Q:   Why is church held on Sunday? If God rested on the seventh day, why isn't church on Saturday? Wasn't the day of rest the Sabbath? Also, why do Jews go to temple on Saturday?

A:   Our English word "sabbath" originates from the Hebrew word SHABATH, which appears 191 times in the Old Testament. The primary meaning of the word in its verb form is to cease; in its noun form it is a ceasing. It carries the idea of desisting, resting, ending a work, a termination, a causing to fail, and even a resting place. It first appears in Gen 2:2 translated "rested:" "...and he rested on the seventh day...." In the verse that follows, God sanctifies that day, that is, He sets it apart in a special way. However, nothing more is said about it until the exodus.

It is during the gathering of manna that we first see the word used to indicate a religious observance for those wilderness wanderers: "then he said to them, 'This is what the LORD meant: Tomorrow is a sabbath observance, a holy sabbath to the LORD. Bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over put aside to be kept until morning'" (Exodus 16:23). There, we begin to see that God's intended observation of this day involves rest from labor. Some time later God establishes this as a divine ordinance within the covenant of Moses, explaining how the day was hallowed at creation by God resting on the seventh day (Exodus 20:8-11).

From antiquity, the passing of time has been observed by periods of sevens (Gen 7: 4, 10; 8:10, 12; 29:27). It seems, incidentally, to be a profound testimony to creationism. From the very first week, man has marked time by weeks, even by those not under the Law of Moses. So today, our weeks consist of seven days, just like the six days of creation plus one in which God rested. The seventh day, that is, the last day of the week, is clearly identified in Scripture as the Sabbath day. It is the day we call "Saturday."

Observance of the Sabbath was limited to those under the law of Moses: the Nation of Israel. Gentiles, or non-Jews, were given no such divine ordinance to keep the Sabbath day holy. We are today under a new covenant. The Hebrew writer explains at length that, as we are now under a new covenant, the former covenant, that is, the Law of Moses, is made obsolete:

Many other passages deal with the old covenant being no longer in effect. The book of Galatians almost entirely deals with this. Galatians 4:22-5:1 tells an allegory regarding Abraham's two sons. The sons represent the covenants. Isaac, the son of promise, represents the covenant of Christ. Ishmael, the son of bondage, represents the covenant of Moses, of which, he says "cast out the bondwoman and her son," that is, to be no longer under obligation to observe the Law of Moses. Along with Sabbath observance, the Law of Moses required animal sacrifices, circumcision, tithing, and many other special observances and ceremonies which are no longer required in Christ. The letter to the Galatians makes clear in particular that circumcision is no longer a requirement. The Gentile Christians who were coming into the church in those early days had not been keeping the Mosaical ordinances, and they were not required to do so to become Christians (Acts 15:23-29). Neither are we.

Moreover, Paul writes to the same effect to the Colossians and specifically mentions the Sabbath observance as an ordinance set aside under Christ:

This matter is largely misunderstood today. Many people are upset that the ten commandments are removed from our public schools. However, the ten commandments were part of the Law of Moses, and as such, we are not actually under them today. Before thinking us heretics, bear in mind that nine of the ten commandments are reiterated in the New Covenant. Notably, the command to observe the Sabbath is not. Nevertheless, it is sad to see the indication of a lack of moral and spiritual concern that characterizes our public schools today.

Now, if Sabbath observance is no longer a binding ordinance in Christ, then, to restate your question, what are we required to observe today? Let's turn to the New Testament scriptures to find the answer. As we follow the journeys of the apostle Paul, we see him, upon arriving at some new city, going to the synagogue on the Sabbath. The indication is clear that he does this not to observe the Sabbath as a Christian ordinance but simply because that is where he will find God-fearing Jews assembled, which would merely be, for him, ready-made audiences for gospel preaching (Acts 13:14-16).

As we look further in the book of Acts, we see Christians performing special worship activities on the first day of the week, which would be Sunday according to our calendars. First, note that Christians assemble together to observe the Lord's Supper on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7). Moreover, 1 Corinthians 16:1 reveals that the early church is also commanded to make contributions to a common treasury every first day of the week. These two functions have the special requirement that they are to be observed every first day of the week when the church gathers together in one place. The scriptures are otherwise silent regarding any collective church function being required on the Sabbath or even being connected with God's resting day in the creation week. Where the scriptures are silent, we have no command to act. This is why we conduct worship services to include communion and contributions on Sunday and not on Saturday.

Christians are also instructed to sing (Eph 5:19), to pray (1 Tim 2:8), and to teach (2 Tim 4:2). We see early Christians practicing these things freely whenever they wanted to. We are therefore happy to include these activities in our required first-day-of-the-week worship services.

Not being Jews religiously, we can only suppose why Jews or anyone else today would observe the Sabbath. A few possible reasons come to mind. One would be simply out of heritage and tradition. Jews historically observed the Sabbath in a special way, and if one would want to observe any day in a special way, he has every liberty to do so, as long as the Law of Christ is not violated in so doing. The apostle Paul, in fact, deals with this in some detail:

It needs to be pointed out that the premise of Romans 14 is those who are weak in the faith. Those who are weak may not yet understand that God no longer requires a cessation from work on Saturday. Nevertheless, if an individual so chooses not to work on Saturday, he does not sin - it is his liberty - as long as he does not try to bind it on others.

Another reason one might observe the Sabbath today is sadly because of a rejection of Christ. The scriptures are clear that those who deny Christ and refuse to submit to him in obedience are lost in their sins and have no hope of eternal life (John 8:24; 1 John 2:22-25).

Perhaps another reason some may observe the Sabbath today is ignorance. Not having an understanding of the covenants as explained in scripture, some go about serving Christ but doing so without His authority. Following the commandments of men is vain worship (Mark 7:7, 8). Sadly, this also is sin, and it will separate one from God (2 John 9).

We therefore need to be teaching on this subject, and it is a very good thing that you asked. We hope this helps.