IntroductionThe doctrine
of sabbatarianism comes in two forms: Christian and cultic. In its
Christian form, sabbatarianism teaches that the Sabbath was changed
from Saturday to Sunday. Thus the "Christian Sabbath" is on Sunday and
not on Saturday. This was the position of the Puritans and the
Pilgrims. They legislated various civil laws called "blue laws," which
forced everyone to observe Sunday as a day of rest. It was illegal to
conduct business on Sunday.
The Puritan view of the Sabbath was a radical
departure from the theology of the European Reformers such as Calvin
who believed that the Sabbath and all other Jewish ceremonial laws
were fulfilled by Christ and were thus no longer in force.
In its cultic form, sabbatarianism claims that
Saturday is the true Sabbath and that it is the only valid day of
worship for Christians as well as for Jews. They do not believe that
the Sabbath was changed by God from Saturday to Sunday.
Such cults as the World Wide Church of God, the
Seventh Day Adventist Church, etc., claim that it was the Roman
Catholic Church who changed the day from Saturday to Sunday. Some
early Adventist writers went so far as to claim that anyone who went
to church on Sunday had the mark of the beast on his forehead and
would be destroyed on the Judgment Day.
While the Christian and cultic forms of
sabbatarianism disagree on which day the Sabbath should be observed,
they use the exact same arguments to prove that we should keep a
Sabbath. Thus it does not really matter if we are dealing with
followers of the Puritans or the Adventists, they will both argue that
the Sabbath is a creation ordinance, a moral law, etc. A refutation of
the basic arguments which underlie all forms of sabbatarianism is the
focus of this study.
The following treatment of the subject reveals that
both views are erroneous. The Sabbath was swept away along with all
the other ceremonial laws when the veil of the temple was ripped from
top to bottom. We can no more keep the Sabbath today than offer animal
sacrifices. Christ has come and all things are new.
Part I—The Sabbatarian Position Outlined
The utmost care has been taken to research Christian
Sabbatarianism in order to give it a fair and positive presentation.
The classic literature, such as the works of John Owen, have been
carefully examined. The modern expositions of sabbatarianism such as
John Murray were consulted. The following presentation of Christian
sabbatarianism, therefore, is not a straw man. It is a factual
exposition of the doctrine and the arguments given to support it.
The cultic writings of Ellen G. White, Herbert
Armstrong, etc., have been carefully researched to document their
arguments for sabbatarianism as well.
Sabbatarianism Stated
God instituted a seven-day week for all mankind and
his domesticated animals. This was instituted at Creation and is to be
observed in all ages by all men until the end of the world. A week
composed of less or more than seven days is sinful and in violation of
the will of the Creator.
In this seven-day week, man is to sanctify or set
apart one day out of seven. This sanctification of one-seventh of his
time is to be composed of:
1. Physical cessation from all labor, except
works of necessity, charity, or mercy.
2. Wholly giving oneself to the worship of God
through the use of the public and private means of grace.
3. Abstaining from all activities which center
in self-pleasure or recreation that tend to distract the mind from
spiritual worship and contemplation. This includes sexual pleasure
for married couples.
According to cultic sabbatarianism, the seventh day,
i.e. Saturday, is the only day that God ever sanctified and appointed
as a day of rest for all mankind. Sunday is a pagan day of worship and
is not to be viewed as a Sabbath.
According to Christian Sabbatarianism, the Sabbath
was appointed by God to be observed on the seventh day from Adam to
Christ. But God Himself has now changed the Sabbath to the first day
of the week, i.e., Sunday, from Christ’s resurrection to the end of
the world. The Lord’s Day is now the Christian’s Sabbath.
The Sabbatarian Arguments Set Forth
1. God commanded Adam and Eve to keep one day out of
seven as a Sabbath rest. This means that Sabbath-keeping is a
"creation ordinance." As a creation ordinance, it is binding on the
entire human race throughout all generations. The Sabbath creation
ordinance consists of three parts:
a. God instituted a seven-day week for man and
his domesticated animals.
b. God commanded man to keep one day out of
seven as a Sabbath.
c. God instilled into the very being of man and
his animals a physical, psychological, spiritual and social need to
observe a one day out of seven biological cycle within man and his
animals. Thus the seventh day was observed as the Sabbath by man at
creation.
2. In the Ten Commandments, God commanded Israel to
keep one day out of seven as a Sabbath rest. Since the Sabbath command
is in the Decalogue, it must be a "moral law." As such, it is binding
on all mankind until the end of the world.
While the cultic Sabbatarian would restrict the
fourth Commandment to the seventh day, the Christian Sabbatarian would
state that the seventh day is not part of the moral law, but is a
positive or ceremonial law. The day can be changed without breaking
the fourth Commandment.
3. The Fourth Commandment begins with the word,
"Remember." This proves that Moses was calling upon the Jews to
remember what they already knew of and practiced, namely, the Sabbath.
Moses was not introducing something new, but, rather, he was reminding
them of the Sabbath-keeping which had been practiced since man was
created.
4. Christ said, "The Sabbath was made for man" (Mark
2:27). This means that the Sabbath is a moral law because it was made
for man, i.e., mankind as a whole. The Greek word means all of
humanity.
5. Hebrews 4:9 states that the Christian is still to
observe a Sabbath day of rest.
6. The Sabbath was practiced before the Fourth
Commandment was given (Exodus 16). Therefore it was observed since the
Creation itself.
7. In Matthew 24:20, Christ prophesied that
Christians would be observing the Sabbath even at the end of the
world.
8. The silence of the New Testament as to the
Christian’s obligation to keep the Sabbath proves that they were all
keeping it.
a. Since it had been commanded in the Old Testament,
and it is nowhere abrogated in the New Testament, it is still in
effect.
b. The early church was Jewish and kept it
automatically.
c. There were "pastoral reasons" for the silence.
The next article will begin "An
Examination Of The Sabbatarian Arguments".
