What is the Sabbath, and which day is it?

The Church & Christian LifeIn theological review

The short answer

The Sabbath is God's gift of rest built into creation and commanded to Israel as the seventh day, a sign of the covenant, pointing to the rest God gives his people. Christians differ over its day and form: some keep Saturday as Sabbath, most worship on Sunday, the day of the resurrection, and some, reading Paul on days, treat the principle of rest without binding one day. The main readings are set out fairly below.

The fuller answer

The root is creation itself. God finished his work, rested on the seventh day, blessed that day and made it holy, before any law, nation or covenant existed. Exodus then builds the pattern into Israel's life as the fourth commandment: six days of labour, a seventh of rest for the whole household, servants and animals included, grounded once in creation and elsewhere in Israel's rescue from slavery in Egypt. Jesus, centuries later, insists the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath, and claims lordship over it, correcting the ways religious rule keeping had turned a gift into a burden that crushed the people it was meant to refresh.

Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on that day He rested from all the work of creation that He had accomplished.

Genesis 2:3 (BSB)

The Saturday reading is straightforward. The seventh day never changed in Scripture, the commandment is one of the ten, and Jesus and his first followers, all Jewish, kept it; therefore, this reading holds, Christians should still rest and worship from Friday sunset to Saturday, as Seventh day Adventists and Seventh day Baptists do. The Sunday reading answers that the resurrection changed the church's rhythm: Jesus rose on the first day, appeared to his gathered disciples on that day, and the church at Troas met on the first day of the week to break bread, a pattern the churches have followed since the earliest generations, calling it the Lord's day.

Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.

Exodus 20:8 (BSB)

A third reading leans on Paul: one person esteems one day above another, another esteems all days alike, and each should be convinced in his own mind; on this reading the Sabbath's substance, rest in Christ and gathered worship, is binding, while the calendar day is left to conscience. What no reading may do is despise the gift itself. A people that never stops, never gathers and never trusts God with a day of its week has lost something creation deep, whichever day it names. Decide by the texts, keep your conviction with humility toward the other readings, and make sure the day you keep actually contains rest, mercy and worship.

Then Jesus declared, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

Mark 2:27 (BSB)

Mark preserves the saying that keeps every reading honest about the Sabbath's purpose: the Sabbath was made for man's benefit, not man for the Sabbath, as Jesus insisted while defending his hungry disciples for plucking grain on the day. A gift made for man is received with gratitude, guarded against the work that would swallow it, and shared generously, which is why the command always included servants, animals and strangers. Any keeping of any day that produces pride, anxiety or contempt for other Christians has failed Jesus' test, however accurate its calendar. The day is for rest, mercy and God; measure yours by those three.

Sources

Berean Standard Bible (BSB)

Review status: in-theological-review. Every Contend page passes a human theological review against the Statement of Faith before it is published as approved teaching. This section is in that queue.

Dig deeper

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Should Christians celebrate Christmas and Easter?Yes, Christians are free to celebrate Christmas and Easter, and free not to; Scripture treats days of this kind as a matter of conscience. Paul says one person esteems one day above another and another esteems all days alike, and that each should be fully convinced in his own mind, honouring the Lord either way. What is not permitted is judging or despising a brother over it.What is worship?Worship is the response God is owed and his people are made for: honouring him in spirit and in truth, with the whole of life, not only with songs. Jesus told the Samaritan woman that the Father seeks worshippers who worship in spirit and truth. Paul calls believers to offer their bodies, their ordinary lives, as a living sacrifice. Singing is one part of that larger offering.Why should I go to church?Because the Christian faith was never designed to be lived alone, and the Bible says so in terms of habit and health, not preference. The first believers devoted themselves to teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayer, together. Hebrews warns against neglecting to meet, not because God needs attendance figures, but because encouragement needs a room, a table, and other people.What is the church?The church is the people of God, not a building, a brand, or an audience. Jesus called it my church, promised to build it himself, and the first picture of it is a community devoted to the apostles' teaching, to fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer. If you belong to Christ, you already belong to his church. The local congregation is where that belonging takes flesh.Bible Character: MosesThe prophet who led Israel out of slavery in Egypt, received the Law on Mount Sinai, and brought the people to the edge of Canaan.Bible Character: JesusThe Son of God, born of Mary in Bethlehem, who preached the kingdom of God, was crucified for our sins according to the Scriptures, and was raised on the third day.