What do you base your religious beliefs upon? “Why the Bible of course,” most people would say. But actions speak louder than words. Millions of people go to church every Sunday and have never even proven if that is the correct day or not. “All of these churches surely cannot be wrong,” they might reason. “My minister wouldn’t lead me astray, would he?” Are you one of the millions who observes Sunday because “everyone else is doing it”? It’s time we prove this question of Sunday observance. We’ll do so by seeing what the Bible has to say on this subject? You might be surprised!

Sabbath in the New Testament?

In the Bible, when it mentions the word Sabbath , or the seventh day, it is referring to what is called “Saturday” on the Roman calendar. Virtually any biblical commentary will point this out. Most people know the Sabbath is taught repeatedly in the Old Testament. But that, most people reason, is for the Jews. When Christ came, He changed it to Sunday in the New Testament. Or did He?

The word Sabbath or Sabbaths is mentioned 172 times throughout the Bible. You may be shocked to learn that 60 of these word usages are found in the New Testament.

Early in Christ’s ministry, we find that He taught on the Sabbath day (Mark 1:21; 6:2; Luke 4:31; 13:10). In fact, Luke 4:16 says this was His custom! Mark 2:27-28 says, “And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.” That’s right! Jesus Christ is the Lord of the Sabbath, which was made for you and me! Throughout the New Testament, you won’t find any proof that Jesus ever changed the Sabbath day.

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Which Day Is the Christian Sabbath?

If Christ had changed the Sabbath day to Sunday, surely the apostles who taught after Christ died would have known about it. The apostle Paul and those who were traveling with him to Antioch went into the synagogue on the Sabbath to preach (Acts 13:14-15). This was many years after Christ died.

In verse 42, after Paul’s Sabbath sermon, many of the Jews who heard him became offended and left. But notice, “the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath.” Amazing! The Gentiles, those who had no prior knowledge of Sabbath observance, asked if Paul could come back next Sabbath. Notice what happened: “And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God” (verse 44). Why didn’t the Gentiles ask him to come back on the following Sunday? Because Paul, like Christ, kept the Sabbath.

Notice Acts 17:2: “And Paul, as his manner was , went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures.” This occurred 20 years after Christ died! And we see that it was still Paul’s custom to keep the Sabbath, just as it was Christ’s custom (Luke 4:16).

Over 10 years later, Paul wrote the epistle to the Hebrews. After discussing the millennial rest of 1,000 years in the first few verses of chapter 4, Paul then shifts to the weekly day that pictures that millennial rest: “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God” (Hebrews 4:9). The Greek word for rest is sabbatismos, which simply means “keeping of the Sabbath.” Most Bible margins even point this out. Paul taught the Hebrews that we are reminded each week on the Sabbath of the coming millennial rest to come upon the entire world.

There is one more verse that only adds to the verses we have seen thus far. It is found in Matthew 24:20: “But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day.” This whole passage in Matthew 24 is prophetic. It is talking about a future Tribulation so deadly that, if God didn’t cut it short, no one would survive (verses 21-22). That has not yet happened in history. But it is coming soon. And at that time, God’s people will be protected. Christ tells God’s people in this end time to pray that their flight be not on the sabbath! Yet another sign that God’s people, even in this end time, keep the Sabbath holy.

But What About Sunday?

Those who are shocked to see so much teaching in the New Testament about the Sabbath will be equally shocked as to how little is said about Sunday. While the seventh-day Sabbath is mentioned 60 times in the New Testament, the first day of the week, Sunday, is mentioned only eight times!

In 1 Corinthians 16:1-4, the disciples were told by Paul to take up a “collection for the saints” on the first day of the week. Some use this to not only show we should go to church on Sunday, but that we should take up a collection of money each week. Read the entire passage. Romans 15:25-28 points out that this collection was taken for the saints in Jerusalem because they were extremely poor. Furthermore, Paul said he would help carry the collection if they needed him (1 Corinthians 16:4). This was obviously a collection of food and supplies, not money—otherwise they would not have needed extra help to carry it. And it was for the saints in Jerusalem, not the Church. And they were told to gather it on Sunday. Far from being a command to worship God on Sunday, Paul instructed them to work!

In Acts 20:7, we find that the disciples gathered together on the first day to “break bread” (which simply means “to have a meal”). This was an evening gathering that lasted until midnight. To better understand this passage, we must understand when God’s days begin and end. It is at sunset. The Sabbath is to be kept from Friday at sunset to Saturday at sunset. If this gathering in Acts was at night on the first day , then it would have been on what we call Saturday night. Paul preached until midnight. He was left behind by his companions that night (verse 13). If it was a commanded assembly on the first day, they surely would not have left him. But they left Paul and began sailing that night. The next day (Sunday), Paul proceeded to walk 20 miles to Assos! Read the whole story and you will see that this in no way is commanding a Sunday observance. Paul was merely taking advantage of his last opportunity to meet and speak with the brethren at Troas—and that was on Saturday night!

Nailed to the Cross?

Colossians 2:16-17 is used by many to supposedly do away with the Sabbath. It reads, “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.”

First of all, the word “is” in verse 17 was added by the translators. It’s not in the Greek text. It should read, “but the body of Christ.” The word judge in Thayer’s Lexicon means “to pronounce an opinion concerning right and wrong.” As Paul lists the particular beliefs (like meats, sabbaths, etc.), he adds the thought “which are a shadow of things to come.” Then he gets back to the point he wants to make. With this in mind, we might read it, “let no man judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days … but the body of Christ.”

Scripture reveals that the “body of Christ” is the Church (see 1 Corinthians 12:27). And that’s just the point Paul is making. We can’t allow any individual to determine what is right or wrong, or what day we should or should not keep. God must determine these things through the “body of Christ,” or the Church. The Church determines doctrine by what is inspired in the holy Word of God—the Bible. The Bible plainly teaches that we should observe the Sabbath.

But let’s not overlook the thought Paul added: “which are a shadow of things to come.” If there is a large tree out in the sun, there is going to also be a shadow. The shadow leads to the tree. If you take away the shadow (the Sabbath), then there is no tree. The Sabbath, as that shadow, is a weekly reminder of the spiritual rest this world will have in the Millennium (Hebrews 4).

New Bible translations have greatly butchered verse 17 making it sound like everything points to Christ. (Compare the New International Version with the more accurate King James. The only mistake in the King James is the word “is” being added.)

It is also important to note that this book of Colossians was written to the Gentiles at Colosse (Colossians 2:13, “uncircumcision of your flesh”). The Gentiles had no prior understanding of the Sabbath. Yet Paul discusses it with them. Why would he tell them they didn’t have to keep the Sabbath if they never kept it in the first place? The truth is, they did know about the Sabbath—because Paul taught them.

When Was Christ Resurrected?

After Christ had been resurrected, Mary Magdalene went to visit Christ’s tomb early Sunday morning. All four Gospel accounts discuss this event as occurring on the first day of the week (Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:2, 9; Luke 24:1; John 20:1). And all four accounts specifically say this occurred after the Sabbath. Notice there is a clear distinction between the Sabbath and the first day—even after Christ died.

The women came to do the work of a common workday that morning. They were not observing the Sabbath day of rest. They did this the day before! (see Luke 23:56). Then on Sunday, they gathered their spices and headed to Christ’s tomb. Notice that in all these passages, there is not one command to keep the first day holy!

Even still, there are those who insist that we must keep the first day because Christ called for an observance on that day to commemorate His resurrection. John 20:19 is used to apparently prove this: “Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.”

First of all, nothing in this passage indicates this was the new Sabbath or the Lord’s day. In fact, they weren’t even gathered for a service. They were gathered together with the doors shut “for fear of the Jews”! They were also together because the disciples were all abiding in this same room (Acts 1:13). And they couldn’t have been there to celebrate the resurrection because they didn’t even believe that it had occurred! (see Mark 16:14; Luke 24:37, 39, 41). This meeting was simply Christ’s first opportunity to meet with His disciples since being resurrected. For three and a half years before this time, Christ had been with them every day. Surely we cannot use the fact that He was with them on a Sunday as criteria for when the Lord’s day is.

And furthermore, even if they were gathered that evening to celebrate the resurrection, they were gathered on the wrong day! (There is no scriptural command to observe the day of Christ’s resurrection. We are commanded to observe the day of His death—1 Corinthians 5:7; 11:23-26.)

When Mary arrived at Christ’s tomb early Sunday morning, Christ was already gone. Let’s prove from the Bible when Christ was resurrected.

When asked for a sign that He was from God, Jesus responded, “For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Matthew 12:40). Traditional Christianity teaches that this three-day period can be counted from late in the afternoon on Good Friday until early Easter Sunday. That’s part of three days they insist—Friday, Saturday and Sunday. But that teaching plainly allows for only two nights and one day in the grave when Christ specifically said He would be in the earth three days and three nights , just as Jonah spent the same amount of time in the whale’s belly. Jonah was inside the great fish for three complete days and nights, not a day and half (Jonah 1:17).

Traditional Christianity has never understood the truth on this matter because the Sabbath that was drawing near when Jesus was being crucified, was not a seventh-day Sabbath—it was an annual Sabbath—one of God’s seven annual holy days (John 19:31). In a.d. 31, the year Christ was crucified, that annual Sabbath occurred on a Thursday. Christ died late on the afternoon before—on Wednesday.

Three full days and nights brings the actual resurrection to late Saturday afternoon, shortly before sunset. By the end of the Sabbath, Jesus was already gone (Matthew 28:1). Realize what this means. The main proof that traditional Christianity uses to allow for Sunday observance is that “our Lord was resurrected on that day.” But He wasn’t! Furthermore, He never commanded Sunday to be observed. Jesus Christ kept the Sabbath—and so should you!

So Where Did It Begin?

By now we have seen clearly that there is no scriptural proof whatsoever for Sunday observance. If that is the case, where did this belief originate?

Changing the official day of worship from the seventh day Sabbath to Sunday was made by Constantine, the emperor of Rome, during the Nicean Council of a.d. 325. Here is what he said: “At this meeting the question concerning … Easter was discussed …. First of all, it appeared an unworthy thing that in the celebration of this … feast we should follow the practice of the Jews …. Let us then have nothing in common with the Jews ….” (Notice the forced observance of Easter, which also is nowhere commanded in the Bible.)

Constantine continued, “Forasmuch, then, as it is no longer possible to bear with your pernicious errors, we give warning by this present statute that none of you henceforth presume to assemble yourselves together. We have directed, accordingly, that you be deprived of all the houses in which you are accustomed to hold your assemblies: and forbid the holding of your superstitious and senseless meetings, not in public merely, but in any private house or place whatsoever …. Take the far better course of entering the Catholic Church …. From this day forward none of your unlawful assemblies may presume to appear in any public or private place. Let this edict be made public.”

There is the historical proof of the enforced observance of Sunday. To assemble together on any other day for a religious observance was considered unlawful.

This was confirmed at the Council of Laodicea almost 40 years later in a.d. 363. At that conference, it was determined, “Christians must not Judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, resting rather on Sunday. But, if any be found to be Judaizing, let them be declared anathema [cursed and excommunicated ] from Christ.”

Today, many Sunday-observing “Christians” even admit the Sabbath was changed by man. Notice the question posed to the Catholic Church in the book, Catholic Doctrinal Catechism: “Question: Have you any other way of proving that the church has power to institute festivals or precept? Answer: Had she not such power, she should not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her—she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday, the seventh day, a change for which there is no scriptural authority.”

Here is a quote from the Theological Dictionary, by Charles Buck, a Methodist minister: “Sabbath in the Hebrew language signifies rest, and is the seventh day of the week … and it must be confessed that there is no law in the New Testament concerning the first day.”

And finally, here is what Isaac Williams wrote in Plain Sermons on the Catechism: “And where are we told in Scripture that we are to keep the first day at all? We are commanded to keep the seventh; but we are no where commanded to keep the first day … the reason why we keep the first day of the week instead of the seventh s for the same reason that we observe many other things, not because the Bible, but because the church has enjoined [or commanded ] it.”

The Sabbath Is the Lord’s Day

Scholars will try to reason their way around plain teachings of the Bible. But the Bible simply does not command nor endorse any kind of Sunday observance. Instead, God says, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8). God’s law commands us to keep the Sabbath day holy. In the Old Testament, you will find repeatedly, that when the Israelites began to defile God’s Sabbath, they went into captivity (see Jeremiah 17:27; 52:12-15).

The Israelites were commanded to keep the Sabbath. The prophets, those who make up part of the very foundation of God’s Church today (Ephesians 2:19-21), kept the Sabbath. Jesus Christ came and observed the Sabbath. It was His custom (Luke 4:16). All of the apostles, including Paul, observed the seventh-day Sabbath (Acts 17:2). They followed Christ’s example. And in 1 Corinthians 11:1, Paul said, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.” We are commanded to follow in that example!

The Sabbath was made by God when man was made (Genesis 2:2-3). God made it, not by working on that day, but by resting on it. He made it for man and commanded it to be observed by man (Exodus 20:8). The Lord’s day is not Sunday, as millions have assumed. The real Lord’s day is the seventh-day Sabbath.