Is Christian Sabbath Saturday or Sunday?

Sabbath, as we will learn in this episode, is more than a day of rest. It’s a symbolic picture of God’s ultimate plan. In fact, we will see that Sabbath is the goal of history. Like many of God’s truths from the Old Testament festivals and Passover to New Testament communion, God offers us physical practices to teach us spiritual realities. So in this brief survey of Sabbath in the Scriptures, we’re going to first see His purpose for Sabbath as a not only pattern for His people but also a picture of a Person—Jesus Christ.

Scriptures Referenced:

• Exodus 16:23 “Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Tomorrow is a Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord. Bake what you will bake today, and boil what you will boil; and lay up for yourselves all that remains, to be kept until morning.’”
• Exodus 20:8-11 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. or in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it
• Exodus 31:13 “Speak also to the children of Israel, saying: ‘Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you.
• Deuteronomy 5:12-15  ‘Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you.  And remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.
• Matthew 11:28 “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
• Jeremiah 17:27 “But if you will not heed Me to hallow the Sabbath day, such as not carrying a burden when entering the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.” ’ ”
• Matthew 12:8 “For the Son of Man is Lord [a]even of the Sabbath.”
• Mark 2:27 “And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.”
• Hebrews 4:9-11 “There remains, therefore, a rest for the people of God. 10 For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. Let us, therefore, be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience.”
• Leviticus 23:3 “‘Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work on it; it is the Sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings.”
• Mark 16:9 “Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.”
• Acts 20:7 “Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread.”
• 1 Corinthians 16:1-2 “Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come.”
• Matthew 11:28 “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

After watching or listening to this episode, what is your opinion? Do you have any questions or comments? Maybe you have something to add to the discussion? If so, let us know in the comments below.