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What Does The Bible Say About Working On Sunday

Is It A Sin For A Christian To Work On A Sunday

Why Does the Bible Say Fill in the Blank? – Episode 31

I have seen many people even christians accusing others of breaking Gods command because they saw them working on a Sunday. These people base their accusation on an Old Testament law that that says Remember to keep the Sabbath day holy . Some christians reject this accusation as baseless while others are totally overwhelmed by it, rendered speechless and left battling with feelings of guilt. This is a serious issue that must not be neglected.

The fact is that it is not a sin to work on a Sunday but it is a sin to habitually work on a Sunday thereby forsaking the assembly of the Gods children which takes place mainly on Sunday. The Bible says that we should not forsake the assembling of ourselves together as is the habit of some.

Is Sunday Worship Mentioned In The New Testament

The word “Sunday” does not appear any place in the Bible, but the phrase “first day of the week” is found in the New Testament. It occurs in exactly eight places. Examining these eight texts will prove insightful.

If the day was changed by Bible authorityif Christians are to find any biblical authorization whatsoever for observing Sunday as the “Lord’s Day” todaythen we must find that authority in one of these eight texts!

Since the Bible clearly establishes the seventh day of the week as the Sabbath up to the time of the crucifixion, there can be no biblical authority for Sunday observance unless we find it clearly and plainly stated in one of these eight New Testament passages. We should examine them carefully, honestly, prayerfully.

1. Matthew 28:1: “Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb.” Matthew wrote these words, under inspiration of the Holy Spirit, several years after the New Testament church came into being.

This scripture tells us plainly that three days and three nights after all that was done away had been securely “nailed to the cross,” the Sabbath was still the day before the first day of the weekstill the seventh day of the week.

3. : “Now when He rose early on thefirst day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.” This text, poorly translated, speaks of Jesus’ appearance to Mary Magdalene later the same day .

Making Peace With A Complex Reality

The question itself sounds heretical. Yet many people work Sundays not out of a desire to displease God but more as a reluctant bowing to the practical realities of life. We know Jesus says the Sabbath was given unto man for a day of rest , but in our hyper-connected world in which its vogue to always be available by smartphone, the vision of a Sabbath of stillness and peace is remarkably difficult for many to experience every Sundayeven for Church employees, of which I am one.

My mom and dad instilled an ethos of Sabbath worship in my childhood home. Sunday was a time of togetherness and worship, yet between August and March my dad was often traveling on Sundays to meet his obligations as a sports broadcaster. My own Sabbath crossroads came years later as my two-year Church mission came to a close. I foresaw an oncoming collision between the Sabbath-day command and the requirements of my chosen fields for university study and careerjournalism and public relations. Sunday work is inevitable in such realmsthe Monday newspaper is created on Sunday, and the larger world just doesnt stop its frantic whirl for the sake of the religiously devout.

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Need One More Reason To Go To Church

Jesus Christ, our living example, went to church as a regular practice. Luke 4:16 says, “He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom.”

It was Jesus’customhis regular practiceto go to church. The Message Bible puts it like this, “As he always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting place.” If Jesus made it a priority to meet together with other believers, shouldn’t we, as his followers, do so also?

Are you frustrated and disillusioned with church? Perhaps the problem is not “church in general,” but rather the type of churches you have experienced so far.

Have you done an exhaustive search to find a good church? Perhaps you have never attended a healthy, balanced Christian church? They really do exist. Don’t give up. Continue to search for a Christ-centered, biblically-balanced church. As you search, remember, churches are imperfect. They are full of flawed people. However, we can’t let other people’s mistakes keep us from a genuine relationship with God and all of the blessings he has planned for us as we relate within his body.

Esteeming One Day Over Another

The Importance Of Shabbat

The fact is there are many Christians who have no other choice but to work on Sundays.

The fact is there are many Christians who have no other choice but to work on Sundays. This includes railroad personnel, turnpike operators, gas stations, restaurant staff, utilities crews, emergency personnel like EMTs, ambulance drivers, fire fighters, and the police. What if they took the day off at the other end of the 911 emergency lines? What if fire fighters took off Sunday and they just had to let fires burn themselves out or hope that the occupants could escape? What about the Highway Patrol? What if they decided to not work on Sundays? How safe would the roadways be?

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Remember To Keep The Sabbath Day Holy What About This Command

This is an Old Testament injunction that was binding on the natural Israelites alone under the old covenant. Moreover, Sunday is not even a Sabbath both under the old and new covenants. The Sabbath is on Saturday and that has not changed even in the new testament.

CHRIST IS THE END OF THE LAW.

When Jesus Christ came, He perfectly fulfilled every Old Testament law and brought them to an end. The righteousness that God requires now does not come from the law but from Jesus Christ who kept all of Gods laws to the letter and became the source of the true righteousness that God expects.

EVEN THE SABBATH LAW IS OVER

Therefore, do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a new moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come the reality, however, is found in Christ.

Sunday Had Typological Significance

If Sunday didnt replace the Sabbath, what did the earliest Christians think about the day? González lists three theological factors for worship on Sunday. First, it was the day Christ rose from the grave. This is what makes Sunday the Lords Day and why the New Testament church gathered on this day . Second, it was the first day of a new creation. As 2 Corinthians 5:17 identified believers as new creations in Christ, so the first day after the Sabbath would, according to Genesis, have been a day of creation. Third, Sunday was also the eighth day, a day that both related to circumcision and also the final day of eternal rest and joy .

Altogether, the early church saw Sunday as a day full of symbolism. Physical rest akin to the Mosaic law, however, was not at first part of that symbolism. Instead, resurrection and new creation provided the typological substance.

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Bible Verses About Working In The Church

âAnd he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.â âEphesians 4:11-12

âSo then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.â âGalatians 6:10

âWe ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.â â1 Thessalonians 5:12-13

âThe saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.â â1 Timothy 3:1

âSo I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you not for shameful gain, but eagerly not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.â â1 Peter 5:1-4

You Can Trust God With Your Work

Roe v. Wade: What Does the Bible Say about Life?

Are you stressed at work?

If you havenât felt this way at one point in your life, you probably havenât worked long enough.

There are many causes of stress at work. Thereâs crushing deadlines, conflict with your co-workers or manager, or youâre not compensated well for the hard work you do.

Regardless of what makes you feel stressed at work, you are free in Christ from anxiety, and you can trust God wholeheartedly to meet your needs, meet you in the storms of life, and work through you despite whatâs going on around you.

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Work Should Be Petitioned To God

Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us yes, establish the work of our hands!

God was with me and landed me a decent job

When I first met my ex-wife and decided that I wanted to marry her, I knew that I needed a job that would support us after we were married. God was with me and landed me a decent job that had a good future for income. Even though I am not married anymore, I can see why God led me to this job because it is what is allowing me to pay my bills and everything else right now. Had God not been with me, I may not have gotten a good job with good benefits like I have now. Pray to God and ask Him what He has planned for you. Give Him your desires and see if any doors open. God will establish the work of your hands if you seek His will. It may not be a job you would have chosen, but He will guide you to where He wants you to be.

What Religion Can You Not Work On Saturdays

Within the Jewish faith the Shabbat is a day of rest and spiritual enrichment. It begins at sunset on Friday and ends after nightfall on Saturday. Jewish people who choose to observe the Shabbat do not work for its duration. F informed TJ that, due to her religious observance, she could not work on Saturdays.

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The History Of Sunday Has Been Shaped By Sabbatarianism

In Puritan England, the idea of the Sabbath was applied to Sunday. In that period, the entire nation slowed down on Sunday, and three theological reasons arose to support this practice. First, there was agreement that a connection between Sabbath and creation entailed a moral precept that all must obey. Second, under the new covenant it was not the day of the week that mattered so much as the practice of rest. And third, proper rest required detailed and exacting legislation.

In both the confessions of the church and also the national laws of England, there was a strict adherence to practicing rest on Sunday. Naturally this practice led to all manner of debate, but in English Christendom, Sabbatarianism won out, and blue laws became the norm in England. Then, because of Englands influence on the founding of America, those same practices appeared in New England, which in turn has shaped American Christianity.

Its impossible, therefore, to understand Sunday in the West without seeing how Christianity rightly or wrongly formed that day. Even today, blue laws continue in some places. And though Sunday has experienced a great secularization, the church itself has sought to recover this day as one set apart for the Lord.

The Application Of The Sabbath

25 Important Bible Verses About The Sabbath Day

Ive heard people say, Okay, if everyone honored the Sabbath, what would we do if someone needed surgery and all the doctors said sorry its the Sabbath, I dont work on Sunday.

To that, I say lets look at how Jesus responded to the Pharisees.

Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to bring charges against Jesus, they asked him, Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath? He said to them, If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. Then he said to the man, Stretch out your hand. So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. Matthew 12:9-13

Jesus clearly said that it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. We cannot become like the Pharisees who loved to accuse people of dishonoring the Sabbath with every move they make on the day of rest. Its just silly to think that a Christian today would refuse to do something because it is the Sabbath and they dont work. No, the point is that we take a day to separate ourselves from the stress we endure throughout the week and stop to rest and enjoy the good things that God has provided for us.

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What Does The Bible Say About Working On Sunday Is It A Sin

Working on Sunday is definitely not a sin. Working on Sunday is not prohibited in the Bible. The idea that Christians should not be working on Sunday comes from a misunderstanding of Old Testament Sabbath keeping for the Israelites and its relation to Sunday worship for Christians. According to Exodus 20:811, the Sabbath is the seventh day of the week on which the Israelites were to rest in remembrance that God created the universe in six days and then rested on the seventh day. Keeping the Sabbath holy was defined as not working on the Sabbath.

First of all many Christians have been mislead into believing Sunday is the Sabbath. There isnt a single verse in the Bible that supports such a concept. The Biblical Sabbath starts on Friday 6pm and goes to Saturday 6pm.

Secondly the Christian Sabbath law is different than the Jewish Sabbath law. The Jews are to rest on the Sabbath. But of Christians its written, One man considers one day more sacred than another another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. Rom 14:5,6 and Therefore do not let anyone judge you

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What Does The Bible Say About Work

These essential truths only scratch the surface of what God says about work. In the Bible, we discover many ways our faith influences our work.

The Bible is Godâs guide for your life. In the words of the Psalmist, âYour word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my pathâ .

Now, when you flip through the pages of the Bible, youâre not going to find a verse telling you what job you should take or where you should live. What you will discover are Bible verses about work providing you with direction in the decisions you make and the work you pursue.

From what the Bible says about work to gaining clarity on your calling, you will find what you need to know to âwork heartily, as for the Lordâ .

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Christ’s Body Is Made Of Many Parts Yet It Is Still One Unified Entity

1 Corinthians 12:12The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ.

1 Corinthians 12:14-23Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor.

1 Corinthians 12:27Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.

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