Should we worship on Saturday or Sunday?
Question 11092
The question of whether Christians should worship on Saturday (the Sabbath) or Sunday is one that generates considerable debate, particularly with the influence of Seventh-day Adventism and certain Hebrew Roots movements that insist Saturday observance is binding on all believers. Understanding what Scripture teaches about the Sabbath, how the early church transitioned to Sunday worship, and what obligations apply under the New Covenant is essential for answering this question with both clarity and charity.
The Sabbath in the Old Testament
The Sabbath was established at creation, when God rested on the seventh day and sanctified it (Genesis 2:2-3). It was formally commanded as part of the Mosaic Law in the Ten Commandments: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8). Under the Law of Moses, the Sabbath was a sign of the covenant between God and Israel (Exodus 31:13-17), and its violation carried severe penalties, including death (Numbers 15:32-36). The Sabbath was given specifically to Israel as part of the Mosaic covenant arrangement. It was not a universal command given to all humanity but a distinctive sign of God’s relationship with the nation of Israel.
This distinction matters. The Sabbath commandment is embedded in the Mosaic covenant, and its terms are defined within that covenant framework. The moral principles underlying the Sabbath, the goodness of rest, the rhythm of work and worship, the recognition that time belongs to God, are universal and enduring. But the specific obligation to observe the seventh day as a covenantal sign is tied to the Mosaic arrangement with Israel.
Jesus and the Sabbath
Jesus’ relationship with the Sabbath is revealing. He observed the Sabbath as a faithful Jew living under the Mosaic Law, but He consistently challenged the Pharisaic interpretation that had turned it into a burden. He declared Himself “Lord of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:28), healed on the Sabbath despite objections (John 5:1-18; Luke 13:10-17), and taught that “the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). His lordship over the Sabbath indicates that He has authority to redefine its terms, which is precisely what the New Covenant does.
The Apostolic Transition to Sunday
The New Testament records a clear and early shift toward gathering on the first day of the week. Jesus rose from the dead on a Sunday (Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:2; Luke 24:1; John 20:1). He appeared to the gathered disciples on successive Sundays (John 20:19, 26). The church at Troas gathered “on the first day of the week” to break bread (Acts 20:7). Paul instructed the Corinthians to set aside their collection “on the first day of every week” (1 Corinthians 16:2). By the time of the earliest post-apostolic writings, Sunday worship was established practice. The Didache, dating from the late first or early second century, refers to gathering “on the Lord’s day.” Ignatius of Antioch, writing around AD 107-110, stated that Christians “no longer observing the Sabbath, but living in the observance of the Lord’s Day, on which also our life has sprung up again by Him and by His death.”
This transition was not arbitrary. The resurrection of Jesus on the first day of the week gives Sunday its theological significance. The church gathers on Sunday not because a human council decreed it but because the resurrection, the defining event of the Christian faith, occurred on that day. The Lord’s Day (Revelation 1:10) is the day of resurrection, and it is the day on which the apostolic church gathered.
Paul and the Sabbath in the New Covenant
Paul’s teaching on the Sabbath is direct. In Colossians 2:16-17 he writes: “Therefore let no one pass judgement on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.” The Sabbath is explicitly listed among the shadows that have found their fulfilment in Christ. Romans 14:5 adds: “One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.” The observance of particular days is treated as a matter of individual conscience, not a binding obligation.
The claim made by Seventh-day Adventists and others that Saturday Sabbath observance is required of all Christians, and that Sunday worship represents an apostate departure from biblical practice, does not withstand scrutiny. The New Testament nowhere commands Christians to observe the seventh-day Sabbath. It explicitly lists the Sabbath among the shadows fulfilled in Christ. And it records the apostolic church gathering on the first day of the week from the very beginning. The transition from Saturday to Sunday was not a mediaeval Catholic invention (a common Adventist claim); it was an apostolic practice grounded in the resurrection.
So, now what?
Christians are not under obligation to observe the seventh-day Sabbath. The New Covenant has fulfilled what the Sabbath pointed toward: rest in Christ (Hebrews 4:9-10). The principle of regular gathered worship is not optional; the writer of Hebrews commands believers not to neglect meeting together (Hebrews 10:25). But the day on which Christians gather is Sunday, the Lord’s Day, because the resurrection defines the pattern of New Covenant worship. A believer who chooses to honour Saturday for personal devotional reasons is free to do so (Romans 14:5), but no one should impose seventh-day observance as a requirement of faithfulness or suggest that Sunday worship is a departure from Scripture. The substance belongs to Christ, and He has risen.
“Therefore let no one pass judgement on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.” Colossians 2:16-17