Question:
Can't I pick my own day? Isn't every day the same as the rest?
Answer:
You can pick your own day as a "sabbath," but it will not be God's Own Holy Day, and thus will not be in obedience to the Fourth Commandment, to remember to keep God's Sabbath holy. Which day do you want, your own sabbath, picked by you, or God's Own Holy Day, picked by Him? The attempt to "pick your own day" is like being married and choosing to remain faithful to a woman that is not your wife (kind of a "pick your own woman").
Question:
Isn't Sunday special because of the Resurrection of Jesus?
Answer:
Sunday, in the Bible, is not designated as special due to the Resurrection of Jesus, and there is no example of any of the Disciples or Apostles setting the day "apart," or attempting to change God's Own Holy Day, the Seventh day of the week, the Sabbath. Almost all groups admit that they keep "Sunday" as a man-made "sabbath" because of tradition. The "Resurrection of Jesus" is memorialized in both "The Lord's Supper," and "Baptism." But well-intentioned people have discarded these aspects set in place by Jesus Himself (the ordinance of "Foot Washing" tells the Gospel, but "Christians" find it far too icky to practice, as COMMANDED by Jesus, and most "Christians" have utterly discarded the very reality of Baptism, also COMMANDED by Jesus), but "Christians" claim to have made Sunday "holy" and a memorial of Resurrection in the place of Communion and Baptism. There traditions and commandments of men are vain in God's regard; however, it is a long-standing tradition that Jesus rose from the dead on Sunday morning (whereas the Biblical accounts suggest a Saturday-night resurrection, which in Biblical counting of time and days, would be the "first day" of the week, Sunday).
Question:
Didn't the Catholic church change the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday?
Answer:
Although the Catholic church claims to have changed God's Own Holy Day (in many places, throughout the centuries, sometimes hiding their admission, and sometimes proudly proclaiming it), with power given the church by God; yet there is no evidence in the Bible that any man or group of people have any right to the change God's Own Holy Day, the Sabbath, or that at least in Bible times no one changed the day, least of all God Himself. The Emperor Constantine, who was not a "Catholic," did seek to change times and laws by making the first known "Sunday law," in an attempt to change God's Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday, in the Year 363-364 a.d. at the "Council of Laodicea." The Emperor Constanine could possibly have been the first version of the "Pope" in a very remote, primitive version of the Catholic church, but was probably never called "The Pope" officially. Others assume that the Apostle Peter was the first "pope," but nothing of the kind is suggested in Scripture. Historically, Emperor Constantine made the first official attempt to change God's Own Holy Day to a man-made holiday, Sunday.
Question:
Didn't the Apostles change the Sabbath?
Answer:
The Bible contains many examples of the Apostles keeping the Sabbath holy in the New Testament, according to the Commandment, and as the Apostles were chosen by God and followed Him, they would never have attempted to change or convince others to break any of God's Commandments. Jesus Himself rested on the Sabbath in death. And the women who were to embalm Jesus, set aside their task until after the Sabbath, according to the Commandment.
Question:
Didn't the Apostles gather together specifically on the first day of the week, Sunday?
Answer:
The Bible is clear that the early church, as well as the Apostles, gathered together as often as possible, including all seven days of the week. The Bible does not state that the Apostles were attempting to keep any other day holy than the Sabbath. Every day is acceptable to gather together in worship of God, but only one day out of seven has been designated as God's Own Holy Day, the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week, most commonly known as Saturday today. To "keep the Sabbath," by the Bible, only Saturday, the seventh day of the week (Friday sunset to Saturday sunset) can be kept as a "date with God, set apart by God Himself."
Question:
Is it a sin to work on Sunday?
Answer:
There is nothing involving "rest" associated with Sunday, according to the Bible. The Bible actually commands us to work on Sunday, so it cannot be a sin. The Bible commands us to work Sunday through Friday, but to rest on Saturday, and this is the Biblical way to "keep the Sabbath." It is actually a sin to refrain from work on Sunday, as it breaks the Fourth Commandment to work six days. So if your employer demands that you work on Sunday, request double pay, or at least overtime pay, but do not feel guilty before God. God will bless you, and bless you fully, indeed, when you work on Sunday. If your employer requests for you to work on Sabbath, tell him that you keep the Biblical Sabbath, and thus do no work on Sabbath, the Seventh day.
Question:
Is it a sin to go to church on Saturday, the Sabbath?
Answer:
Although there is no direct command to "go to church" on Saturday, the seventh day of the week, the Sabbath, the Bible depicts "going to church" as an acceptable activity for the Sabbath, although "going to church" is not part of the Fourth Commandment. The Bible tells us it was the custom of Jesus to visit the Synagogue on the Sabbath, and read Scripture. Follow the Master's example, not the tradition of men.
Question:
Didn't Jesus fulfill all of the Law?
Answer:
Yes, Jesus fulfilled all of the Law, which means He kept the Law of God perfectly, because you (a weak, stumbling human, sinful and nasty all the way through) cannot keep God's Law perfectly. Jesus fulfilled the Law of God, making Him an acceptable sacrifice, to blot out the sins of those who cannot keep the Law perfectly. But Jesus fulfilling the Law does not condone murder, or disrespect to parents, adultery, using God's Name in an obscene way, or remove the need for people to rest as God commanded. The Ten Commandments are still in effect and will always be in effect, until the very last day. We do not keep the Law to earn points, or to "get to heaven" or to "be saved," but because it is distinctly the will of God that we keep the Law. We keep His Laws because we love Him (and Jesus says this, forcefully, with authority).
Question:
Isn't it true that we are not "under the law?"
Answer:
The "Christians" who shout this the loudest, have utterly lost the meaning of the phrase "not under the law," which means that we do not have to pay the penalty of breaking the Law, because Jesus kept the Law perfectly and then paid the pentalty of death, for us, even though He never sinned. Only those "under the law" are actively, purposefully BREAKING the Law of God; those truly "not under the Law" are those that KEEP THE LAW (they keep the Law because they love God, they love Jesus). Because Jesus died in my place does not give me the right to use God's Name in vain, or cheat on my wife, or disregard God's Commandment about working six days and resting the Seventh. The fact that Jesus died in my place gives me incredible motivation to obey Him, to abide in Him, to "Keep His Words." Those that teach you that you are "not under the law" and thus should intentionally disobey God, they are liars, and deceivers, and a rather unpleasant day is swiftly approaching them. Get away from them, and SEEK TRUTH. Obey God, and Keep His Commandments.
Question:
I go to church on Sunday, and this is how I keep the sabbath.
Answer:
Going to church on Sunday, while acceptable as a practice of worshipping God, has absolutely nothing to do with "Sabbath." Sunday is the first day of the week. The Sabbath is the Seventh day of the week. "Sabbath" means resting from your work, and has absolutely nothing to do with going to church on Sunday. Jesus says: "Come unto Me, and I will give you REST." It was the custom, tradition of Jesus, to "go to church on Saturday," and we should follow His example.
Question:
Isn't "The Sabbath," the seventh day, Saturday, only for the Jews, while "The Lord's Day," Sunday, is for Christians?
Answer:
The Sabbath was never designated as "only for the Jews," unless those who obey God are considered as Jews. Through the ages, it was usually ONLY the Jews who were faithful enough to even attempt to obey God, including keeping the Fourth Commandment, the Seventh day of the week, the Sabbath, as God's Own Holy Day; however, through the ages, there have always been small pockets of Christians who have remained faithful, who have done their best to obey God, and Keep His Commandments, out of love for Jesus. The Sabbath and The Lord's Day are the same thing, the Seventh day of the week, commonly known as Saturday. It is only the man-made laws of tradition that has called "Sunday" the "Lord's Day," as the Bible certainly never does. In fact, in many places Yahweh calls "The Sabbath," His Own Holy Day, He actually calls it "My day." The Sabbath is the Lord's Day, and the Lord's Day is the Sabbath.
Question:
Is it still a sin to work on Saturday, or to do your own thing, do your own pleasures?
Answer:
The Sabbath is eternal, and God does not change, and Saturday is the Sabbath, God's Own Holy Day, it has been thus since the Creation of the world, and before for eternity in Heaven, and will be forever as well in Heaven, and on the New Earth. We are supposed to rest on the Seventh day, Sabbath. Working on Sabbath is a sin; however, Jesus did state that helping others is an acceptable form of work, or helping animals, doing good. And the Sabbath is about DELIGHT, so it is not wrong to be happy on the Sabbath, or to do things that bring us pleasure, but they should be things that draw us closer to God, spiritual things, and they should not be our everyday common things that we do for fun, or for work, or for excitement. The Sabbath is for "turning your mind to God," a special date that Yahweh Himself has set up for us to meet Him, for us to meditate on Him, for us to REST in Him. Save your Friday nights for time with Jesus, and spend all the rest of the next day with Him, resting (it is a pretty great deal!).
Question:
If my boss makes me work on Sunday, am I sinning?
Answer:
You can work on Sunday with a clear conscience. It is not a sin to work on Sunday, and doing your own pleasures is fine, as well. Sunday has become the "selfish day" in almost all cultures, even "Christianity." If you don't have to go to a job on Sunday, spend the day getting your work done around the house, in the yard, and get your shopping done.
Question:
Can I go to the store on Saturday, is it a sin?
Answer:
The Sabbath should not be a shopping day or a "day as usual." However, if you have an emergency, or find that there is something you require for your children, there is no sin in "buying" on the Sabbath, just so long as it is not a usual thing, your common practice. The Sabbath is to be set apart, special, and for God. It is best to prepare for the Sabbath, especially on Friday, which in the Bible is called the Preparation Day. Gas up the car, do your shopping, and all other forms of business BEFORE the Sabbath, which begins Friday night at sundown. The key is to plan ahead, and if you are new to God's Own Holy Day, it will seem confusing at first, but think ahead, look forward to the Sabbath, and it will become a natural practice to get all your work done before the Sabbath begins. The Sabbath is not about hardship, or frowning, or sadness, or fasting. The Sabbath is a day about DELIGHT, set apart by God Himself. He gave us His Own Holy Day, and He told us we should enjoy the Sabbath, even as we enjoy Him.
Question:
Aren't there just too many rules about the Sabbath? Isn't it too hard to keep?
Answer:
Biblically, there are not many rules concerning the Sabbath. Set the Sabbath apart, don't think your own usual thoughts, don't do you own usual activities, don't focus on making money or profiting, but concentrate on God, and REST. Take delight in the rest that God gives to you, as the Sabbath is a gift directly from God. Pray to God more on the Sabbath, and ask Him to direct you, lead you, guide you. Trust in God, and His wisdom, and allow the Sabbath to permeate your being. From Friday night sunset until the sun sets on Saturday night, bask in the Sanctuary of Time that God has given you as a gift. God gives good gifts, not gifts of hardship. Glory in God. Rest in God. Come to Jesus the Messiah, Yahshua Mashiach, and accept his REST. As for you and your family, SERVE YAHWEH, and set aside all the man-made laws and traditions that are vain to God and His worship. Give yourself a break, the Sabbath. God did! So should you!
Question:
Can I know which day is the Sabbath? Maybe Saturday really isn't the Sabbath? Maybe Monday is really the seventh day of the week. How can we go all the way back to creation?
Answer:
You don't have to go back to creation. Just go to Jesus, Yahshua Mashiach. The Bible says it was His tradition to keep the Sabbath holy, that He is Lord of the Sabbath, and even kept the seventh day holy in death, as the tomb was empty as early as before dawn on Sunday morning, the first day of the week. If we know which day is the first day, we know which day is the seventh. The days of the week have never been changed. The order of the days have never been changed. Sunday has always been Sunday, a common day of the week, before and after the death and resurrection of Jesus, and the Sabbath has always been the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week, a holy day, no, THE holy day, and any attempt to switch, change, alter or amend God's Own Holy Day, the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week, is utter deception, a sin, and an abomination to God. (Note: go to church on Sunday, and enjoy your time, and worship God with a clear and clean heart, but do not call Sunday the Sabbath, or try to change God's Own Holy Day. Keep the Sabbath, the seventh day, and go to church on any or every day of the week.) You can go to church on Sunday, and you can work on Sunday, as Sunday is the first day of the week, and was never proclaimed holy. The seventh day is holy, and should be kept holy, and no work should be done on Saturday, the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week.
Question:
What about the "lost day" at the time of Joshua? Wasn't a day lost, and so Sunday is now Saturday, or Sunday is now the Sabbath? When God stopped the sun, didn't this change the days of the week?
Answer:
Only in viral e-mail intelligence can anyone believe even a hint of such nonsense. Such an idea is not only absurd, but the concept hints that Jesus didn't know the day of the week, since He kept the seventh day Sabbath, AFTER the day of Joshua! And the deceivers who push this fraudulent lie are the ones that demand that you keep the FIRST day of the week holy! Do you see the jibe in this? If you believe Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week, then why attempt to push nonsense that Jesus changed the day, due to the sun standing still in the day of Joshua?
We do not know how God performed the miracle in Joshua's day, holding the sun still. We DO know that the sun does not go around the Earth, it only appears to move in the sky. In reality, the Earth travels around the sun, and the Earth is spinning itself which provides the illusion of the sun moving in the sky (as we are on a rotating orb, although to us it appears that we are not moving, and that the sun is moving). Obviously, God did not stop the spin of the Earth, and nowhere does the Bible even remotely suggest that God somehow affected the spin of the Earth (stopping the Earth would have destroyed the globe, and everything on it). In His mysterious way, God (the very Creator of light, and the sun, Who said: "Let there be light" even before the creation of the sun, or the dividing of night and day) provided a longer day. He did not add extra days, or take a day away, but lengthened one day without affecting the days of the week. It is entirely possible God had a group of angels shining in the place of the sun until the battle was concluded, which in no way affects time.
Ways to aid this ministry include praying for this site www.TruthSeek.net, www.DeceivingtheElect.net, and www.DramaticParables.com, donations and provision may be gifted using the TruthSeekGift page (and please only use this if you feel you are inspired by God to do so), and also feel free to use the Prayer Request page to submit prayer requests, and praying for the prayer requests of others, as well as exploring the various advertisements and links on these pages (regrettably, the advertising is necessary to recompense the many costs of keeping a website running, so exploration of the advertisers, which are not connected to any of these studies, is greatly appreciated). Any aid is joyously accepted, even if that means a smile and a well-wish. Thank you so much!
Art et Amour Toujours
