Good point. Thanks Tim.

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Matt Daniel
Attending First Presbyterian Church, Las Vegas NV

I think you have raised some very good points, brother. I would be keen to see someone interact with them.

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Marcos Peters
Twynholm Baptist Church (FIEC)
London England

For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind, and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them. For they could not bear the command, "IF EVEN A BEAST TOUCHES THE MOUNTAIN, IT WILL BE STONED." And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, "I AM FULL OF FEAR and trembling." But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel. Hebrews 12:18-24

Sorry if I reacted wrongly, I love the Truth but just lack the ability at the moment to express it.

Do you not know Scott?. Why ask me, it's there in the Bible, it seems a lot of my replies were deleted..etc...but then again thats software I suppose.

Not a good night to contest.

Bless you Scott.

Joseph,
Please explain why you answered my question with this statement.

__________________
Scott Bushey
Husband to Tina, father to Nicole, Danielle and Zoe
Member First Presbyterian Church of Margate PCA

Gosh, this is such a confusing topic.... one which I have many questions. I can see clearly where Christ has necessitated a change in the law (the priesthood and animal sacrifices). I can find nothing that shows a change in the times (Sabbaths and Holy days).

I am under the belief that God instituted a lunar calendar... we have revoked that method. His days are counted sundown to sundown (that´s thrown out also). The Lord's Sabbath has also been changed (we threw that out with the resurrection). The Holy days are also gone (i.e. Easter has replaced Passover).

Now, I'm no biblical scholar but it seems to me that there is in fact a reason for all this change... is it meant to be? Is it of God?... or is it of man?... or is it of the devil? (maybe man and the devil). I have an idea.... but I really don't know.

There is a good deal of confusion about the "day of rest" in our day and in our churches. I can't fully explain that, but I will say that I think it starts with uncertainty about where to start in the Bible on the subject. From there we can add: confusion about the relation of the OT to the NT; hermenutical questions about what OT (and even NT) history teaches; the place (and basis) of morality in the NT age; and these are just elements that come to mind quickly.

The puritan attitude toward the moral law was founded on the principle that God gave Adam his moral requirements as part of his constitution. Whatever God added by way of positive command became part of the revealed will of God. The puritans reckoned that God had evidently made a moral issue of communing with him; this need then being part of man's moral constitution. Establishing a set time for this communion was God's prerogative, and must of necessity be of positive character. That time was established on the first full day after man was created. It was as if, after making all the land animals, and crowning his creation with man, God said to him, "There you are. Here are your general orders. The day is over; get some rest; we shall commence the first thing tomorrow with worship."

The first thing man was to do was to rest with God, strengthen himself for his labors. We won't dwell upon the specifics. Just note that from the beginning, the puritans recognized that God had made this a perpetual, positive and moral commandment.

The moral nature of the command was made incontrovertably plain to the puritans by the inclusion/ restatement of the sabbath rest commandment in the decalog. If the command is nothing but an OT ceremonial ordinance, what is it doing there in the moral foundation of Israelite ethics, society and religion?

That the command was of continuing significance was also plain by the amount of time Jesus spent correcting men's view of it in his ministry. If it was no longer to be of importance, why the lingering emphasis? In one or two places Jesus pointedly indicates that certain ceremonies are passing away. Not so with the Sabbath.

And, if the command to keep it was exclusively moral (without positive direction as to how and when) how came the NT believers to so quickly change their practise, even before the gospels conclude? Thus was recognized the positive nature had changed.

__________________
Rev. Bruce G. Buchanan
ChainOLakes Presbyterian Church, CentralLake, MI


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Matt,

If you are interested, I would recommend the following resources for study:

When Does the Sabbath Begin? Morning or Evening? by Greg Price

Sabbath, The Day Changed: The Sabbath Preserved by A.A. Hodge

A Puritan's Mind Lord's Day Page (many more good Reformed Puritan Sabbath studies)

__________________
Andrew Myers
Husband of Jessica, Father of Jackson, Katie and Samuel
Member, Presbyterian Reformed Church of Northern Virginia
Warrenton, VA USA
Editor, The Matthew Poole Project

"Let your Morning Thoughts, and your last Evening Thoughts, be what shall become of you to all Eternity." -- Matthew Poole

There are several articles on the subject of the Christian Sabbath under Sabbath at the link below. http://www.fpcr.org/blue_banner_articles/articles.htm

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Chris Coldwell, Lakewood Presbyterian Church (PCA), Member
• Naphtali Press: Presbyterian & Reformed Books
• The Confessional Presbyterian Journal
• The Blue Banner Archive

The Regulative Principle: Samuel Miller gives a succinct statement of this principle when he writes that since the Scriptures are the “only infallible rule of faith and practice, no rite or ceremony ought to have a place in the public worship of God, which is not warranted in Scripture, either by direct precept or example, or by good and sufficient inference.”

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Why is Sunday called the Sabbath? Did the early Church call Sunday the Sabbath?

__________________
J. M. Esq., P.V.P.M.P.C. [Perpetual Vice-President--Member Pickwick Club]
Baptist - Ontario, Canada - Feileadh Mor - The Orthodox Catechism

Sunday is not the sabbath per se. It is the one day in seven that the church worships and keeps Gods sabbath.

Could the sabbath be any day in seven?

By pattern and example the Chirstian Sabbath is on Sunday, the Lord's Day.

__________________
Josh Hicks, Chloë's Dad
Attending CCRPC, Member of TRBC
Reformers & Puritans -lllll- Puritan Pub
Board Rules - Signature Rules - Suggestion Box

By pattern and example the "Christian Sabbath" is on Sunday, the Lord's Day. I am under the assumption that the 7th day Sabbath (the Lord's Sabbath) was changed to Sunday (the first day of the week) because of the resurection.

1. Is the resurection the reason Sunday is now the Lord's Day?

2. Who's pattern and example are we following for the "Christian Sabbath" (observance of God's Holy Day on the 1st day of the week)?

Thanks for your help on this matter.

Above all, remember that Christ IS the Sabbath! So it's not a matter of a day - it is a matter of an attitude; the awareness that Christ fulfilled the whole Law - HE IS our Sabbath rest!

I wish we could talk more about that....obviously, if rightly bound to membership in a true church, one day a week is set aside to offer worship and receive the benefits of Christ's promises - before a watching world. The visible church is a witness. Answering the 2. question, Sunday (as exampled in Acts) but only if done without legalistic emphasis.

Robin

[Edited on 8-28-2005 by Robin]

__________________
Robin
URCNA
Heidelberg, Ursinus, Belgic Confessions; Canons of Dordt
Revelation 14:2

Robin,
It is a matter of the day and legality!

CH 21 of the WCF

VII. As it is the law of nature, that, in general, a due proportion of time be set apart for the worship of God; so, in his Word, by a positive, moral, and perpetual commandment binding all men in all ages, he hath particularly appointed one day in seven, for a Sabbath, to be kept holy unto him:[34] which, from the beginning of the world to the resurrection of Christ, was the last day of the week,[35] and, from the resurrection of Christ, was changed into the first day of the week, which, in Scripture, is called the Lord's day,[36] and is to be continued to the end of the world, as the Christian Sabbath.[37]

34. Exod. 20:8-11; Isa. 56:2- 7
35. Gen. 2:2-3; I Cor. 16:1-2; Acts 20:7
36. Rev. 1:10
37. Matt. 5:17-18; Mark 2:27-28; Rom. 13:8-10; James 2:8-12

VIII. This Sabbath is then kept holy unto the Lord, when men, after a due preparing of their hearts, and ordering of their common affairs beforehand, do not only observe an holy rest, all the day, from their own works, words, and thoughts about their worldly employments and recreations,[38] but also are taken up, the whole time, in the public and private exercises of his worship, and in the duties of necessity and mercy.[39]

38. Exod. 16:23, 25-26, 29-30; 20:8; 31:15-17; Isa. 58:13-14; Neh. 13:15-22
39. Isa. 58:13-14; Luke 4:16; Matt. 12:1-13; Mark 3:1-5

The WCF Larger Cat:

Q117: How is the sabbath or the Lord's day to be sanctified?
A117: The sabbath or Lord's day is to be sanctified by an holy resting all the day,[1] not only from such works as are at all times sinful, but even from such worldly employments and recreations as are on other days lawful;[2] and making it our delight to spend the whole time (except so much of it as is to betaken up in works of necessity and mercy)[3] in the public and private exercises of God's worship:[4] and, to that end, we are to prepare our hearts, and with such foresight, diligence, and moderation, to dispose and seasonably dispatch our worldly business, that we may be the more free and fit for the duties of that day.[5]

1. Exod. 20:8, 10
2. Exod. 16:25-28; Neh. 13:15-22; Jer. 17:21-22

3. Matt. 12:1-13
4. Isa. 58:18; 66:23; Luke 4:16; Acts 20:7; I Cor. 16:1-2; Psa. ch. 92; Lev. 23:3
5. Exod. 16:22, 25-26, 29; 20:8; Luke 23:54, 56; Neh. 13:19

Q118: Why is the charge of keeping the sabbath more specially directed to governors of families, and other superiors?
A118: The charge of keeping the sabbath is more specially directed to governors of families, and other superiors, because they are bound not only to keep it themselves, but to see that it be observed by all those that are under their charge; and because they are prone ofttimes to hinder them by employments of their own.[1]

1. Exod. 20:10; 23:12; Josh. 24:15; Neh. 13:15, 17; Jer. 17:20-22

Heidelberg Cat:

92. Q. What is the law of the LORD?

A. God spoke all these words, saying: I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 1. You shall have no other gods before Me. 2. You shall not make for yourself a graven image, 2. or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, 2. or that is in the earth beneath, 2. or that is in the water under the earth; 2. you shall not bow down to them or serve them; 2. for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, 2. visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children 2. to the third and fourth generation 2. of those who hate Me, 2. but showing steadfast love to thousands of those 2. who love Me and keep My commandments. 3. You shall not take the Name of the LORD your God 3. in vain; 3. for the LORD will not hold him guiltless 3. who takes His Name in vain. 4. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 4. Six days you shall labour, and do all your work; 4. but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your 4. God; 4. in it you shall not do any work, 4. you, or your son, or your daughter, 4. your manservant, or your maidservant, 4. or your cattle, 4. or the sojourner who is within your gates; 4. for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, 4. the sea, and all that is in them, 4. and rested the seventh day; 4. therefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day 4. and hallowed it. 5. Honour your father and your mother, 5. that your days may be long 5. in the land which the LORD your God gives you. 6. You shall not kill. 7. You shall not commit adultery. 8. You shall not steal. 9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour. 10. you shall not covet your neighbour's house; 10. you shall not covet your neighbour's wife, 10. or his manservant, or his maidservant, 10. or his ox, or his ass, 10. or anything that is your neighbour's.[1]

[1] Ex. 20:1-17; Deut. 5:6-21.


103. Q. What does God require in the fourth commandment?

A. First, that the ministry of the gospel and the schools be maintained[1] and that, especially on the day of rest, I diligently attend the church of God[2] to hear God's Word,[3] to use the sacraments,[4] to call publicly upon the LORD,[5] and to give Christian offerings for the poor.[6] Second, that all the days of my life I rest from my evil works, let the LORD work in me through His Holy Spirit, and so begin in this life the eternal sabbath.[7]

[1] Deut. 6:4-9; 20-25; I Cor. 9:13, 14; II Tim. 2:2; 3:13-17; Tit. 1:5. [2] Deut. 12:5-12; Ps. 40:9, 10; 68:26; Acts 2:42-47; Heb. 10:23-25. [3] Rom. 10:14-17; I Cor. 14:26-33; I Tim. 4:13. [4] I Cor. 11:23, 24. [5] Col. 3:16; I Tim. 2:1. [6] Ps. 50:14; I Cor. 16:2; II Cor. 8 and 9. [7] Is. 66:23; Heb. 4:9-11.


[Edited on 8-28-2005 by Scott Bushey]

People can call Sabbath-keeping legalism all they want, but I am overjoyed by the rest and contentment I find in Christ by finishing my work and necessities the other 6 days of the week and being able to rest in my Lord on His only Hol-y-day.

Amen Gabe!

I endeavor to set aside Sunday for worship, prayer (both corporate and individual), rest, and necessary study of the Scriptures, learning Biblical Hebrew, Apologetics, Church History, and Theology.

I have come to the conviction of the binding nature of the 4th Commandment fully, only recently (relatively speaking). I can tell you, however, that I don't feel bound at all. Rather, like Gabe has noted, I very much enjoy the rest and focus in the Lord Jesus Christ. Fixing my eyes on the Author and Finisher of my face all day without distraction is most beneficial to any saint of His.

[Edited on 8-28-2005 by joshua]

It truly is freedom to worship God in the way he has commanded. Thank Christ for that liberty he has purchased for us!

__________________
Jeff Bartel
Mechanical Engineer
Member - Trinity Reformed Church - RPCNA

"To believe in the power of man in the work of regeneration is the great heresy of Rome, and from that error has come the ruin of the Church. Conversion proceeds from the grace of God alone, and the system which ascribes it partly to man and partly to God is worse than Pelagianism" (The Reformation in England (London, 1962), Vol. 1, p. 98)

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Amen! It's amazing how simple, concise statements of unadorned truth spur me on to Good works and stir me up! Blessed be the Name of the Lord! I love my fellow brothers and sisters on this board!

I just rounded up some entries I wrote a while back about my (then new) convictions about the Sabbath on my blog, if anyone cares to take a look. This is one of the things I am most passionate about getting other Christians to realize - I am so glad to find a consensus here that the Sabbath is a blessing of the highest kind. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

[Edited on 8-28-2005 by Laura]

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Laura
attending Old Peachtree PCA, GA

"...Christ comes to meet the despairing with new aid, who not only regenerates us by his Spirit that we may obey God, but makes also that our endeavor, such as it is, should obtain the praise of perfect righteousness." - Calvin