Creeds fall short when it comes to the Mystery of the GodHead

[hobie]

Actually Sunday worship began earlier than what you quoted...

Acts 20:7
And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.

Lets look a little more closely, as nowhere in the scriptures do you find one word which sanctions Sunday worship, you can search in the Old as well as the New Testament there is nothing. The word Sunday itself is not found in the Bible, you only see the number of the days so that it is clear what day is which. In the New Testament the first day of the week is mentioned eight times. In none of the eight instances is the first day said to be a day of worship, never is it said to be the Christian substitute for Sabbath, and neither do the texts suggest that the first day of the week should be regarded as a memorial of Christ's resurrection. Lets look in this study by Kenneth Strand, 'The Sabbath in Scripture and History' at each of the eight New Testament passages that mention the first day of the week.

Matthew 28:1, "After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake...." Jesus was crucified on Friday. He rested in the tomb over the Sabbath and rose early on Sunday morning. The verse indicates that the women disciples returned to the tomb at the very first opportunity after the death and burial of Jesus. Because the Sabbath came so soon after His burial, they could not approach the tomb again until after sundown on Sabbath evening.(The Sabbath began at sundown on the sixth day and ended at sundown on the seventh day; compare Lev. 23:32; Neh. 13:19; Mark 1:21, 32) Early Sunday morning was the most convenient time for them to visit the tomb.

Mark 16:1, 2, "When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb." Mark records the same events as Matthew with the additional information that the women visited the tomb early on the Sunday morning for the express purpose of anointing Jesus' body with spices.

Mark 16:9, "Now after he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons."This verse simply records that, after His resurrection early on the Sunday morning, Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene.

Luke 23:54 * 24:1, "It [the day of Jesus' death and burial] was the day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning. The women who had come with him from Galilee followed, and they saw the tomb and how his body was laid. Then they returned, and prepared spices and ointments. On the sabbath they rested according to the commandment. But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, taking the spices that they had prepared." The Sabbath came a few hours after Jesus' death on the cross. The women disciples "rested the sabbath day according to the commandment" (Luke 23:56, KJV). Then very early in the morning of the first day they visited the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus. The fact that they observed the Sabbath rest is sufficient indication that Jesus had never attempted to change the day or to suggest that after His death the first day would replace the Sabbath. Writing years after the event, Luke gave not the slightest hint that, even though the women disciples of Jesus observed the Sabbath, such a practice was no longer expected of Christians. He simply recorded that the Sabbath day "according to the commandment," which Jesus' followers were careful to observe, was the day after the crucifixion day (Friday), and before the resurrection day (Sunday.

John 20:1, "Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb."Mary Magdalene visited the tomb early the first day of the week. Nothing is said of Sunday as a day of worship or rest.

John 20:19, "When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said,'Peace be with you.'" On the evening of the first day of the week the disciples were assembled behind locked doors "for fear of the Jews." Jesus appeared to them at that time. The passage does not say that henceforth Sunday was to be the day for worship. Since it was the evening of the first day of the week that Jesus appeared to the disciples, it was after sundown. According to Jewish reckoning this was actually the beginning of the second day (Monday; compare Gen. 1:5, 8). A week later when Thomas happened to be present, Jesus met with the disciples again (verse 26). But, writing years later, John records nothing regarding Sunday as a day of Christian worship. John's narrative gives no warrant for regarding Sunday as a substitute for the Sabbath or as a day to be distinguished by Christians above any other day of the week. And there is no indication in the passage that Sunday should ever be observed as a memorial of Christ's resurrection.

Acts 20:7, "On the first day of the week, when we met to break bread, Paul was holding a discussion with them; since he intended to leave the next day, he continued speaking until midnight."Since the meeting was held at night on the first day of the week, it may have been Saturday night.

According to Jewish reckoning, the Sabbath ended and the first day of the week began at sundown of the seventh day. If it were Sunday evening, the event gives no suggestion that Sunday should be observed as a day of worship. The following verses record that Paul preached a sermon on Thursday. The next day after the meeting recorded in Acts 20:7 (Monday), Paul and his party set sail for Mitylene (Acts 20:13, 14). The following day (Tuesday) they arrived opposite Chios (verse 15). The next day (Wednesday) they passed Samos (verse 15), and the day after that (Thursday) they arrived at Miletus (verse 15). The elders of the church of Ephesus met Paul at Miletus, and he preached to them (Acts 20:16-36). Because a Christian service was held on Thursday, do we conclude that Thursday is a day for regular Christian worship replacing the observance of the seventh-day Sabbath? A religious service on Sunday, Thursday, or any other day certainly did not make that day a replacement for the seventh-day Sabbath or a day of regular Christian worship and rest. There is no special significance in the disciples breaking bread at this first-day meeting, for they broke bread "daily" (Acts 2:46). We are not told that it was a Lord's Supper celebration, nor are we told that henceforth Sunday should be the day for this service to be conducted. To read Sunday sacredness or Sunday observance into Acts 20:7 is to do violence to the text.

1 Corinthians 16:1, 2, "Now concerning the collection for the saints: you should follow the directions I gave the churches of Galatia. On the first day of every week, each of you is to put aside and save whatever extra you earn, so that collections need not be taken when I come. And when I arrive, I will send any whom you approve with letters to take your gift to Jerusalem. "These verses may be literally translated from the Greek as follows: "And concerning the collection for the saints, as I instructed the churches of Galatia, so also you do. On the first day of the week let each of you place (or 'lay') by himself, storing up whatever he might be prospered, so that when I come there might be no collections." (Italics supplied.) The phrase "by himself" (par' heauto), followed by the participle "storing up" or "saving" (thesaupizon), rules out the possibility that this is a reference to an offering taken up in a worship service. The Christian believer was to check his accounts on Sunday and put by at home the money that he wished to give to Paul for the support of the church. When Paul arrived, then the offerings of each individual would be collected.

None of these eight New Testament references to the first day of the week (Sunday), provides any evidence that Jesus or His disciples changed the day of worship from the seventh to the first day. Nor is the first day of the week represented as a time to memorialize the resurrection of Christ. Whatever significance was given to Sunday in the later history of the church, it had no basis in the teaching or practice of Jesus and His apostles and is not sanctioned in Scripture. Jesus instructed His disciples to observe the Sabbath after His death and Jesus and the apostles kept the seventh-day Sabbath and instructed others to do likewise, so it wasn't changed by them. The record of the book of Acts establishes that the apostles consistently kept the Sabbath day as a time for worship and fellowship. So the origin of the change to Sunday worship is from another source.. it never was sanctioned in any way in scripture.

 

[Lamb]

Lets look a little more closely, as nowhere in the scriptures do you find one word which sanctions Sunday worship, you can search in the Old as well as the New Testament there is nothing. The word Sunday itself is not found in the Bible, you only see the number of the days so that it is clear what day is which. In the New Testament the first day of the week is mentioned eight times. In none of the eight instances is the first day said to be a day of worship, never is it said to be the Christian substitute for Sabbath, and neither do the texts suggest that the first day of the week should be regarded as a memorial of Christ's resurrection. Lets look in this study by Kenneth Strand, 'The Sabbath in Scripture and History' at each of the eight New Testament passages that mention the first day of the week.

Matthew 28:1, "After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake...." Jesus was crucified on Friday. He rested in the tomb over the Sabbath and rose early on Sunday morning. The verse indicates that the women disciples returned to the tomb at the very first opportunity after the death and burial of Jesus. Because the Sabbath came so soon after His burial, they could not approach the tomb again until after sundown on Sabbath evening.(The Sabbath began at sundown on the sixth day and ended at sundown on the seventh day; compare Lev. 23:32; Neh. 13:19; Mark 1:21, 32) Early Sunday morning was the most convenient time for them to visit the tomb.

Mark 16:1, 2, "When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb." Mark records the same events as Matthew with the additional information that the women visited the tomb early on the Sunday morning for the express purpose of anointing Jesus' body with spices.

Mark 16:9, "Now after he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons."This verse simply records that, after His resurrection early on the Sunday morning, Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene.

Luke 23:54 * 24:1, "It [the day of Jesus' death and burial] was the day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning. The women who had come with him from Galilee followed, and they saw the tomb and how his body was laid. Then they returned, and prepared spices and ointments. On the sabbath they rested according to the commandment. But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, taking the spices that they had prepared." The Sabbath came a few hours after Jesus' death on the cross. The women disciples "rested the sabbath day according to the commandment" (Luke 23:56, KJV). Then very early in the morning of the first day they visited the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus. The fact that they observed the Sabbath rest is sufficient indication that Jesus had never attempted to change the day or to suggest that after His death the first day would replace the Sabbath. Writing years after the event, Luke gave not the slightest hint that, even though the women disciples of Jesus observed the Sabbath, such a practice was no longer expected of Christians. He simply recorded that the Sabbath day "according to the commandment," which Jesus' followers were careful to observe, was the day after the crucifixion day (Friday), and before the resurrection day (Sunday.

John 20:1, "Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb."Mary Magdalene visited the tomb early the first day of the week. Nothing is said of Sunday as a day of worship or rest.

John 20:19, "When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said,'Peace be with you.'" On the evening of the first day of the week the disciples were assembled behind locked doors "for fear of the Jews." Jesus appeared to them at that time. The passage does not say that henceforth Sunday was to be the day for worship. Since it was the evening of the first day of the week that Jesus appeared to the disciples, it was after sundown. According to Jewish reckoning this was actually the beginning of the second day (Monday; compare Gen. 1:5, 8). A week later when Thomas happened to be present, Jesus met with the disciples again (verse 26). But, writing years later, John records nothing regarding Sunday as a day of Christian worship. John's narrative gives no warrant for regarding Sunday as a substitute for the Sabbath or as a day to be distinguished by Christians above any other day of the week. And there is no indication in the passage that Sunday should ever be observed as a memorial of Christ's resurrection.

Acts 20:7, "On the first day of the week, when we met to break bread, Paul was holding a discussion with them; since he intended to leave the next day, he continued speaking until midnight."Since the meeting was held at night on the first day of the week, it may have been Saturday night.

According to Jewish reckoning, the Sabbath ended and the first day of the week began at sundown of the seventh day. If it were Sunday evening, the event gives no suggestion that Sunday should be observed as a day of worship. The following verses record that Paul preached a sermon on Thursday. The next day after the meeting recorded in Acts 20:7 (Monday), Paul and his party set sail for Mitylene (Acts 20:13, 14). The following day (Tuesday) they arrived opposite Chios (verse 15). The next day (Wednesday) they passed Samos (verse 15), and the day after that (Thursday) they arrived at Miletus (verse 15). The elders of the church of Ephesus met Paul at Miletus, and he preached to them (Acts 20:16-36). Because a Christian service was held on Thursday, do we conclude that Thursday is a day for regular Christian worship replacing the observance of the seventh-day Sabbath? A religious service on Sunday, Thursday, or any other day certainly did not make that day a replacement for the seventh-day Sabbath or a day of regular Christian worship and rest. There is no special significance in the disciples breaking bread at this first-day meeting, for they broke bread "daily" (Acts 2:46). We are not told that it was a Lord's Supper celebration, nor are we told that henceforth Sunday should be the day for this service to be conducted. To read Sunday sacredness or Sunday observance into Acts 20:7 is to do violence to the text.

1 Corinthians 16:1, 2, "Now concerning the collection for the saints: you should follow the directions I gave the churches of Galatia. On the first day of every week, each of you is to put aside and save whatever extra you earn, so that collections need not be taken when I come. And when I arrive, I will send any whom you approve with letters to take your gift to Jerusalem. "These verses may be literally translated from the Greek as follows: "And concerning the collection for the saints, as I instructed the churches of Galatia, so also you do. On the first day of the week let each of you place (or 'lay') by himself, storing up whatever he might be prospered, so that when I come there might be no collections." (Italics supplied.) The phrase "by himself" (par' heauto), followed by the participle "storing up" or "saving" (thesaupizon), rules out the possibility that this is a reference to an offering taken up in a worship service. The Christian believer was to check his accounts on Sunday and put by at home the money that he wished to give to Paul for the support of the church. When Paul arrived, then the offerings of each individual would be collected.

None of these eight New Testament references to the first day of the week (Sunday), provides any evidence that Jesus or His disciples changed the day of worship from the seventh to the first day. Nor is the first day of the week represented as a time to memorialize the resurrection of Christ. Whatever significance was given to Sunday in the later history of the church, it had no basis in the teaching or practice of Jesus and His apostles and is not sanctioned in Scripture. Jesus instructed His disciples to observe the Sabbath after His death and Jesus and the apostles kept the seventh-day Sabbath and instructed others to do likewise, so it wasn't changed by them. The record of the book of Acts establishes that the apostles consistently kept the Sabbath day as a time for worship and fellowship. So the origin of the change to Sunday worship is from another source.. it never was sanctioned in any way in scripture.

It was worship because where two or three are gathered together...

Matthew 18:20
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

 

[hobie]

It was worship because where two or three are gathered together...

Matthew 18:20
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

So where is the 'first day' sanctified and made holy and set as a day of worship in Gods Word, nowhere, and no twisting of the scriptures can make it so. Sunday worship is from another origin and not from God and if you accept the change it is from another 'authority'.

 

[hobie]

Lets take a look to see when the Sabbath comes into being as this has been a matter of much debate, and its origin has been put at various times in the Bible by some and many try to argue that the Sabbath originated at the time of Moses, but is it truth. You can see why the question of the origin of the Sabbath is important, as it is goes toward the larger question of whether or not the principle and practice of seventh-day Sabbath keeping is binding upon Christians. So lets look at Creation and see what it shows.

Genesis 2:1-4
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
4 These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens,

Verse 1 and 4 makes clear when the origin happened, as it was after man was made and all the work of creation finished, which helps in understanding that the Sabbath was established by God at creation for the benefit of mankind, which would make its observance as a creation ordinance binding upon all, Jews and Christians.

if we look at verse 2 and 3 we find in the verses that the Biblical view of the origin of the Sabbath is unequivocal: the Sabbath, as seventh day, originated at the completion of the creation week as a result of three divine acts: God "rested," "blessed," and "hallowed" the seventh day.

Twice we see that it states that God "rested" on the seventh day from all His work. The Hebrew verb shabat, translated "rested," denotes cessation and not relaxation. Now in Exodus 20:11 the idea of rest is expressed by the Hebrew verb nuah, which is used, is as where the divine rest fulfills an anthropological function: it serves as a model for human rest. In Genesis 2:2-3 however, the divine rest has a lager function as it serves to explain that God was content to be the Creator of this world and did not need to proceed to further creations here on the earth, it ended at that point. To acknowledge this fact, God stopped or ceased.

Genesis 2:2 affirms that the Creator "blessed" (brk) the seventh day just as He had blessed animals and man on the previous day. Divine blessings in the Scripture are not merely "good wishes," but assurance of fruitfulness, prosperity, and a happiness in life. In terms of the seventh day, it means that God has promised to make the Sabbath a beneficial and vitalizing power through which human life is enriched and renewed. In Exodus 20:11 the blessing of the creation seventh day is clearly linked with the weekly Sabbath, and the same rest.

Exodus 20:10-11
10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

The theological reasons given for the command to observe the seventh day Sabbath in verse 10 "to the Lord your God" is "for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them and rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it" in verse 11. Notice it clearly repeats the same as Creation, God "rested," "blessed," and "hallowed" the seventh day. It clearly was created or "made" as Christ says, and we see He declares it was made for man, or all humankind.

Mark 2:27
And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:

Clearly there where no Jews when the Sabbath was made by the Creator...

 

[Lamb]

So where is the 'first day' sanctified and made holy and set as a day of worship in Gods Word, nowhere, and no twisting of the scriptures can make it so. Sunday worship is from another origin and not from God and if you accept the change it is from another 'authority'.

Jesus is our Sabbath rest. That's the part you're missing in all of this.

 

[Maranatha]

Just adding some general thoughts:

Without Ellen White and her visions we would probably not have this discussion about the Sabbath.
It is estimated that she received over 2,000 visions and dreams from God (Wikepedia)
Her work goes beyond "Sola Scriptura"

Without Constantine we would not have the Nicean Creed.
Constantine was an Emperor, not and Apostle.
The Apostles never addressed the Churches "in the name of our Triune God"

Paul wrote:
For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Cor.1v22-25, ESV)

When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. 3I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.…(1 Cor.2v1-3)

So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
16For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes,
to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” (Rom.1v15-17)

May the Gospel be the center again in our Churches.

 

[hobie]

Jesus is our Sabbath rest. That's the part you're missing in all of this.

My sister in Christ, (and I mean that). The Creator made the Sabbath for you (and I) and is the one who gave (and gives) us rest on this holy and sanctified day. Jesus is not a "day" nor is He ever symbolically/metaphorically linked to being a "day" in the Bible; He's linked to being "the vine", "the lamb", "the door", "the rock" and many other things but never, not once, a "day". We must stick to the Bible and the Bible only.
To "rest in Jesus" actually has three meanings; 1) to rest on the Sabbath day (Heb 4:4&9) or 2) to be one of the righteous dead (1 Thess. 4:14) for you are literally resting in Jesus' love and protection. Matthew 11:28 - Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Jesus can absolutely give us 3) spiritual rest, but we cannot "cease from all work" seven days a week. To do so is not holy, especially if the Creator clearly says "Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:"

We must follow Gods Word and not use what turns aside or takes from His truth, that He made the Sabbath specifically for us on the seventh day of Creation so we can have rest from our labor and commune with our maker in physical and spiritual rest and receive its blessing He has for us. That is the true rest of our Creator and His purpose in making it for us...

 

[hobie]

Just adding some general thoughts:

Without Ellen White and her visions we would probably not have this discussion about the Sabbath.
It is estimated that she received over 2,000 visions and dreams from God (Wikepedia)
Her work goes beyond "Sola Scriptura"

Without Constantine we would not have the Nicean Creed.
Constantine was an Emperor, not and Apostle.
The Apostles never addressed the Churches "in the name of our Triune God"

Paul wrote:
For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Cor.1v22-25, ESV)

When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. 3I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.…(1 Cor.2v1-3)

So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
16For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes,
to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” (Rom.1v15-17)

May the Gospel be the center again in our Churches.

The GodHead is difficult to understand, but that cannot be said about the Sabbath, which is clearly laid out throughout Gods Word. We look and we see the time frame for it, the seventh day from Creation and Shabbat (Hebrew: שַׁבָּת, also known as "Shabbos" or the "Sabbath") is the Jewish day of rest and celebration that begins on Friday before sunset and ends on the following evening after nightfall.

Genesis 2:1-4
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
4 These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens,

Verse 1 and 4 makes clear when the origin happened, as it was after man was made and all the work of creation finished, which helps in understanding that the Sabbath was established by God at creation for the benefit of mankind, which would make its observance as a creation ordinance binding upon all, Jews and Christians.

if we look at verse 2 and 3 we find in the verses that the Biblical view of the origin of the Sabbath is unequivocal: the Sabbath, as seventh day, originated at the completion of the creation week as a result of three divine acts: God "rested," "blessed," and "hallowed" the seventh day.

Twice we see that it states that God "rested" on the seventh day from all His work. The Hebrew verb shabbat, translated "rested," denotes cessation and not relaxation. God made the Sabbath for man so that we would have a day to cease from work and have a time that He made to commune with Him.

We see God created the Earth and its life forms in six days, and then rested on the seventh which He then blessed and sanctified or hallowed.
Biblically speaking, the first six days of the week had no special name. They were simply identified by ordinal numbers, such as the first, second and third day. But the seventh day was given a unique name. In Hebrew, it's "shabbat," meaning "rest." In English, the word is "Sabbath," and it's detailed in the Fourth Commandment where it declares, "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work"... but also notice it repeats that the Sabbath was "Blessed" and sanctified, "Hallowed", a repetition of at Creation.

Exodus 20:11
For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

In many languages, the word used for the seventh day of the week "what we call Saturday" is actually the same word used for "Sabbath." In Greek it is sabbaton; Italian, sabato; Spanish, sábado; Russian, subbota; Polish, sobota; and Hungarian, szómbat. Even the French "samedi" is from the Latin "Sambata dies," for "day of the Sabbath.".....

So we see from the Weekly Cycle and from Creation that it is the Sabbath. Genesis 2:2 affirms that the Creator "blessed" (brk) the seventh day just as He had blessed animals and man on the previous day. Divine blessings in the Scripture are not merely "good wishes," but assurance of fruitfulness, prosperity, and a happiness in life. In terms of the seventh day, it means that God has promised to make the Sabbath a beneficial and vitalizing power through which human life is enriched and renewed. In Exodus 20:11 the blessing of the creation seventh day is clearly linked with the weekly Sabbath, and the same rest.

 

[hobie]

The seven day week origin is a mystery if you take out Creation. It is a period of time set at Creation, there is no other known reason for it..

This is a interesting article on it..
"In general, units of time can be divided into two categories. One category contains the units that measure something objective and observable, typically the movements of astrological objects. A day, for example, is the length of time it takes our planet to complete one rotation with respect to the sun. The second category is much more fun: totally random, basically meaningless divisions of time that were created out of a combination of superstition, incorrect science, and the need for greater precision in timing.

The seven-day week is in the latter category. There’s no good reason for it, and yet, it’s constant to almost every single culture.

Jews, who use a lunar calendar made up of either 12 or 13 months beginning with the New Moon, use a seven-day week. The Bengali calendar, which splits the year up into six seasons of two months each, uses a seven-day week. Even the Bahá’í, with their 19-month (and change) year, use a seven-day week."...

and yet they admit

"We don’t really know where the 7-day week originated...."

 

[Lamb]

My sister in Christ, (and I mean that). The Creator made the Sabbath for you (and I) and is the one who gave (and gives) us rest on this holy and sanctified day. Jesus is not a "day" nor is He ever symbolically/metaphorically linked to being a "day" in the Bible; He's linked to being "the vine", "the lamb", "the door", "the rock" and many other things but never, not once, a "day". We must stick to the Bible and the Bible only.
To "rest in Jesus" actually has three meanings; 1) to rest on the Sabbath day (Heb 4:4&9) or 2) to be one of the righteous dead (1 Thess. 4:14) for you are literally resting in Jesus' love and protection. Matthew 11:28 - Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Jesus can absolutely give us 3) spiritual rest, but we cannot "cease from all work" seven days a week. To do so is not holy, especially if the Creator clearly says "Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:"

We must follow Gods Word and not use what turns aside or takes from His truth, that He made the Sabbath specifically for us on the seventh day of Creation so we can have rest from our labor and commune with our maker in physical and spiritual rest and receive its blessing He has for us. That is the true rest of our Creator and His purpose in making it for us...

Every day is the day the Lord has made and we can take a rest in any day we wish. But Jesus is our rest.

 

[Frankj]

The seven day week origin is a mystery if you take out Creation. It is a period of time set at Creation, there is no other known reason for it..

This is a interesting article on it..
"In general, units of time can be divided into two categories. One category contains the units that measure something objective and observable, typically the movements of astrological objects. A day, for example, is the length of time it takes our planet to complete one rotation with respect to the sun. The second category is much more fun: totally random, basically meaningless divisions of time that were created out of a combination of superstition, incorrect science, and the need for greater precision in timing.

The seven-day week is in the latter category. There’s no good reason for it, and yet, it’s constant to almost every single culture.

Jews, who use a lunar calendar made up of either 12 or 13 months beginning with the New Moon, use a seven-day week. The Bengali calendar, which splits the year up into six seasons of two months each, uses a seven-day week. Even the Bahá’í, with their 19-month (and change) year, use a seven-day week."...

and yet they admit

"We don’t really know where the 7-day week originated...."

Generally, it was the Babylonians that created the seven day week, and the Jews adopted it as a result of the Babylonian exile's influence. The Babylonians also recognized a 29.5 day month. An eight day week, as the Roman originally had, would have been a truer lunar week since it takes eight day to go through all of the eight moon phases but I'm not sure the Romans used it.

In today's world, the Babylonian system pretty much rules as a common cultural week even in cultures whose ancestral calendars reflect differently.

 

[hobie]

Generally, it was the Babylonians that created the seven day week, and the Jews adopted it as a result of the Babylonian exile's influence. The Babylonians also recognized a 29.5 day month. An eight day week, as the Roman originally had, would have been a truer lunar week since it takes eight day to go through all of the eight moon phases but I'm not sure the Romans used it.

In today's world, the Babylonian system pretty much rules as a common cultural week even in cultures whose ancestral calendars reflect differently.

Of course, and where did they get it from... No my brother, either you believe Gods Word or you dont, and its clear where it came from..

 

[Frankj]

Of course, and where did they get it from... No my brother, either you believe Gods Word or you dont, and its clear where it came from..

I'm pretty sure they didn't get it from Hebrew scripture, in fact their story of creation is a very different than the Hebrew.

The seven day creation is true but not in the sense of our current belief in linear time progression. Time on God's scale (and on Man's as well though he doesn't know it) is not linear in the sense of past creates present which creates future but quite different. In short the seven day creation is true but the way we believe it is false.

 

[hobie]

Every day is the day the Lord has made and we can take a rest in any day we wish. But Jesus is our rest.

Not 'any day', that is not what God says in His Word..
Isaiah 58:13-14
13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: 14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

You see here "THE¨ is defined as "an absolute, genuine article¨. The verse doesn't say "a" Sabbath day - it clearly says "the" Sabbath day; it's very specific. It is a definite day; the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, and we call Saturday in our language. Compare...

Exodus 20:8-12
8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

Once God blesses, hallows, and sanctifies something it is that way forever. God doesn't change...and neither does His Law,.

Malachi 3:6
For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.

Luke 16:17
And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.

 

[hobie]

So do I give Gods Word in the 'World Religion & Speculative Theology ' and throw the truth it shows us into the realm of supposition, or is there a way to place it back into its proper place?

 

[Lamb]

So do I give Gods Word in the 'World Religion & Speculative Theology ' and throw the truth it shows us into the realm of supposition, or is there a way to place it back into its proper place?

Do you believe in the Nicene Creed?

 

[hobie]

Do you believe in the Nicene Creed?

Yes, as I said before...

 

[Lamb]

Yes, as I said before...

Your original post is anti-creedal!

 

[hobie]

Your original post is anti-creedal!

I would respectfully disagree, my point was that "any attempt" by man falls short of a complete description of the 'Mystery of the GodHead'. It was not my purpose to come out 'anti-creedal' or harsh, as I thought such discussion was well within the bounds of what was allowed. If you feel the heading is the issue, it can be adjusted to "Man falls short of a complete description of the Mystery of the GodHead" with no harm done to the discussion in my book or something similar.

 

[Lamb]

I would respectfully disagree, my point was that "any attempt" by man falls short of a complete description of the 'Mystery of the GodHead'. It was not my purpose to come out 'anti-creedal' or harsh, as I thought such discussion was well within the bounds of what was allowed. If you feel the heading is the issue, it can be adjusted to "Man falls short of a complete description of the Mystery of the GodHead" with no harm done to the discussion in my book or something similar.

The quotes seriously point to anti-creedal beliefs. The creeds were written to disprove false theologies that had crept into the churches. They're highly important and is the reason we adhere to the Nicene Creed here on the site. It's our Statement of Faith.