What do we think of Sunday?

Next question is Ayuda Pastoral is:



Should a Christian observe Sunday as God's day?  Does a New Testament believer still keep a day of rest,  or is it just a matter of personal preference?




A day of rest is a gift from God
God himself rested "from all his work" on the seventh day (Gen 2:2).  This indicates that not only the family and work are part of the pattern of creation,  but so is a weekly rest day.(Ex 20:8-11 cf Gen 2:14-15).  As such it is a gift from God from the time of creation for the benefit of humanity: "the LORD has given you the Sabbath; (Ex 16:29). And in New Testament times Christ stated:   "The Sabbath was made for man"  (Mark 2:27). 
 
Ceremonial laws about the Sabbath belong to Judaism
God gave to the nation of Israel moral, civil and ceremonial laws.    The civil laws concerned the ordering of society,  for example about slavery (Ex 21:1-11) and the protection of property (Ex.  22:1-15).  The ceremonial ones were to do with worship such as the various kinds of offerings (Lev 1-7).  During the intertestamental period the Jews started to add their own traditions to Israel's legal system,  particularly concerning the Sabbath (Mark 7:5).   So that even Jesus was accused by them of breaking that day (John 5:9,10,18).

Moral laws are still applicable to Christians
But there are moral laws that are applicable for all time,  such as honouring parents or not murdering (Ex  20:8-13 cp.  Mark  7:9-13, Matt.  5:21-22).    The weekly rest day is one of these ,  although in remembrance of the resurrection of Christ it has changed from the Saturday to the Sunday  (Rev 1:10,  Acts 20:7).

Sunday exists for our benefit
The Christian Sunday is not one involving human rules (Col 2:16,  Gal 4:9-10) but is called the day of the Lord (Rev 1:10).  It is a time to celebrate the resurrection (John 20:1, 19) and the coming of the Spirit (Acts 2:1).   It is a time of renewal (Ex 20:8-11) and of blessing (Matt 12:9-14).  So observing Sunday becomes a delight (Is 58:13).  

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