Your argument for Sunday worship hinges on post-resurrection theological development rather than biblical commandment. However, from a biblical perspective, the shift from the seventh-day Sabbath to Sunday is not rooted in scriptural authority but in later ecclesiastical decisions influenced by Constantine and the early church fathers—both of whom operated outside the Jewish and apostolic framework of Yeshua and His disciples. Let’s examine this logically and biblically:
1. The Sabbath Was Instituted by God, Not Man
The seventh-day Sabbath was established at creation (Genesis 2:2-3) and codified in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:8-11). Unlike ceremonial laws, which were fulfilled in Messiah, the Sabbath is a creation ordinance, set apart as holy by God Himself. Yeshua upheld the Torah (Matthew 5:17-19), and there is no biblical record of Him abolishing or changing the Sabbath.
2. The Apostles Continued to Observe the Sabbath
Contrary to the claim that the apostles affirmed Sunday as the “Lord’s Day,” the New Testament shows them observing the seventh-day Sabbath:
• Acts 17:2 – Paul’s custom was to go to the synagogue on the Sabbath.
• Acts 18:4 – He reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath.
• Luke 23:56 – Even after Messiah’s death, His followers “rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment.”
The few mentions of the first day of the week (e.g., Acts 20:7, 1 Corinthians 16:2) do not establish it as a new Sabbath or a commanded day of worship. These were specific events, not a theological shift.
3. The Shift to Sunday Was Man-Made, Post-Biblical, and Politically Motivated
The transition from Sabbath to Sunday worship was formalized under Constantine in the fourth century. He decreed Sunday as the day of rest in A.D. 321, aligning with Roman sun worship. The early church fathers—who distanced themselves from Jewish believers—further institutionalized this shift. However, man-made traditions do not override God’s commands (Mark 7:7-9).
4. The New Covenant Does Not Abolish the Sabbath
While Messiah fulfilled the Law, He did not negate the moral commandments, including Sabbath observance. Hebrews 4:9 affirms that a “Sabbath-rest” remains for God’s people. Paul’s writings (Romans 14:5, Colossians 2:16) address legalistic judgments, not the annulment of the Sabbath itself.
Conclusion: A Return to the Biblical Standard
Sunday worship as a replacement for the Sabbath is not a biblical doctrine but a historical development rooted in post-apostolic tradition. If we are to follow Yeshua and the apostles, we must return to the divinely instituted Sabbath rather than man-made alterations. The true “heartbeat of the gospel” is obedience to God’s commands, not alignment with ecclesiastical tradition
Would you rather follow God’s ordained Sabbath or a tradition established centuries after the apostles?
To begin, thank you for leaving such a detailed an impassioned argument to my post in my comments. I gladly appreciate the feedback and to hear an alternate view.
Next, let me counter argue your points.
1. No argument here. God established a Sabbath Day for rest. Jesus also said that God made the Sabbath for man, not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27).
2. Your references to Paul visiting Jews in their Synagogues on the Sabbath actually bolsters my argument. Paul was a Jew. He greatly desired to convert Jews as he states in Romans 9:3. In order to convert Jews, he visited the Jewish Synagogues then presumably he was successful because he made this his custom. It is important here to understand that meeting Jews in the synagogues on was not the adherence to Mosaic Law, but an attempt to convert them to acceptance of the Jewish messiah. The members of the Church of Christ were not all meeting in synagogues but in house churches. This would presume that they couldn't meet on the actual Sabbath because that was the day that the outreach was happening.
3. I offered multiple biblical and non-biblical examples of Christians observing Sunday (the first day of the week) as the day of worship that precede Constantine. The earliest is the Didache at 60AD which was two centuries before Constantine and contemporary to living witnesses of Christ. This is in addition to the references in the letters of Luke and Paul.
4. My arguments in this post are not intended to change the day of rest as decreed in God's Law, I am simply arguing that Sunday worship is an honoring and remembrance of the Lord's resurrection. I personally hold to the mosaic observance of the Sabbath in addition to worship of my Messiah on Sunday.
The main point of my article at the end was this: every day is a great day to worship the Lord.
God bless you and keep you, may His face shine upon you and give you peace!
Thank you James for engaging in this rich conversation. I tried to comment but it would not let me, thus the restack. You have brought up compelling points that merit a genuine and thoughtful response.
As we consider the transformation of the Mosaic Law in light of Jesus’ teachings, it’s key to recognize the depth of what “fulfillment” actually means in Matthew 5:17. Jesus brings the Law to its full expression, not by abolishing it, but by embodying its true purpose through love. ( It's all about the why we obey, not the law itself)
When we examine the roles of Sabbath and Sunday worship, it’s extremely crucial to understand their distinct core meanings and values. The Sabbath is a divine commandment, a sacred time set apart for rest and reflection. Sunday, on the other hand, is rooted in human tradition, established to honor Jesus’ resurrection. Historically, Constantine’s 321 AD decree for Sunday as a day of rest framed a legal precedent that shaped Christian worship practices and has sadly replaced a very special day, from the beginning of time I might add, God set the example.
In all reality, these two days should never be merged or seen as interchangeable or replaceable on merit or practice. Each has its unique significance: the Sabbath remains a commandment, while Sunday emerges from human effort to engage worshipfully. They should stand distinct and not replace one another, preserving the integrity and meaning each day brings to our spiritual lives.
You might enjoy a discussion about Paul’s Jewish identity on my Restack with D Papa, which adds depth to this topic.
Take care, and may God’s peace and wisdom be with you on your journey!
There really isn’t any…. They gathered daily in the temple…the covenants overlapped by 70 years from the birth of John to the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple in 70AD
Catholicism gave us Sun-day Worship, indisputable. They gave us a lot of paganism boxed up as christianity.
Hebrews is the authority on the matter… we have an altar they cannot partake of, a rest that was beyond a day in Christ Jesus. I am complete in Him.
Throughly studied it out… at one time I even kept Saturday as Sabbath… it grieved my spirit. The new covenant has nothing physical… it’s all inward. Jesus is my sabbath
That’s actually the point of my post 😇 For those who take issue with Church on Sunday, there is a Biblical basis for worship on Sunday as the first Christian’s met in that day to worship the risen Christ on the Lord’s day but ultimately the “rest” or “sabbath” is only obtained through a relationship of rest in Christ.
Agreed but that is an out of context proof text, they met every day with no regard to a special day. So where it says on the first day or the week it could also say 2nd or 5th
As I said, having done extensive study , Jesus is the sabbath.
If I remember correctly , it’s the end of the second century, in an effort to pull away from Judaism and put some distance between the two that it became popular to me on the velnerable day of the sun.
I will try to get a chance to read your article . Sounds like we’re kind on the same page.
Christians in the West have become very Pharisaical in the last few hundred years. It is starting to shift slightly back towards the grace of Christ, but healing is slow business.
Your argument for Sunday worship hinges on post-resurrection theological development rather than biblical commandment. However, from a biblical perspective, the shift from the seventh-day Sabbath to Sunday is not rooted in scriptural authority but in later ecclesiastical decisions influenced by Constantine and the early church fathers—both of whom operated outside the Jewish and apostolic framework of Yeshua and His disciples. Let’s examine this logically and biblically:
1. The Sabbath Was Instituted by God, Not Man
The seventh-day Sabbath was established at creation (Genesis 2:2-3) and codified in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:8-11). Unlike ceremonial laws, which were fulfilled in Messiah, the Sabbath is a creation ordinance, set apart as holy by God Himself. Yeshua upheld the Torah (Matthew 5:17-19), and there is no biblical record of Him abolishing or changing the Sabbath.
2. The Apostles Continued to Observe the Sabbath
Contrary to the claim that the apostles affirmed Sunday as the “Lord’s Day,” the New Testament shows them observing the seventh-day Sabbath:
• Acts 17:2 – Paul’s custom was to go to the synagogue on the Sabbath.
• Acts 18:4 – He reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath.
• Luke 23:56 – Even after Messiah’s death, His followers “rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment.”
The few mentions of the first day of the week (e.g., Acts 20:7, 1 Corinthians 16:2) do not establish it as a new Sabbath or a commanded day of worship. These were specific events, not a theological shift.
3. The Shift to Sunday Was Man-Made, Post-Biblical, and Politically Motivated
The transition from Sabbath to Sunday worship was formalized under Constantine in the fourth century. He decreed Sunday as the day of rest in A.D. 321, aligning with Roman sun worship. The early church fathers—who distanced themselves from Jewish believers—further institutionalized this shift. However, man-made traditions do not override God’s commands (Mark 7:7-9).
4. The New Covenant Does Not Abolish the Sabbath
While Messiah fulfilled the Law, He did not negate the moral commandments, including Sabbath observance. Hebrews 4:9 affirms that a “Sabbath-rest” remains for God’s people. Paul’s writings (Romans 14:5, Colossians 2:16) address legalistic judgments, not the annulment of the Sabbath itself.
Conclusion: A Return to the Biblical Standard
Sunday worship as a replacement for the Sabbath is not a biblical doctrine but a historical development rooted in post-apostolic tradition. If we are to follow Yeshua and the apostles, we must return to the divinely instituted Sabbath rather than man-made alterations. The true “heartbeat of the gospel” is obedience to God’s commands, not alignment with ecclesiastical tradition
Would you rather follow God’s ordained Sabbath or a tradition established centuries after the apostles?
To begin, thank you for leaving such a detailed an impassioned argument to my post in my comments. I gladly appreciate the feedback and to hear an alternate view.
Next, let me counter argue your points.
1. No argument here. God established a Sabbath Day for rest. Jesus also said that God made the Sabbath for man, not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27).
2. Your references to Paul visiting Jews in their Synagogues on the Sabbath actually bolsters my argument. Paul was a Jew. He greatly desired to convert Jews as he states in Romans 9:3. In order to convert Jews, he visited the Jewish Synagogues then presumably he was successful because he made this his custom. It is important here to understand that meeting Jews in the synagogues on was not the adherence to Mosaic Law, but an attempt to convert them to acceptance of the Jewish messiah. The members of the Church of Christ were not all meeting in synagogues but in house churches. This would presume that they couldn't meet on the actual Sabbath because that was the day that the outreach was happening.
3. I offered multiple biblical and non-biblical examples of Christians observing Sunday (the first day of the week) as the day of worship that precede Constantine. The earliest is the Didache at 60AD which was two centuries before Constantine and contemporary to living witnesses of Christ. This is in addition to the references in the letters of Luke and Paul.
4. My arguments in this post are not intended to change the day of rest as decreed in God's Law, I am simply arguing that Sunday worship is an honoring and remembrance of the Lord's resurrection. I personally hold to the mosaic observance of the Sabbath in addition to worship of my Messiah on Sunday.
The main point of my article at the end was this: every day is a great day to worship the Lord.
God bless you and keep you, may His face shine upon you and give you peace!
Thank you James for engaging in this rich conversation. I tried to comment but it would not let me, thus the restack. You have brought up compelling points that merit a genuine and thoughtful response.
As we consider the transformation of the Mosaic Law in light of Jesus’ teachings, it’s key to recognize the depth of what “fulfillment” actually means in Matthew 5:17. Jesus brings the Law to its full expression, not by abolishing it, but by embodying its true purpose through love. ( It's all about the why we obey, not the law itself)
When we examine the roles of Sabbath and Sunday worship, it’s extremely crucial to understand their distinct core meanings and values. The Sabbath is a divine commandment, a sacred time set apart for rest and reflection. Sunday, on the other hand, is rooted in human tradition, established to honor Jesus’ resurrection. Historically, Constantine’s 321 AD decree for Sunday as a day of rest framed a legal precedent that shaped Christian worship practices and has sadly replaced a very special day, from the beginning of time I might add, God set the example.
In all reality, these two days should never be merged or seen as interchangeable or replaceable on merit or practice. Each has its unique significance: the Sabbath remains a commandment, while Sunday emerges from human effort to engage worshipfully. They should stand distinct and not replace one another, preserving the integrity and meaning each day brings to our spiritual lives.
You might enjoy a discussion about Paul’s Jewish identity on my Restack with D Papa, which adds depth to this topic.
Take care, and may God’s peace and wisdom be with you on your journey!
Shalom...
There really isn’t any…. They gathered daily in the temple…the covenants overlapped by 70 years from the birth of John to the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple in 70AD
Catholicism gave us Sun-day Worship, indisputable. They gave us a lot of paganism boxed up as christianity.
Hebrews is the authority on the matter… we have an altar they cannot partake of, a rest that was beyond a day in Christ Jesus. I am complete in Him.
Read my article, you may discover something new about the subject 😇
Throughly studied it out… at one time I even kept Saturday as Sabbath… it grieved my spirit. The new covenant has nothing physical… it’s all inward. Jesus is my sabbath
That’s actually the point of my post 😇 For those who take issue with Church on Sunday, there is a Biblical basis for worship on Sunday as the first Christian’s met in that day to worship the risen Christ on the Lord’s day but ultimately the “rest” or “sabbath” is only obtained through a relationship of rest in Christ.
Agreed but that is an out of context proof text, they met every day with no regard to a special day. So where it says on the first day or the week it could also say 2nd or 5th
As I said, having done extensive study , Jesus is the sabbath.
If I remember correctly , it’s the end of the second century, in an effort to pull away from Judaism and put some distance between the two that it became popular to me on the velnerable day of the sun.
I will try to get a chance to read your article . Sounds like we’re kind on the same page.
Christians in the West have become very Pharisaical in the last few hundred years. It is starting to shift slightly back towards the grace of Christ, but healing is slow business.