Saturday sabbath or Sunday-does it matter?

[JohnH]

Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath and also fulfilled it, and released us from a law of bondage concerning it. We continue to obey God’s command to remember the Sabbath to keep it holy.

[Bootstrap]

You seem to be saying that God commands a day of rest, and we need to treat it as a command. Which day? For whom? Where?

Really? I don't think my comment suggests anything of the sort. You said that the Sabbath was made for man. Were you meaning that God commands a day of rest? If so, which day? For whom? Where?

I thought I answered these questions in the post you quoted, and then asked how you would answer them. Maybe I wasn’t as clear as I hoped—which questions do you feel I didn’t answer clearly?

Jesus said the Sabbath was made for man. I was simply quoting him. From what I see in the passage, he was referring to the Saturday Sabbath given to the Jews. I don’t find in Scripture that Sunday is called the new Sabbath, but I do see the New Testament highlighting the Lord’s Day, Sunday, as a time for fellowship, worship, and teaching—and we are encouraged not to neglect that. I also believe this reflects the practice of the Apostolic Church.

I’d really value hearing how you would answer the questions you quoted. That would help me better understand your perspective, since it seems you are defending a particular view that hasn’t yet been stated directly.

[Praxis+Theodicy]

For me, observance of a sabbath (day of rest) includes a few things:

1) Not laboring for profit or expecting others to labor for profit. As a rule, I try to avoid using currency on my day of rest. Flat-Out. Make sure my car has a full tank of gas on Saturday. Make sure we have the groceries we need for the weekend. Etc. I will not frequent restaurants, grocery stores, or any other services on Sunday. I will work, but I will either do so (A) without pay, or, if this is unavoidable, (B) attempt to donate my pay back to the payer, or, if that fails, (C) donate all my Sunday Earnings to the church or some sort of Kingdom cause.
I currently work in a hospital that requires working a weekend about once every 6-8 weeks. I spent some time just not clocking in until I got caught. Now I just keep track of what I earn and put that much to the common fund of the church.
If I need something, I will attempt to "ask" for it before I "pay" for it. Ill even offer to do some work for someone on another day in exchange for some food or toiletries or something. I consider the chance to establish a relational means of exchange better than using currency to get what I want quickly and easily.

2) I consider the day of rest to also be a day of community. If my church community was convicted to practice Saturday as a day of rest and togetherness, I'd choose Saturday. As it is, we spend time together on Sunday. I don't think my sabbath is for me to spend time by myself. Currently, in my life, I need a community to remind me of the purpose to which I am aiming. I need to see that we are doing that together. My sabbath is spent in rest and comfort with my brothers and sister. I'm very introverted, and if I spent a day "to myself," I might feel more "rested" in a certain sense, but after spending years of my life like that, I know for a fact that finding comfort in community is much healthier than being comfortable with myself alone.

3) The sabbath is also a day to be reminded of the gospel. The good news of Jesus the King is the story around which I center my life. The implications around the reality that story tells are what we (the community, see #2) rehearse and remind ourselves of on Sunday. Through meditations, preaching, teaching, prayer, singing, and prophesying, we encourage, exhort, and remind each other of our shared purpose. Call this "worship" if you want, and my sabbath (Sunday) is a day of rest and also of worship.

[JohnH]

Where I get confused is redefining the “sabbath” as Sunday. As far as I can tell the Reformers are the ones that pushed this.

[Thomas_muntzer]

When God created the universe I’m pretty sure he wasn’t using a Hebrew or Gregorian calendar.

Why does it matter which day is celebrated as the day of rest?
Please no politics or AI. Just your insights and thoughts are appreciated.

I think the important thing is to dedicate a day to the Lord and gather with our brothers and sisters. For me, it makes no difference whether we do it on Saturday or Sunday

[Bootstrap]

For me, observance of a sabbath (day of rest) includes a few things:

1) Not laboring for profit or expecting others to labor for profit. As a rule, I try to avoid using currency on my day of rest. Flat-Out. Make sure my car has a full tank of gas on Saturday. Make sure we have the groceries we need for the weekend. Etc. I will not frequent restaurants, grocery stores, or any other services on Sunday. I will work, but I will either do so (A) without pay, or, if this is unavoidable, (B) attempt to donate my pay back to the payer, or, if that fails, (C) donate all my Sunday Earnings to the church or some sort of Kingdom cause.
I currently work in a hospital that requires working a weekend about once every 6-8 weeks. I spent some time just not clocking in until I got caught. Now I just keep track of what I earn and put that much to the common fund of the church.
If I need something, I will attempt to "ask" for it before I "pay" for it. Ill even offer to do some work for someone on another day in exchange for some food or toiletries or something. I consider the chance to establish a relational means of exchange better than using currency to get what I want quickly and easily.

I hear you emphasizing three things: (1) avoiding profit and transactional relationships, (2) practicing rest in community, and (3) centering the day around the gospel. Those are beautiful convictions.

I’m curious how you see the line between Scripture’s teaching and church application. For example, you mentioned that you’d gladly practice Saturday if that’s where your community landed. Do you see the command of Sabbath as binding on Gentiles, or do you see this more as wisdom that God built into human life (we all need rest, and community worship shapes us)?

2) I consider the day of rest to also be a day of community. If my church community was convicted to practice Saturday as a day of rest and togetherness, I'd choose Saturday. As it is, we spend time together on Sunday. I don't think my sabbath is for me to spend time by myself. Currently, in my life, I need a community to remind me of the purpose to which I am aiming. I need to see that we are doing that together. My sabbath is spent in rest and comfort with my brothers and sister. I'm very introverted, and if I spent a day "to myself," I might feel more "rested" in a certain sense, but after spending years of my life like that, I know for a fact that finding comfort in community is much healthier than being comfortable with myself alone.

On some Sundays, I may preach, go to a potluck, and have a church meeting that lasts until I also resonate with what you said about community. For me, Sundays are full—sometimes preaching, sometimes potluck and meetings. By the end of the day I’m tired, yet I still think it’s about worship, fellowship, and being shaped together. That’s also why I don’t mind if a nurse in our church takes another day for physical rest, as long as Sunday still centers them in worship.

Do you think that kind of application misses the mark, or do you see space for that in the way different churches practice The Lord's Day? Do you think The Lord's Day can legitimately be called Sabbath?

3) The sabbath is also a day to be reminded of the gospel. The good news of Jesus the King is the story around which I center my life. The implications around the reality that story tells are what we (the community, see #2) rehearse and remind ourselves of on Sunday. Through meditations, preaching, teaching, prayer, singing, and prophesying, we encourage, exhort, and remind each other of our shared purpose. Call this "worship" if you want, and my sabbath (Sunday) is a day of rest and also of worship.

I love your point about the gospel being central—that really gets to the heart of it. For me, that’s also where I see the difference between the Jewish Sabbath and the Christian Lord’s Day.

As I understand it, the Sabbath was a covenant command for Israel, marked by strict rest. The Lord’s Day is about celebrating Christ’s resurrection and being renewed by the gospel. That’s why worship, fellowship, and teaching are central—it’s less about Old Testament restrictions and more about Christ’s fulfillment: a day set apart for the gospel, for God’s people, and for renewal together.

[ken_sylvania]

You seem to be saying that God commands a day of rest, and we need to treat it as a command. Which day? For whom? Where?

Really? I don't think my comment suggests anything of the sort. You said that the Sabbath was made for man. Were you meaning that God commands a day of rest? If so, which day? For whom? Where?

I thought I answered these questions in the post you quoted, and then asked how you would answer them. Maybe I wasn’t as clear as I hoped—which questions do you feel I didn’t answer clearly?

Jesus said the Sabbath was made for man. I was simply quoting him. From what I see in the passage, he was referring to the Saturday Sabbath given to the Jews. I don’t find in Scripture that Sunday is called the new Sabbath, but I do see the New Testament highlighting the Lord’s Day, Sunday, as a time for fellowship, worship, and teaching—and we are encouraged not to neglect that. I also believe this reflects the practice of the Apostolic Church.

I’d really value hearing how you would answer the questions you quoted. That would help me better understand your perspective, since it seems you are defending a particular view that hasn’t yet been stated directly.

You said that you think there is wisdom in finding time to rest, but the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. In that context, were you meaning to say that the Sabbath was made for the Jews, not the Jews for the Sabbath? If so, the thought seems thoroughly disjointed. What possible relevance does the Jewish Sabbath have to your practice of worship and finding time to rest? I thought you were saying that you wisdom in finding time to rest, but that because God gave a day of rest for man's benefit that therefore you don't consider strict observance of a day of rest to be highly important. Did I misunderstand you?

[Bootstrap]

I’d really value hearing how you would answer the questions you quoted. That would help me better understand your perspective, since it seems you are defending a particular view that hasn’t yet been stated directly.

Brother, I may be misreading tone over text, but it feels like we’re talking past each other. I’m trying to state my thoughts plainly, even though that opens me up to being misunderstood or critiqued. I don’t mind that vulnerability if it helps us move toward truth together. What would really help me is if you could do the same—lay out your own convictions directly so we can both be part of the same cooperative search for truth.

It would help me if:

1. You ask clarifying questions when something I say isn’t clear.
2. You let me speak for myself rather than restating my views.
3. You share your own convictions directly, even if they differ from mine.

Let’s not keep going the way we have been. It’s no fun for either of us, and I think it makes the conversation harder for others to follow as well. I’d much rather we both lean in with openness when we discuss things.

And if you don’t care to answer my questions, then I may be working too hard to answer yours.

[Bootstrap]

You said that you think there is wisdom in finding time to rest, but the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. In that context, were you meaning to say that the Sabbath was made for the Jews, not the Jews for the Sabbath? If so, the thought seems thoroughly disjointed. What possible relevance does the Jewish Sabbath have to your practice of worship and finding time to rest? I thought you were saying that you wisdom in finding time to rest, but that because God gave a day of rest for man's benefit that therefore you don't consider strict observance of a day of rest to be highly important. Did I misunderstand you?

God gave the Sabbath to Israel, not to all nations. When Jesus said “the Sabbath was made for man,” he was speaking to Jews—especially Pharisees who had burdened it with extra rules. He never extended Sabbath-keeping to Gentiles; otherwise, we’d be bound to keep it on Saturday under Old Testament law.

Sunday is “the Lord’s Day,” not “the Sabbath.” The New Testament never prohibits work on that day, but I still do think there is wisdom in setting aside time for rest.

I believe I’ve explained this a few times already. If my earlier posts weren’t clear, does this make my view clearer? If not, could you let me know what part still seems unclear?

[ken_sylvania]

You said that you think there is wisdom in finding time to rest, but the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. In that context, were you meaning to say that the Sabbath was made for the Jews, not the Jews for the Sabbath? If so, the thought seems thoroughly disjointed. What possible relevance does the Jewish Sabbath have to your practice of worship and finding time to rest? I thought you were saying that you wisdom in finding time to rest, but that because God gave a day of rest for man's benefit that therefore you don't consider strict observance of a day of rest to be highly important. Did I misunderstand you?

God gave the Sabbath to Israel, not to all nations. When Jesus said “the Sabbath was made for man,” he was speaking to Jews—especially Pharisees who had burdened it with extra rules. He never extended Sabbath-keeping to Gentiles; otherwise, we’d be bound to keep it on Saturday under Old Testament law.

Sunday is “the Lord’s Day,” not “the Sabbath.” The New Testament never prohibits work on that day, but I still do think there is wisdom in setting aside time for rest.

I believe I’ve explained this a few times already. If my earlier posts weren’t clear, does this make my view clearer? If not, could you let me know what part still seems unclear?

The part that is confusing is the meaning and purpose of ".... And there is wisdom in finding time to rest. But the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath." With that contrasting conjunction I don't know how to interpret this other than that the author intended to say that the principle of the Sabbath being made for man places some kind of a limit on how seriously we should take the idea of a day of rest.

I merely commented that I find it intriguing how often the "the Sabbath was made for man" argument is used as justification for ignoring the gift of a day of rest. I wasn't commenting on the scope of that day of rest, or what day of the week it should be, or anything of the like. Merely an observation that some people seem to trot out "the Sabbath was made for man" as if Jesus meant "the Sabbath was made for man's convenience" when that is not at all what Jesus was saying.

I have no idea how my comment got construed as an indication that maybe I think nurses shouldn't take care of sick people on Sunday.