Should Christians keep the sabbath?

It's something I've never wondered about until recently. I heard a sermon on the radio by a man who was saying that we have been freed from the sabbath by Jesus. In all of the gospels, he quotes the other 9 commandments, but never remember the sabbath and keep it holy. The preacher was saying that the sabbath was a shadow of what was to come, the Christ, and was very compelling.

Now I am in the process of reading an article in the Christian Research Journal about keeping the sabbath, and if we should. I'm not finished, and it hasn't presented any arguements yet, but I figured I'd ask the believers here what they thought before I may become biased the other way. When I'm done with the article, I'll post where it came from, and if it disagreed with keeping it or not. But until then, I'd be interested to hear what y'all have to say.

Edit: I changed honor to keep in the subject, because I wasn't sure if I spelled it right

[Edited on 12-12-2003 by junglejake]

the real question is, did christ himself keep the sabbath?

Originally posted by forsakenwayfarer
the real question is, did christ himself keep the sabbath?

And here is an answer:

Matthew 12:1-14:

At that time JEsus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eath them. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath."
He answered, "Haven't you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread -- which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and yet are innocent? I tell you that one greater than the temple is here. If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,[Hosea 6:6] you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath[emphesis added by the Jungle

]"
Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"
He said to them, "If any of you has a sheep and if falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."
Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.

my opinion is to keep sabbath...

Jesus ketp it...

the only things he did on sabbath were...

for the good of people...

The meaning of Sunday........correct word �kuriake� or the Lord�s Day (Rev. 1:10).


Quote/////web site below.....The Holy Eucharist is the central act of Christian worship. It is held on Sunday, otherwise known as �the first day,� �the Lord�s Day,� �the Day of Yahweh,� �the eighth Day� and as the Russians call it, �Resurrection Day.� Each time a Liturgy is held is Sunday or the Lord�s Day, but the Day after the Sabbath is called Sunday especially, because on that Day the Son of God defeated the Devil by His Resurrection (and for other reasons that we will investigate later). Every doing of the Eucharist is a �Sunday,� but Sunday has more emphasis because of the relation between the Sunday Eucharist and �the Day of the Lord.�



The word �Sunday� is pagan in origin. The right word is �kuriake� or the Lord�s Day (Rev. 1:10). Anyway, on the first day of the week the pagans gathered to worship the Sun and it was called by them, �the Day of the Sun.�
The Church does not believe that it was pure coincidence that Christ was resurrected on that particular day. Of course, it was not just for the benefit of the pagans that Christ rose from the dead, but the Sun has a very special Christian meaning.

Christ is called by the Bible �the Sun of Justice,� because as that ball of fire in the sky. Jesus is the source of Life and Light. Christianity accepted the name �Sunday� for the Day of Resurrection because it was the spiritual Life and Light given to mankind.


The New Testament points out that the Old Testament Sabbath is now gone, because Christ has come.
For example, in the Gospel of St. Matthew, the disciples were picking ears of corn in a field. The Pharisees protested but Christ came to the defense of His own (Matt. xii, 1-8).
He makes it understood that He is free to get rid of this institution. Christ is greater than the Jewish idea of the Sabbath. Christ is the new Sabbath and Temple of the New Testament.
He says: �Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls� (Matt. xi, 28-29).
Christ is the Sabbath, the time of rest. Christ is a living Temple, a spiritual Temple, not that physical building where the Jews had worshipped.
Christ is the Temple of the Holy Spirit. He is the real Temple which the Temple of Solomon foretells. He is the Temple in which all true believers rest.



The statement in Matthew that Christ is the true rest is followed by the episode of the healing on the Sabbath day of the man with the withered hand.
The Jews protested, of course, but Jesus told them: �What man of you, if he has one sheep and it falls into a pit on the sabbath, will not take hold of it and pull it out? Of how much more value is a man than a sheep!� (xi, 11-12).
This healing, like all the miracles of Jesus, is the thing that is to be done in His Kingdom when it is established on earth. This Kingdom, as we know, is the Church.
The Church is �the Body of Christ.� So, this miracle is like the ones that will take place in the Church. The Church is also the Sabbath.
Christ inaugurates the true Sabbath, the Kingdom of God, the Church which replaces the Jewish Sabbath which meant rest, rest from work.
The Gospel of St. John gives us another episode: the healing on the Sabbath of the paralyzed man at the pool of Bethesda (v. 1-19). The Jews persecuted Jesus because He did this on the Sabbath day wherein no work was to be done.
Jesus answered: �My Father works until now, and I work.� (v.17).
The Jews were angry and sought to kill Him �because He made Himself equal to God.� (v. 18). Thus, Christ condemns the idea of the Sabbath�or Sunday� as idleness.

It might be asked why the seventh day was given to the Jews as a day of rest in the Ten Commandments. It was given as a means of education. God worked gradually. He gave them a law to prepare them for the real spiritual meaning. The spiritual meaning is made known in Jesus Christ. As St. Paul said: �Let no one, then, call you to account for what you eat or drink, or in regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These were all a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.� (Col. ii. 16). Everything in the Old Testament points in one way or another to Christ. Christ is the Sabbath. For the Jews the Sabbath was the day in which they were to rest and go to the Temple or Synagogue. For Christians, the Sabbath is Christ in Whom we are to rest from sin and in which we are to live. The Jews too rest. In Christ we are given rest. It is possible now to live in God, as the Jews lived in the Temple on the Sabbath. Now it is possible not to sin, as the Jews had the possibility not to work.



Christ is the Sabbath, Christ brought the Kingdom of God which is begun in the Church. The Church is the entrance of man into the future world. The future world is perfect unity with God. We have this unity even now in the Holy Eucharist which is given on the Lord�s Day. Before we can enter the Lord�s Day, we must fulfill the Sabbath: join ourselves to Christ or rest from sin. This is done by being Baptized or as St. Paul said:



�Know ye not that as many of you are were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death? Therefore, we are buried with Him by baptism, into death and just as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of God the Father, likewise we will be able to have a new life.
For if we have been planted together in the likeness of His death, we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection.� (Rom. vi. 2-5).


www.antiochian.org...

Of course you keep the Sabbath. The Sabbath is the holy day of the week. Jesus himself kept the Sabbath, isn't that enough answer for you?

-wD

Originally posted by WeBDeviL
Of course you keep the Sabbath. The Sabbath is the holy day of the week. Jesus himself kept the Sabbath, isn't that enough answer for you?

-wD

Hi web.....
So what you are saying is that we ''Christians'' should also keep the circumcision?
the Church holds to that which is explained in Galatians 6:15, Romans 2:28 and 4:11, and Philippians 3:3 -- namely, that circumcision was a critical element of the Old Covenent, but not of the New Covenant...
The Saturday Sabbath is appropriate to the Old Testament.

In the New Testament -- which celebrates the resurrection of Christ on the first day of the week -- the central experience of our faith as Christians is commemorated every Sunday of the year. We find the fulfillment to that which was revealed in the Old Testament.

We are under no more obligation to follow the Saturday Sabbath than we are to follow Old Testament dietary restrictions -- upon which today's Kosher laws are derived -- or to practice circumcision as a sign of our covenant with God.

www.oca.org...

I need not have to post when Helen's on the scene.

I agree with you, good work

Really Helen...?
I know you have read Revelations, correct?
If so, how many times does it say "those that follow the commandments of God"?
Is not keeping holy the Sabbath one of the commandments?
Who was the commandements given to?
Who still observes the Sabbath today?
Jesus sayed he did not come to abolish nor change, not one dot, etc., the commandments ---given by God--- but came to fulfill them.
Who changed the Sabbath, which was being observed up till it was change, in and by all Chritians?

...........


regards
seekerof

Colosians 2:16
16 So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths,
(NKJ)


SABBATH

Paul boldly contended that believers in Jesus, whether Jew or Gentile, were set free from the burdens of the Mosaic Law. Even circumcision counted for nothing, now that men were saved by believing in Jesus (Gal 5:6). Christian liberty as proclaimed by Paul included all days and seasons. A man could observe special days or not, just as his own judgment and conscience might dictate (Rom 14:5); but in all such matters one ought to be careful not to put a stumblingblock in a brother's way (Rom 14:13). That Paul contended for personal freedom in respect of the Sabbath is made quite clear in (Col 2:16) f, where he groups together dietary laws, feast days, new moons and sabbaths.
(from International Standard Bible Encylopaedia, Electronic Database Copyright (C) 1996 by Biblesoft)

Originally posted by StationsCreation
Colosians 2:16
16 So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths,
(NKJ)


SABBATH

Paul boldly contended that believers in Jesus, whether Jew or Gentile, were set free from the burdens of the Mosaic Law. Even circumcision counted for nothing, now that men were saved by believing in Jesus (Gal 5:6). Christian liberty as proclaimed by Paul included all days and seasons. A man could observe special days or not, just as his own judgment and conscience might dictate (Rom 14:5); but in all such matters one ought to be careful not to put a stumblingblock in a brother's way (Rom 14:13). That Paul contended for personal freedom in respect of the Sabbath is made quite clear in (Col 2:16) f, where he groups together dietary laws, feast days, new moons and sabbaths.
(from International Standard Bible Encylopaedia, Electronic Database Copyright (C) 1996 by Biblesoft)

thanks!

Jesus Christ appointed the twelve Apostles so that we have scripture in truth.

The Apostle commands, �Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and bold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle''
(2 Thess. 2:15).


Today , it seems that all people want is to satisfy their own coming to the truth by making up new laws of the ''NEW COVENANT'' that Jesus Christ Himself FULLFILLED!
The Resurrection of Christ...

The Resurrection of Christ

The saving fruits of the Resurrection of Christ

The Resurrection of Christ is the foundation and the crown of our Orthodox Christian Faith.

The Resurrection of Christ is the first, most important, great truth, with the proclamation of

which the Apostles began their preaching of the Gospel after the descent of the Holy Spirit.

�Now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the first-fruits of them that slept� (1 Cor.

15:20). The Resurrection of Christ is the pledge of our resurrection: �For as in Adam all die,

even so in Christ shall all be made alive; but every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits:

afterward they that are Christ�s at His coming� (1 Cor. 15:22-23). After this, death will be utterly

annihilated. �The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death� (1 Cor. 15:26).

www.intratext.com...

The close bond between the Church on earth and the Church in Heaven.

The Apostle instructs those who have come to believe in Christ and have been joined to the

Church as follows: �Ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the laving God, the heavenly

Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church

of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of

just men made perfect, and to Jesus, the Mediator of the new covenant� (Heb. 12:22-24).

Thats great information folks, really....
Still beating around that bush though, eh?
How many times in Revelations is it mentioned "those that follow the commandements of God and follow the testimony of Jesus Christ........?



regards
seekerof

Originally posted by Seekerof
Really Helen...?
I know you have read Revelations, correct?
If so, how many times does it say "those that follow the commandments of God"?
Is not keeping holy the Sabbath one of the commandments?
Who was the commandements given to?
Who still observes the Sabbath today?
Jesus sayed he did not come to abolish nor change, not one dot, etc., the commandments ---given by God--- but came to fulfill them.
Who changed the Sabbath, which was being observed up till it was change, in and by all Chritians?

When you read the gospels, Christ mentions the commandments time and time again, individually. NEVER, however, does he mention keeping the commandments. He never says the ten commandments, just the commandments, and never mentions this one. And if you'll note, the commandment is "Remember the Sabbath, and keep it holy." If Christ is the Sabbath, it has changed for christians. Now we have to celebrate the Sabbath every day, because we must remember Him, and keep him holy, and when is he not around?

So it works both ways. We don't have to keep the Sabbath DAY, but we do have to keep the Sabbath Son of God.

Jesus didn't have to command that the Sabbath be observed.....He led by example!

When the Son of God came, He kept the seventh day all His life: Luke 4:16; John 15:10.....Thus He followed HIs Father's example at creation.

The Seventh Day is the Lord's Day: Revelation 1:10; Mark 2:28; Isaiah 58:13; Exodus 20:10

Jesus was the Lord of the Sabbath: Mark 2:28, that is, to love and protect it, as the husband is the lord of his wife, to love and cherish her: 1 Peter 3:6

He vindicated the Sabbath as a merciful institution designed for man's good: Mark 2:23-28

Instead of abolishing the Sabbath, He carefully taught how it should be observed: Matthew 12:1-13

He taught His dsiciples that they should do nothing upon the Sabbath day, but that which is lawful: Matthew 12:12

He instructed His apostles that the Sabbath should be prayerfully regarded forty years after His resurrection: Matthew 24:20

Thirty years after Christ's resurrection, the Holy Spirit expressly calls it "the Sabbath day": Acts 13:14

Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, called it the "sabbath day" in A.D. 45: Acts 13:27

Luke, the inspired Christian historian, writing as late as A.D. 62, calls it the "Sabbath day": Acts 13:44



regards
seekerof

Psalms 19:7 --- "The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple"

Psalms 111:7-8 --- "They stand fast for ever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness.
9: He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name."

Concerning those that will live in "new heaven and the new earth":
Revelation 22:14 --- " Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city"

Isaiah 66: 22-23 --- "For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.
23: And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD"

Matthew 5:17-19 --- "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.
18: For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19: Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven"


regards
seekerof

[Edited on 13-12-2003 by Seekerof]

The Old Testament commandments concerning God and neighbor were a revelation of Law as the basis of moral life.
They did not disclose the inner Love of God's Law to mankind.
The New Testament disclosed Love as the true Law in the person of Jesus Christ--God Himself Who had become man--and in His life and teaching.

The descent of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost brought the Perfect Love that could dwell in the hearts of Christians in the Church that the Holy Spirit founded for them that day.
The God, Which had united with mankind in Jesus Christ, united mankind with the God in The Church. According to Saint Irenaeus of Lyons, the new fellowship of man with God was God's adoption of man. The suffering of Jesus Christ relieved mankind of responsibility for all sins, lifting sinful people from death towards a truly moral and eternal life.

Christ has made possible the gift of these blessings to all men and women without exception.
These blessings are not forcible thrust on anyone. But everyone in fellowship with Jesus Christ may have them; that is, everyone who tries to fulfill His commandments and who lives in the Church, nourished by Her holy Mysteries.
In commentary, Archimandrite Sophrony (Sakharov) has written--

"The commandments of Christ are in essence the self-revelation of God.
Expressed in earthly words, they seem to us to be relative, but he who keeps them in a proper manner is set by them on the boundary between the relative and the unconditional, the finite and the infinite, the determinate and the absolute.
To follow these injunctions, which are not enjoined through force, far exceeds our creaturely powers.
It is necessary that the Almighty, Who has revealed Himself to us, would Himself, through His efficacious indwelling within us, raise us up to the sphere proper to Him of absolute, unconditioned Existence: I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing ( John 15:5)." "To See God as He I"s, p. 69.

According to the Savior's promise, each member of Christ's Church--each branch of the Vine--or the Body of Christ, in whose soul, the Holy Spirit lives, can reach moral perfection by fulfilling Christ's call: Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect (Matthew 5:48).
The Christian starts to realize this ideal when the he begins to acquire the Holy Spirit, Who teaches everything, comforts in everything, in everything helps and directs, and makes joyous all things, according to the remarkable words of Saint Seraphim of Sarov....

www.stjohndc.org...


St. Paul warned the Early Church, saying that a man is not justified by the works of the law (Gal. 2:16).

The Christian's ultimate objective is not to emulate the suffering Christ or engage in self-mortification but to gain the Holy Spirit.
This is the essence of the personal covenant with God in the Holy Spirit, and this is why the Orthodox do not expect any third covenant or any third revelation to mankind.
This revelation is achieved through his personal efforts to acquire the grace of the Spirit. Motovilov's utter perplexity in the face of these counsels indicates that he and his contemporaries had become oblivious, of this primary Christian goal: the acquisition of the Holy Spirit.


Every person is assigned his or her own place in the Divine Plan, his personal path in Christ.
For him this is the only true path upon which he is called by the Chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ� Other men around him have their own ways in Christ�
For God there can be no "inferior" or "superior" ways, but only personal ones.
The spirit of competition, of trying to surpass others is most dangerous for the Christian, because then he seeketh his own glory (John 7:18)�
But he who really loves the Lord takes care not to offend Him by some willful acts, does not try to surpass others, but humbly admits himself to be the lowest of them all.

"And you have no cause to doubt God's mercy, for you can see the words of God, spoken by the prophets, come true in yourself... I am a God nigh at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God afar off (Jer. 23:23)."

Your salvation is in your own mouth. The Lord is near to them that call on Him in truth, and all we need is to have true filial love for Him, our Heavenly Father.
The Lord heeds equally the monk and layman, the most "ordinary" Christian.
All they must do is to love God from the bottom of their hearts, and have faith in Him as a grain of mustard seed (Matt. 17:20)

www.roca.org...

Quote//////When our first parents disobeyed God�s word, He did not reject them permanently, but through the prophets began to disclose His plan of salvation, promising to send the Messiah, Christ.
When the world was ripe for accepting the true faith, the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, came down to earth, to save us sinners.
He taught us how to believe and live righteously.

He died on the Cross for our salvation and with His precious blood washed away our sins.
On the third day He rose from the dead and began our own resurrection and eternal blessed life in heaven.

We believe that on the fiftieth day after His resurrection the Lord Jesus Christ sent the Holy Spirit to the apostles, who even now are present in the Church, supporting her in spirit and truth.

We believe that one Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church is empowered with invincible power against evil even until the end of the world.
We believe that the Holy Spirit, through the Sacraments of Baptism, confession, Holy Communion, the laying on of hands and the other Sacraments, purifies and enlightens believers, giving them strength to live a Christian life.
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ will come again a second time upon this earth, at which time there will be the resurrection of the dead and a final judgment, in which every person will be judged according to his deeds.
After the judgment, eternal life will begin; for the righteous, eternal bliss in communion with God, for the devil and sinners eternal suffering in hell.

We admit that for salvation it is not enough to have faith alone, but it is necessary to live in accordance with faith.
For this reason, we admit to the necessity of fulfilling the ten commandments given by God to the Prophet Moses, and the Beatitudes in the Gospel given to us by the Lord Jesus Christ (Matt. 5:3-12).
These laws command us to love God and our neighbor and even to love our enemies (Matt. 5:43-45).


www.orthodoxphotos.com...

Originally posted by Seekerof
Jesus didn't have to command that the Sabbath be observed.....He led by example!

When the Son of God came, He kept the seventh day all His life: Luke 4:16; John 15:10.....Thus He followed HIs Father's example at creation.
Luke 4:16 "He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue as was his custom. And he stood up to read" The only time he would be able to teach a congregation of Jews was on the Sabbath, and it says it was his custom, not as it was commanded he should.

John 15:10 "If you obey my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commandments and remain in his love."
He does say my, not my fathers. That is huge, because Jesus NEVER takes credit for something His father created.

Now my turn: Matthew 19:18-19. This is where the rich young man asks Jesus what he must do to get into heaven. Jesus says you must keep the commandments, and here we go:
"Which ones?" the man inquited.
Jesus replied, "'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother', and 'love your neighbor as yourself'"

Those were the commandments Jesus said you needed to follow to get into Heaven, and no where does it say remember the Sabbath.

The Seventh Day is the Lord's Day: Revelation 1:10; Mark 2:28; Isaiah 58:13; Exodus 20:10
Revelation 1:10: "On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, " No mention of the 7th day...

Mark 2:28: "So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath." My point exactly

Isaiah 58:13 and Exodus 20:10 are both Old Testament. If you'll remember, Jesus said at the last supper he was forming a new covenant. One which would replace the old...

Jesus was the Lord of the Sabbath: Mark 2:28, that is, to love and protect it, as the husband is the lord of his wife, to love and cherish her: 1 Peter 3:6

My point exactly, to love and protect the Sabbath, Jesus. To love and cherish Him.

He vindicated the Sabbath as a merciful institution designed for man's good: Mark 2:23-28

I've quoted this whole section higher up in this thread. He says it was made for man, not man for it. He also points out that he, not being just man, is Lord over it. Therefore, he has the right to repeal it.

Instead of abolishing the Sabbath, He carefully taught how it should be observed: Matthew 12:1-13

I've quoted this one higher up, and the respons is the same as the one to Mark 2:23-28.

He taught His dsiciples that they should do nothing upon the Sabbath day, but that which is lawful: Matthew 12:12

And if he is the Sabbath, isn't every day the Sabbath day? What day, Old Testament or New, is it ok to do that which is not lawful?

He instructed His apostles that the Sabbath should be prayerfully regarded forty years after His resurrection: Matthew 24:20

Matthew 24:20: "Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath."
Matthew 24:16 "Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains" He is speaking to the Jews. They, having not found Christ, still must follow the Sabbath DAY, as they have not realized that the Sabbath Day was mearly a shadow of what was to come (Him)

Thirty years after Christ's resurrection, the Holy Spirit expressly calls it "the Sabbath day": Acts 13:14

Acts 13:14: "From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue and sat down." Well, first off, they were traveling the whole time and happened to get there on the Sabbath, although this arguement is weak, they may have already been there. But again, in order to preach to a congretation of Jews, you had to go to the synagogue on the Sabbath, that was when you knew they would all be there.

Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, called it the "sabbath day" in A.D. 45: Acts 13:27

Yes, they called it the Sabbath Day, because that is what it was to the Jews. Paul didn't only preach to the Gentiles, he also preached to the Jews. Otherwise, what would he bo doing in a synagogue in Acts 13:27?

Luke, the inspired Christian historian, writing as late as A.D. 62, calls it the "Sabbath day": Acts 13:44

Acts 13:44: "On the next Sabbath almost thw whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord." No one is arguing that the Jews didn't consider it the Sabbath day. And that is when they would meet to praise God. The rest of the city knew this, and that is why they came out on the same day; they knew Paul would be there.

I hope, even if you're not convinced, that you know I'm not trying to avoid your arguments now, at least

Peace,
The Jungle

Matthew 5:17-19........Its self-explanitory and speaks clearly on what it implies and means:
"Matthew 5:17-19 --- "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.
18: For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19: Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven"



regards
seekerof

Originally posted by Seekerof
Psalms 19:7 --- "The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple"

Psalms 111:7-8 --- "They stand fast for ever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness.
9: He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name."

Concerning those that will live in "new heaven and the new earth":
Revelation 22:14 --- " Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city"

Isaiah 66: 22-23 --- "For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.
23: And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD"

Matthew 5:17-19 --- "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.
18: For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19: Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven"


regards
seekerof

[Edited on 13-12-2003 by Seekerof]

Seekerof, did you know that the ''tree of life'' is THE CROSS of Jesus Christ?
It was the ''Tree of life'' in the garden of Eden that Adam and Eve fell into sin!
And Jesus Christ was prophecied to come and be crucified for all of humanity on that tree...The CROSS


www.apostolic-churches.net...


After Christ�s death, the ceremonial law is no longer to be observed. Therefore "blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ" (Colossians 2:14-17).
The laws consisting in ordinances, typifying Christ�s death was the one nailed on the cross, "having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace" (Ephesians 2:15).
"For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect" (Hebrews 10:1).

God wants to make a new covenant with His children, and that covenant consists on writing the moral law in their minds and hearts. "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. . . . For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people" (Hebrews 8:8,10).


The Bible says "Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven; neither shall the sacrifice of the feast of the passover be left unto the morning.
The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring unto the house of the LORD thy God" (Exodus 34:25-26).
The apostle Paul says: "Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened.
For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us" (1 Corinthians 5:7).
Concerning the first fruit offering he later writes: "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming" (1 Corinthians 15:20-23).

www.liturgica.com...

The New Testament gives us examples of Christians meeting on the first day of the week. The risen Jesus appeared to the disciples on two Sundays (Jn 20:19, 26), but there is no mention that he gave any command for a weekly commemoration of the resurrection.
Paul's traveling party once stayed seven days at Troas, and met on the first day of the week (Ac 20:7),
but this was an unusual farewell meeting, not necessarily indicative of normal practice.
Paul told the Corinthians to set aside an offering on the first day of each week (1 Cor 16:2),
but this may also have been an exceptional practice rather than a normative one. John had a vision on "the Lord's day" (Rev 1:10)

"And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, 'This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.'"
- Luke 22:19-20



�I was in the Spirit on the Lord�s Day, and I heard behind me a voice as loud as a trumpet, saying, �I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,� and �what you see, write in a book and send to the seven churches which are in Asia�� (Revelation 1:10-11).



Here for the first time we find a reference to the most precious day of the week, the day we in English call Sunday -- the Lord�s Day.
Many wrongly speak of Sunday as the Sabbath; but Saturday is the Sabbath.
The day of rest, on which the Lord God Almighty rested from His six days of creation (Genesis 2:2).

A remarkable transition occurred in the early Church. Sometime in the earliest years after Pentecost, Christians began to celebrate the overwhelming gift of life in Christ which transcended the day of rest, the Hebrew Sabbath.
The early Christian community understood themselves precisely as a fellowship of those who are forgiven and given a new life.
They have been saved from sin, death and corruption by the life, death and resurrection of the God-Man, Jesus, the long-awaited Messiah.
By His atoning death, all persons are offered the opportunity to be at one with the One Who has redeemed all humanity

www.holy-trin.org...

Helen, you keep harping on "cerimonial laws"....etc.....
The Ten Commandements were not just ceremonial...they were moral guidelines given by God....and be assurd Helen, Jesus Christ did not nullify nor abolish such when He was crucified...
We are saved by Grace, not by law.....again, if we truly love God and do as Christ and the apostles tell us to, and walk in the footsteps of Christ....The Sabbath and the Ten Commandments are still in effect; for by LOVE do we follow them and hold to what He taught.

As I have shown (3) three times and JESUS said this.....not an apostle, not the church, not a disciple....JESUS said:
""Matthew 5:17-19 --- "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.
18: For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19: Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven"


Jesus also said:
Luke 16:17 ---
"And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail."


Now you and others can break out all the fancy explanations and such....but what Jesus taught and said is self-explanitory on this matter.
We follow the commandements, not because of obligation to the law or God or Jesus....we observe and follow them because of LOVE for God and Jesus. We are not judged by them but they are used as a measuring stick and are still in effect today....if not Jesus would have stated thus and the endtimes would not mention "those that follow the commandments and have the testimony of Jesus Christ"....
Problem is, many of you are reading to many "educated" books with fancy well developed explanations and from these, are becoming confused in what Jesus simply stated and said....
Helen, you can dispute this all day long...matters not to me....Jesus tuaght and says otherwise to what you are explaining...John, the writer of Revelations, specifically says who will enter/inherit into the "new earth and new kingdom":
"Revelation 22:14 --- " Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city"

"Revelation 14:12 --- "Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus"

" Revelation 12:17 --- "And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ."



regards
seekerof

[Edited on 13-12-2003 by Seekerof]