Bible Question:
This is very confusing to me and some who are seeking the truth. I started to read the bible more intensely, but cannot see where we must worship on any special day; but I do see He said to REST on the seventh day. Can you shed any light on this for me?
Bible Answer:
In the Old Testament, God told the Israelites to worship God on the Sabbath or the seventh day of the week – Saturday. We can find this command in Exodus,
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day and made it holy. (NASB) Exodus 20:8-11
God told them that they were to worship on the Sabbath day and not to work on that day. Ezekiel tells us that the Jews did in fact worship on the Sabbath day (Ezek. 46:3). When we come to the New Testament, we discover that there is no specific command to keep the Sabbath or any other day as a day of worship or day of rest. You might be interested in a previous question and answer that provides more information. The title is “Why do we not keep the Sabbath?”
When to Worship
Even though God does not ask us to worship Him on one unique day, He does command us to meet together with other Christians on a regular basis.
. . . and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near. (NASB) Hebrews 10:24-25
Acts 20:7 and 1 Cor. 16:2 reveal that the early church met together on the first day of the week. Most likely they met on the first day of the week because Jesus returned to life on the first day of the week. This was the pattern of the early church.
Shall We Rest?
The Old Testament command to rest on the Sabbath day is not repeated in the New Testament either. Therefore, since scripture does not command us to rest on a given day, we should not be guilty of adopting rules that God has not imposed. The Pharisees imposed new rules and laws on the Jews in order to prevent them from violating God’s principles. As a result, they established laws and rules that God never wanted them to impose on the people. Jesus rebuked them for the practice later.
Conclusion:
How shall we live? The Lord God desires that you and I would desire to worship Him. So most Christians follow the example of the early church. For centuries Christians decided to not work on Sunday and gave their time to the study of God’s Word, others, and rest. It is important to remember that while we want to avoid being like the Pharisees and laying down a non-biblical rule to follow, God does want us to gather together with other Christians. The only question is when shall we do that? We trust that this is helpful. May the Lord bless you.
Suggested Links:
Do we have to keep the ten commandments given in the Old Testament?Rejection In Nazareth
Should we worship on Sunday or the Sabbath?