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NOTE One of the most divisive issues in the Christian church is the question about which is the proper day of worship. Orthodox believers hold to the first day (Sunday) while Sabbatarians hold to the seventh day (Saturday). Orthodox believers hold two basic positions: (1) The Jewish Sabbath day was not a perpetual and moral obligation established by God in Genesis chapter 3, and was abolished upon the death and resurrection of Christ, or (2) The Sabbath is a perpetual and moral obligation established by God in Genesis chapter 3, but was changed to the first day of the week either by authority of the apostles or by Christ, becoming the Christian Sabbath. Sabbatarians hold to the view, based on an asssumption, that the Sabbath is a perpetual and moral obligation established by God in Genesis chapter 3, cannot be abrogated and has not been changed. Orthodox Christian Sabbatarian positions are also based on an assumption that a moral and perpetual Sabbath day of worship was established by God in Genesis 3, which the Scripture does not state. The Orthodox Christian Sabbath position is also based on an assumption that the Sabbath day was changed from the seventh day to the first day by either the apostles or Jesus Christ, which has no support in the Scripture. Both views ignore the fact that doctrines based on assumptions and not on the clear authority of Scripture, can have no force of doctrine or rule over the believer.---ON DOCTRINE

THE ARTICLES

ALEXANDER, ARCHIBALD 1772-1851
"The Lord's Day"
(Christian Sabbath view)
"So generally was the first day of the week observed, in commemoration of Christ's resurrection, and for the celebration of religious worship, that in the times of the apostles, it had obtained the significant denomination of the Lord's Day."

BOSTON, THOMAS 1676-1732
"Treatise On The 4th Commandment"
(Christian Sabbath view)
"The Jews under the Old Testament had several days beside the weekly Sabbath, that by divine appointment were to be kept as holy days, and by virtue of this command they were to observe them, even as by virtue of the second commandment they were to observe the sacrifices and other parts of the Old Testament instituted worship. But these days are taken away under the gospel by the coming of Christ."

CALVIN, JOHN 1506-1564
"The Geneva Catechism"
(Sabbath has been abolished view)
The Fourth Commandment - To Remember The Sabbath Day.

CALVIN, JOHN 1509-1564
"The Sabbath"
SERMON 1 - Deuteronomy 5:12-14
SERMON 2 - Deuteronomy 5:13-15
"Therefore, we have to note that the Sabbath, or day of rest, was a shadow under the Law until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ so as to make men understand that God requires that they should utterly cease from their own works. This is what I meant when I said that we must put to death all that is of our own nature if we are to conform ourselves to our God. This is what Saint Paul declares, and we have many other instances in the NT. But it is sufficient to declare what is apparent, namely in Colossians (2.17) where it is said that we have in Jesus Christ the substance and the principal part of the things that were under the Law. Therefore it was necessary for the fathers of old to be trained in this hope, by the day of rest as well as by other ceremonies."

EDWARDS, JONATHAN 1703-1758
"Perpetuity And Change Of The Sabbath"
(Christian Sabbath view)
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
"It is the mind and will of God, that the first day of the week should be especially set apart among Christians, for religious exercises and duties."
GRACE TO YOU
"Are The Sabbath Laws Binding On Christians Today?"
(Sabbath has been abolished view)
"We believe the Old Testament regulations governing Sabbath observances are ceremonial, not moral, aspects of the law. As such, they are no longer in force, but have passed away along with the sacrificial system, the Levitical priesthood, and all other aspects of Moses' law that prefigured Christ."
HODGE, CHARLES 1797- 1878
"The 4th Commandment"
(Christian Sabbath View)
PART 1
PART 2
"The original and universal obligation of the law of the Sabbath may be inferred from its having found a place in the Decalogue. As all the other commandments in that fundamental revelation of the duties of men to God and to their neighbor, are moral and permanent in their obligation, it would be incongruous and unnatural if the fourth should be a solitary exception."
MacARTHUR, JOHN F. 1939
"The Lord's Day, Does It Matter?"
(Sabbath has been abolished view)
"What does God expect of us? Well, all I can say is there aren't any rules. It's not legalistic. There aren't any commands; grace doesn't require, however, less than law. It just requires your whole heart. How much do you love Christ? How much do you desire to worship Him? To honor Him? How grateful are you for your salvation. There aren't any external rules to drop on you, and anybody who takes a whole lot of that Sabbath Law and drags it over and imposes, doesn't understand grace, and doesn't understand the line drawn between covenants that are dead and the New Covenant. Everything about the New Covenant is better than the Old Covenant, including our day. I like our day better, don't you?"
MacARTHUR, JOHN F. 1939
"The New Testament And The Mosaic Sabbath"
(Sabbath has been abolished view)
"So, no Sabbath observance, on the part of man, was instituted in Genesis two. That is a very critical point, because anyone who holds to Sabbath Law today, whether it's a Seventh-Day Adventist, or Sabbatarian Baptists, who meet on Saturday, or what other group it is, they all say, "Sabbath Law goes back to Genesis,", but there is not any indication in Genesis, chapter two, that God imposed on man any Sabbath rest. As I said, all he [Adam] knew was rest, because in a perfect world there was no work, only delight, as he enjoyed the wonders of the Garden. Again, I say, nothing is ever said, anywhere, in the fifty chapters of Genesis, about any Sabbath Law for man."
MacARTHUR, JOHN F 1939-present
"The Sabbath Question"
Sermon 1 - "The 'Rest' Of Creation" - Genesis 2:1-3
Sermon 2 - "The Sabbath Of Moses" - Exodus 31:12-17
Sermon 3 - "The Sabbath Question: The Nature Of The Old Covenant" - selected Scriptures
"It's noteworthy, I think...and you need to follow along with this thought...it's noteworthy that there is no mention of the word "Sabbath" here. Doesn't occur in Genesis, Chapters 1 and 2, the creation account. No mention of "Sabbath." That word is not here. And furthermore...I want you to file this...there is nothing said about man resting here. It is not appropriate to inaugurate here in Genesis some rest for man. That is to miss the point here. In fact, man isn't even mentioned here in connection with this seventh day rest; only God is mentioned. No rest for man is inaugurated here; no Sabbath for man is inaugurated here. That doesn't come until the Mosaic law."
SHEPARD, THOMAS 1605-1649
"The Change of the Sabbath"
(Christian Sabbath view)
"It remains, therefore, to prove that the first day of the week is the Christian Sabbath by divine institution; and this may appear from those three texts of Scripture ordinarily alleged for this end: 1. Acts xx.7; 2. 1 Cor.xvi.2; 3. Rev.i.10;..."

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