I recently had to write a paper on whether or not Sabbath observance is binding for new covenant believers today. I want to share two quotes with you that I found to be useful in forming my persuasion:
The first is by Andrew Shead from an article on “Sabbath” in the New Dictionary of Biblical Theology:
We have said nothing about the Christian Sunday since we are convinced that there is no theological connection between Sabbath and Sunday, despite occasional attempts to prove the contrary (e.g. R. T. Beckwith and W. Stott, This Is the Day). There are hints in the NT that the first day of the week was set aside for evening worship, including the Lord’s Supper (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2); Revelation 1:10 refers to “the Lord’s Day”. There is, however, absolutely no indication either that the “first day” replaced the “Sabbath day” in practice (the first Jewish [750] Christians continued to attend the synagogue on the Sabbath), or that there was a transfer of Sabbath theology to Sunday worship. The Sabbath was a day of rest rather than a day of worship, and Sunday became a day of worship but was not initially a day of rest. Regularity, for which the seven-day week provided a ready-made framework, distinguishes (Sunday) worship (e.g. Heb. 10:25); completion, which was (and is) a final goal, distinguishes the Seventh Day. The Sabbath day, then, was a sign of this eschatological rest, whereas Sunday is not presented in the NT as a sign of anything, despite its connection to the resurrection. It is simply a well-chosen day upon which to gather to encourage one another in daily, unceasing striving to enter the Sabbath rest (Heb. 4:11). The only gathering which can truly be described as sabbatical is the gathering of the bond-servants who will reign with the Lamb for ever in the new creation (Rev. 22:3–6). (pgs. 749-750)
The second is from A.T. Lincoln, who wrote a chapter in From Sabbath to Lord’s Day called “From Sabbath to Lord’s Day: a Biblical and Theological Perspective”:
God’s concern for the whole person and for all His creatures being able to have regular rest from their work surely instructs us that although the literal Sabbath day of rest has been abrogated and has not been transferred to Sunday, we should share this concern for regular periods of rest both for ourselves and for others in our society. From this perspective this essay is not advocating that Christians should not rest on Sunday. Rather its position suggests that they should take regular rest, that this rest can be any day or extended part of a day, including Sunday, but that there is no biblical or compelling theological reason why it has to be Sunday. (pg. 404)


2 comments
Comments feed for this article
March 25, 2009 at 3:48 pm
Damon
I remember hearing Marc Driscol say in a sermon something to the extent: Take a sabbath or one will be taken for you (in the form of the kind of physical/mental breakdown that forces you to rest). I want to be the guy who takes a sabbath. I’m usually the guy who has one taken for him…
November 6, 2009 at 11:03 pm
TG
Hi,
Coming across your site just now, I wanted to offer a few comments. If we look in Exodus 20, it is very obvious that God set aside The 7th day (not A seventh day) for rest. Further, in Leviticus 23, He declares the sabbath day to be a Holy convocation. Since the LORD Himself created the 7th day sabbath and made it Holy, no man or organization on this earth can change it. I promise you, the 7th day Sabbath of the Lord is absolutely binding upon all Christians, as are all the Ten Commandments – the law has NOT been done away with, which is a lie espoused by our churches today. Having spent an enormous amount of time studying and praying over this subject, it is the only conclusion that could be reached. The link between Sunday and the Lord’s Day, assumed by almost all Christians, is based upon a well-planned deception by the enemy. By neglecting the true Sabbath of God, mainstream Christianity has become dysfunctional and corrupted – sorry, but this is true.
I urge you to prayerfully study the Bible to determine what the true facts of the matter are, for I guarantee that Sabbath observance will not be optional when our Lord returns. There are many sites on the Internet proclaiming the true Sabbath, a number of which I have posted on our web site. If you visit us at http://www.learnthebible.ca or http://learnthebibleca.wordpress.com, you will find some very easy to understand articles and studies on the true Christian Sabbath. I wish you well on your spiritual journey.
In Christ,
LearnTheBible.ca
Have a great Sabbath!!