reddogs
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Many say that it is held as the day of worship since Jesus rose on the first day, or because the Holy Spirit was given to the early church on the Day of Pentecost, or that Paul broke bread and ate on the first day at Troas, or had offering brought to him on the first day to take to those suffering in Jerusalem. But history and logic verify that none of the arguments are valid. Nowhere it the Bible does it declare Sunday sacredness, or is the day of worship changed by Christ or the Apostles.
Many Christians believe and teach that Sunday is the "Christian sabbath" or that a change was made by God to the Sunday observance, but scripture says nothing on this. Now lets look at how the belief was held by the Reformers as they knew Sunday sacredness was not scriptural.....
The Reformers held that Sunday observance was not juris divini (of divine law), but only quasi juris divini (of semidivine law); yet they objected to the Catholic claim that they had the power to the change, and it was appointed by the authority of the Roman Catholic church (Augsburg Confession of 1536, part 2, art. 7, "Of Ecclesiastical Power"). However the Reformers of the sixteenth century followed the Catholic practice of Sunday observance, and we find the Puritan Westminster Confession of 1647 decreed Sunday as the "Christian Sabbath" (ch. 21; now 23; see SB, No. 1602) and many kept the "Christian Sabbath" (Sunday) with extreme strictness, enforce in some cases by decrees or blue laws.
Christ confirmed that as Creator He made the Sabbath for man, and He kept the Sabbath:
Mark 2:27-28 King James Version (KJV)
"27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:
28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath."
Christ observed the Sabbath and He set an example for us to follow:
Luke 4:16 King James Version (KJV)
"16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read."
Jesus followed the "custom" of going to the synagogue each Sabbath, and nowhere does scripture have anything contesting this. The practice of observing the first day of the week as Sabbath has no sanction either in Christ or in the New Testament.
Luke 4:17 King James Version (KJV)
"17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,"
The Sabbath was not only for going to church in order to worship but also to hear God’s Word. Christ also did even more:
Luke 4:31-41 King James Version (KJV)
31 And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days.
32 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.
33 And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice,
34 Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God.
35 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not.
36 And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word is this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.
37 And the fame of him went out into every place of the country round about.
38 And he arose out of the synagogue, and entered into Simon's house. And Simon's wife's mother was taken with a great fever; and they besought him for her.
39 And he stood over her, and rebuked the fever; and it left her: and immediately she arose and ministered unto them.
40 Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.
41 And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God. And he rebuking them suffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was Christ."
On the Sabbath day we find Christ in His mission to teach, to relieve the oppressed, to heal every kind of disease, and to restore those who are brokenhearted and without hope. We also find something else Christ handled on this Sabbath day, a demon-possessed man confronted Jesus with what amounted to a confession: " ‘Let us alone! . . . You, Jesus of Nazareth. . . . I know who You are—the Holy One of God!’ and later others cried out, "Thou art Christ the Son of God." He argue or engage, but He rebuked the evil angels just as He rebuked the Devil himself.
Matthew 4:1-11 King James Version (KJV)
1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
Many Christians believe and teach that Sunday is the "Christian sabbath" or that a change was made by God to the Sunday observance, but scripture says nothing on this. Now lets look at how the belief was held by the Reformers as they knew Sunday sacredness was not scriptural.....
The Reformers held that Sunday observance was not juris divini (of divine law), but only quasi juris divini (of semidivine law); yet they objected to the Catholic claim that they had the power to the change, and it was appointed by the authority of the Roman Catholic church (Augsburg Confession of 1536, part 2, art. 7, "Of Ecclesiastical Power"). However the Reformers of the sixteenth century followed the Catholic practice of Sunday observance, and we find the Puritan Westminster Confession of 1647 decreed Sunday as the "Christian Sabbath" (ch. 21; now 23; see SB, No. 1602) and many kept the "Christian Sabbath" (Sunday) with extreme strictness, enforce in some cases by decrees or blue laws.
Christ confirmed that as Creator He made the Sabbath for man, and He kept the Sabbath:
Mark 2:27-28 King James Version (KJV)
"27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:
28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath."
Christ observed the Sabbath and He set an example for us to follow:
Luke 4:16 King James Version (KJV)
"16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read."
Jesus followed the "custom" of going to the synagogue each Sabbath, and nowhere does scripture have anything contesting this. The practice of observing the first day of the week as Sabbath has no sanction either in Christ or in the New Testament.
Luke 4:17 King James Version (KJV)
"17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,"
The Sabbath was not only for going to church in order to worship but also to hear God’s Word. Christ also did even more:
Luke 4:31-41 King James Version (KJV)
31 And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days.
32 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.
33 And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice,
34 Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God.
35 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not.
36 And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word is this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.
37 And the fame of him went out into every place of the country round about.
38 And he arose out of the synagogue, and entered into Simon's house. And Simon's wife's mother was taken with a great fever; and they besought him for her.
39 And he stood over her, and rebuked the fever; and it left her: and immediately she arose and ministered unto them.
40 Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.
41 And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God. And he rebuking them suffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was Christ."
On the Sabbath day we find Christ in His mission to teach, to relieve the oppressed, to heal every kind of disease, and to restore those who are brokenhearted and without hope. We also find something else Christ handled on this Sabbath day, a demon-possessed man confronted Jesus with what amounted to a confession: " ‘Let us alone! . . . You, Jesus of Nazareth. . . . I know who You are—the Holy One of God!’ and later others cried out, "Thou art Christ the Son of God." He argue or engage, but He rebuked the evil angels just as He rebuked the Devil himself.
Matthew 4:1-11 King James Version (KJV)
1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
