh-day Sabbath.
I have been taught by my Adventist friends that we can and should worship on both Sunday and Saturday, so I guess that blows a small hole in your rant here. And, incidentally, the Bible honors “a literal day,” so why should not Christians do the same?
Remember, it was our sovereign God (not some unidentified Catholic pope) who predestined the resurrection of our Lord to occur precisely on Sunday. The Christian Church was born on Sunday--Pentecost. Again, this was not mere happenstance. After the Jerusalem Council, circumcision was no longer a requirement for Christ-followers. In Judaism, one was required to be circumcised to become a Sabbath keeper. Without the requirement of circumcision (the entrance sign of the Mosaic Covenant), the Sabbath issue became mute and nonexistent.
It was considered sacrilegious and a serious offense for an uncircumcised male to keep the Sabbath. Even today, some Jews still view Gentile sabbatarians as an affront to their belief system. The weekly Sabbath was an exclusive covenant between God and the Hebrew people. This is why the weekly Sabbath is never mandated in the New Testament. When Jesus died, the Sabbath died. If we still insist upon observing any shadow pointing to the Cross, we are actually denying the reality of Christ. Indeed, Jesus is our true Sabbath Rest.
A hearty welcome to this forum! Increasingly, thanks be to our awesome and sovereign God, honest-hearted Adventists are discovering Jesus as their true Sabbath Rest--many for the very first time. Seventh-day Adventists aren’t even observing a shadow as the apostle Paul affirms in Colossians 2:16, Jesus in Matthew 11:28, and the writer of Hebrews in Hebrews 4:9-10. They’re honoring a literal day, not a shadow but as the reality itself. They have made a creation into a holy icon. Truly, when Jesus died, the Sabbath died.
Hi Dennis, thanks for that warm welcome but I think you may have misunderstood my post.
Larger SDA churches sometimes celebrate Easter on Saturday, the saddest day in redemptive history.
Yes, it is indeed a shame that many SDA churches now tacidly accept and celebrate the pagan day of Ishtar. Me? I’m decidedly a passover rememberer.
Apparently, they don’t want their members to even worship together on the Lord’s day, even once every year, because it may set a scary precedent of worshipping on the weekly Easter or Resurrection Day (eventually and supposedly the “mark of the beast” in SDA circles).
Well, I actually see no difference in marking a pagan festival on Saturday or Sunday. Knowing that Easter is vernal and not lunar should be enough to convince serious Adventist’s that marking Easter and Christmas has nothing to do with Christ.
Adventists overlook the fact that the Israelites kept Sunday at least once a year. This eighth day celebration pointed forward to Jesus being resurrected on Sunday. Please read the following excellent sermon on this topic by Dr. John MacArthur: http://www.biblebb.com/files/MAC/90-225.htm .
The idea that Pentecost was always on Sunday is actually incorrect.
The Hebrew people also kept Sunday holy whenever a ritual day fell on the eighth day or Sunday. So, some years they kept Sunday more than once. How scary!
Jews also kept Sunday holy whenever the annual Day of Atonement fell on the eighth day or Sunday. So, some years they kept Sunday more than once.
Dennis Fischer
But how often was that? Once every cycle of years? Dennis, you are trying to equate an occasional feast that feel on Sunday by happenstance to a constant recognition of a day that God never hallowed or blessed. I see a huge difference, don’t you?
My point is that the Jews really did keep certain Sundays faithfully. Adventists can’t even bring themselves to celebrate Easter on Sunday (the right day). They are compelled to do it on Saturday if at all. No SDA Conference president would even think to allow his pastors to have their entire church families to celebrate the greatest event in redemptive history on the Lord’s day. Instead, they seek to maintain their so-called “separating wall” with Christ-followers. If the SDA Church allowed their members to worship together on Sunday even once per year, some would rightly wonder, “Why not do this every week as the weekly Easter?”
Importantly, God didn’t predetermine or predestine the Resurrection Day to occur on the Jewish Sabbath. Thus, Christians begin every week in honoring our risen Lord. There are no holy days in the Christian calendar. Christ-followers do not intently gaze upon the lengthening shadows of the sun for two days out of every week, but instead maintain their gaze upon God the Son. Yet many Adventists have accused Christians of being “sun worshippers” while they themselves spend two days a week gazing intently upon the sun. So, who are the real “sun worshippers”?
My point is that the Jews really did keep certain Sundays faithfully.
But not because it was Sunday! It was because a special holiday or festival fell on Sunday. Thus it can’t be said they were keeping “Sundays faithfully” but the statutes of God faithfully.
Adventists can’t even bring themselves to celebrate Easter on Sunday (the right day).
Well, truth be told, just like your birthday doesn’t always fall on the same day each year the anniversary of Christs resurrection from the tomb doesn’t always fall on the same day. Passover always falls on the date the14th of Nisan, but that day can vary. Thus the date the 16th of Nisan - the date Christ rose from the dead can also vary.
So when the pagan world gets together a particular year, like 2009, to worship the rising of the sun the real anniversary of the 16th of Nisan is much different. Passover this year was on Wedenesday, April 8th (Nisan 14). Hence the true anniversary of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ would have been on Saturday, April 11th. If we mark the days the way the Israelites did we will see that at sundown on Wednesday April 8th Passover started. At sundown on Thursday would have been the 15th. At sundown on Friday (start of the sabbath) the 16th of Nisan began. Thus, Saturday (the sabbath day) morning would have been the day when the women went to the tomb to discover Jesus wasn’t there.
They are compelled to do it on Saturday if at all.
Right, they do. I’ve don’t attend church that day frankly.
No SDA Conference president would even think to allow his pastors to have their entire church families to celebrate the greatest event in redemptive history on the Lord’s day.
Instead, they seek to maintain their so-called “separating wall” with Christ-followers. If the SDA Church allowed their members to worship together on Sunday even once per year, some would rightly wonder, “Why not do this every week as the weekly Easter?”
I think the deeper problem comes from the insistence that “Easter” is at all even remotely related to the resurrection of Jesus. It is a know fact that Easter is a pagan invention that was systematically introduced into Christendom by the Roman church. It has as much to do the the Bible as Cisco does in a Top Fuel dragster.
Importantly, God didn’t predetermine or predestine the Resurrection Day to occur on the Jewish Sabbath.
And yet, when one understands how the Israelites counted their days; based on the moon and not on the sun one can easily determine that indeed the 16th of Nisan does indeed fall on “the Lord’s sabbath day” on occasion.
Thus, Christians begin every week in honoring our risen Lord.
As they should each and every day.
There are no holy days in the Christian calendar.
Sure there are! Easter, Christmas, Sunday.
Christ-followers do not intently gaze upon the lengthening shadows of the sun for two days out of every week, but instead maintain their gaze upon God the Son.
How do they do this? By ignoring God’s commandments?
“...It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. “ If I’m correct God first “spoke” His Ten commandments.
Yet many Adventists have accused Christians of being “sun worshippers” while they themselves spend two days a week gazing intently upon the sun. So, who are the real “sun worshippers”?
Personally, I don’t “worship” the sun on the sabbath, I’m too busy in the prisons for that. By the way, where do you get “two days” from? The sabbath is only one day. Now I would say that the real “sun worshipers” are those that completely ignore the mandate of the written word of God in favor of the “traditions” of men.
“The Catholic Church, ... by virtue of her divine mission, changed the day from Saturday to Sunday… Reason and sense demand the acceptance of one or the other of these alternatives: either Protestantism and the keeping holy of Saturday, or Catholicity and the keeping holy of Sunday. Compromise is impossible.”
(Catholic Cardinal James Gibbons, The Catholic Mirror, Dec. 23, 1893.)
“You may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never sanctify.”
(Catholic Cardinal James Gibbons, The Faith of Our Fathers, 1917 ed., pp. 72, 73.)
“If protestants were following the Bible, they would worship God on the Sabbath Day. In keeping the Sunday they are following a law of the Catholic Church.”
(Albert Smith, Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, letter of Feb. 10, 1920.)
“The Church changed the observance of the Sabbath to Sunday by right of the divine, infallible authority given to her by her Founder, Jesus Christ. The Protestant, claiming the Bible to be the only guide of faith, has no warrant for observing Sunday. In this matter the Seventh Day Adventist is the only consistent Protestant.”
(The Catholic Universe Bulletin, Aug. 14, 1942, p. 4.)
“Since Saturday, not Sunday, is specified in the Bible, isn’t it curious that non-Catholics who profess to take their religion directly from the Bible and not from the Church, observe Sunday instead of Saturday? Yes, of course, it is inconsistent. The custom of Sunday observance rests upon the authority of the Catholic Church and not upon an explicit text in the Bible. That observance remains as a reminder of the Mother Church from which the non-Catholic sects broke away - like a boy running away from home but still carrying in his pocket a picture of his mother or a lock of her hair.”
(Roman Catholic scholar John A. O’Brien, The Faith of Millions, 1974, p.400,401.)
“We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday.”
(Peter Geiermann, The Convert’s Catechism of Catholic Doctrine, 1977, p.50.)
Sabbatarians gaze intently upon the sun two days out of every week; namely, Friday and Saturday. The SDA Church even publishes sunset calendars for both days. It is important to note that sunset calendars are not salvific. We truly deny the reality of Christ by still observing any of the old covenant shadows pointing to the Cross. By the way, it is absolutely impossible to observe the weekly Sabbath in some regions of world (i.e., northern Norway, Alaska, etc.). Of course, the SDA Church provides no sunset calendars for their members in those regions. This reveals that the Jewish Sabbath was never meant to be observed globally. Moreover, how does an astronaut observe the Sabbath in orbit? May we realize anew that we are now under the new covenant. When Jesus died, the Sabbath died.
While many in Christendom may disagree with me, I do not subscribe to the notion that the Christian calendar has any holy days. While the Lord’s day is a very special day for Christ-followers, it is not a holy day in the sense that the Jewish Sabbath was. Interestingly, I have never met an Adventist or other sabbatarian who actually disagreed with me that the extra sacrificing requirements of Sabbath law pointed to Jesus, the Lamb of God, and the loaves of Sabbath shewbread (anointed in the middle with oil in the form of a cross) pointed to Jesus, the Bread of Life. Thus, it is undeniable that the fourth commandment of the Decalogue is ceremonial in nature. This is why the weekly Sabbath is listed as one of the seven festal convocations given to the “sons of Israel” in Leviticus 23. All ceremonial or ritual laws permanently ceased at the Christ Event (including all holy days, tithing codes, and food laws). For the sake of accuracy, the observance of the weekly Sabbath from “sunset to sunset” applied initially to the annual Day of Atonement in Leviticus 23:32.
Alfred Edersheim, a highly-respected authority on Judaism, stated that in the Temple of Herod (the second temple) “there was neither Shechinah nor ark--all was empty; and the high priest rested his censer on a large stone, called the’foundation stone’"instead. The ark of the covenant disappeared during the Babylonian captiviity, and it has never been seen since that time. By the way, Alfred Edersheim is a credible authority in SDA circles as Ellen White and her bookmakers even plagiarized some his writings. In Judaism, the week was divided into seven days, of which, however, only the seventh--the Sabbath--had a name assigned to it, the rest being merely noted by numerals. With additional days in the week, under Babylonian captivity, it made Sabbath keeping even more confusing and difficult.
So, the Hebrew captives adopted the division of the day into twelve hours, whose duration varied with the length of the day. The longest day consisted of fourteen hours and twelve minutes; the shortest, of nine hours forty-eight minutes; the difference between the two was more than four hours. Later the Romans reckoned the hours from midnight, a fact which explains the apparent discrepancy between John 19:14, where, at the sixth hour (of Roman calculation), Pilate brings Jesus out to the Jews, while at the third hour of the Jewish, and hence the ninth of the Roman and of our calculation (Mark 15:25), He was led forth to be crucified. The night was divided by the Romans into four, by the Jews into three watches.
) specifically for God, friends and family out out of our busy lives here on earth. It wasnt until I discerned that core concept, that “spirit of the sabbath” if you will that I actually thought of it as blessing. Prior to that it was nothing but drudgery. As a child, I felt like I couldnt do anything, however during my college years, when I realized so much of the legalistic drudgery was unecessary, the core concept of having a day free from work, devoted exclusively to God and his gifts in my life (AKA my wonderful friends!) seemed very beautiful indeed. That is the only reason why I am still a sabbatarian today. A time to pause and look to God, though by no means the only time it should be done during the week. (another mistake some adventists have fallen into)
