The Sabbath Day
Following the teaching of the Bible, the World Mission Society Church of God observes the Sabbath day on Saturdays. The Sabbath day is the day that God rested from His creation work and the day He blessed and made holy. Throughout the Bible, God teaches that the seventh day, Saturday, is the day to receive His blessing.
Sabbath Day to Commemorate God the Creator
The Sabbath day is a memorial day in honor of God the Creator, as well as a day of rest. After creating the heavens and the earth, God rested on the seventh day. He then blessed the day and set it apart as holy to let us know it is on the seventh day we receive blessings and holiness from God.
Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Genesis 2:1-3
Because the seventh day is the day that God chose, God’s people should observe this day in commemoration of their Creator. God also codified this teaching in the Ten Commandments; the fourth commandment is to remember and keep the seventh-day Sabbath.
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and earth, the sea and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”
Exodus 20:8-11
Although it may seem like common sense, it’s important for God’s people to clearly understand the seventh day. Otherwise, we may observe a different day and not the Sabbath day, consequently missing out on God’s blessing.
Which Day of the Week Is the Sabbath Day?
“…the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God.”
Exodus 20:10
Even through something as common as a calendar, we can see that Saturday (not Sunday, as commonly thought) is the seventh day of the week. It is the same with the dictionary.
In other words, Saturday is the Sabbath day, when God blesses us and makes us holy. This is the day to commemorate the power of our Creator God.
Definition of Sunday: The first day of the week.
Definition of Saturday: The seventh day of the week.
The Bible conclusively shows that the Sabbath day is Saturday.
Saturday evening, when the Sabbath ended, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome went out and purchased burial spices so they could anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on Sunday morning, just at sunrise, they went to the tomb.
Mark 16:1-2 (NLT)
Christ and the Apostles Kept the Sabbath Day
Jesus’ custom was to keep the seventh-day Sabbath. This is the example He left for us to follow.
He [Jesus] 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 scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him.
Luke 4:16-17
Even after Jesus’ crucifixion, the Early Church continued to keep Saturday as the worship day, just as God commanded.
As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures.
Acts 17:2
Every Sabbath he reasoned in the synagogue…
Acts 18:4
The Abolition of Saturday as the Day of Worship
Until the fourth century, the Christians of the Early Church continued the observance of Saturday Sabbath, following the command of God. However, an edict by Roman Emperor Constantine caused a change in this practice.
“When in 321 Constantine made the first day of the week a holiday, he called it ‘the venerable day of the Sun’ (Sunday).”
The History of Christianity, Tim Dowley – Lion Pub. – 1990
In his edict, Roman Emperor Constantine made Sunday the official day of rest and worship for both Christians and sun-god worshipers alike:
“On the venerable day of the Sun let the magistrates and people residing in cities rest, and let all workshops be closed.”
History of the Christian Church, Philip Schaff – New York: Charles Scribner – 1867
More than 16 centuries later, Christians still observe Sunday as the day of rest and worship despite its pagan roots. God created the Sabbath day for His people to commemorate the Creator while receiving God’s blessings.
The World Mission Society Church of God believes in God’s promised blessings to those who keep the Sabbath day holy. Visit your local Church of God to learn more about the teachings of Christ through the Bible and experience the Sabbath day for yourself.