by Sally Thornton

Created on: September 28, 2008   Last Updated: November 13, 2008

Simply looking at the calender hanging on the wall will tell you Sunday is the first day of the week and Saturday is the seventh day. If that is not enough research says the weekly Sabbath of the Jews, the seventh day of their calendar week is from sunset on Friday until sunset on Saturday.

Many professed Christians have traditionally kept Sunday as their day of rest and of worship; others have stayed with the day set aside on the Jewish calender. Are Christians under obligation to keep a weekly sabbath day? According to God's word, the Holy Bible, we are presented with a different view point, than the majority of the population has. Turning to the Bible book of Romans; the 10th. chapter verse 4, keeping the Sabbath was a part of the Law given to Moses on the tablets of stone.The bible book of Romans says Christ is the end of the Law. God used Christ to bring that Law to its end.

How did Sunday come to be the principal day of worship for most Christians? Although Christ was resurrected on the first day of the week (now called Sunday), the Bible contains no instruction to set aside that day of the week as sacred. Information taken from Lectures on the History of the Eastern Church says,"the retention of the old Pagan name of 'Dies Solis,' or 'Sunday,' for the weekly Christian festival, is, in great measure, owing to the union of Pagan and [ so-called ] Christian sentiment with which the first day of the week was recommended by Constantine [in an edict in 321 C.E.] to his subjects, Pagan and Christian alike, as the 'venerable day of the Sun.' ...It was his mode of harmonizing the discordant religions of the Empire under one common institution.

Whether the Sabbath day is on Saturday or Sunday; we should hold each day as we do ever other day. Every day is Gods Day. The Hebrew word translated "day" has more meanings than one, of which one is, 'a long time' therefore, the Sabbath Day could have been thousands of years in length. The scriptures says Gods creative days was six days and on the seventh day He rested. Our Saturdays and Sundays are twenty-four hours in length. This leaves us with more questions than answers.

In the afore mentioned statement that Christ brought an end to the Law, of which The Sabbath was one of those Laws, The Bible gives further information. Romans 7:6 brings out that Christians are discharged from the Law. It is true, in the beginning, the commandment was to set aside the seventh day as a rest day and was punishable by death, if violated. The day was a joyful and restful day, however the Babylonians began to add burdensome restrictions which made the Law harder to abide by. The main purpose of The Law was being set aside for their own purposes. Jesus knew it was lawful to do fine things on The Sabbath, but He went according to Gods direction, to bring the Law as it was known then, to an end.

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