RICHARD FOSTER
Coming from an Adventist background it may sound bizarre and even shocking to consider, but the fact is that Sabbath vs. Sunday is a non-issue to the overwhelming majority of Christians, and the historical record indicates it always has been. For most believers in most times, this issue has not even been so much as a blip on their radar screen. Most Christians have had no worry over it, no stress, no conflict, no concern that someone else might be worshipping on a different day, much less any kind of thought that those who do worship on a day other than Sunday should be prevented from from doing such! But to those of us that had been at one time indoctrinated into Adventism, the idea of days of worship being a non-issue is hardly even imaginable. So let’s see just how absurd this whole thing of Saturday vs. Sunday is, and how the Adventist laser-like focus on this issue really is an alternate reality.
Consider History
Consider this: there have been many doctrinal controversies in church history. In the early centuries of the Christian era, there were debates over the Trinity, the hypostatic union of two natures of Christ, and even over such minor issues as what day Easter should be celebrated. The debate over Easter generated lots of heat, and even to this day a divide remains on the issue. We can marvel at this in light of the fact that Scripture never commanded Easter celebrations. Nevertheless, even such an issue based on tradition alone was hotly debated.
Yet the historical record concerning whether the first day of the week or Sunday is the “right day” for Christian worship is astonishingly lacking any record of significant debate.
Yet the historical record concerning whether the first day of the week or Sunday is the “right day” for Christian worship is astonishingly lacking any record of significant debate. No such debate over the day of worship can be found in the pre-Constantine era. No debate over the day of worship can found during the time of Constantine, or after the time of Constantine. Now this is very important; because if Adventist claims are true that Constantine’s Sunday rest law in 321 AD changed the Christian day of worship from Saturday to Sunday, then how come there is no record of controversy concerning this change? There certainly should have been a firestorm over the issue at this time if the day was changed from Sabbath to Sunday, but there’s no such indication. Likewise no significant debate can be found over the issue in the Medieval period, none in the Reformation period, none in the post Reformation period, and none in our day. The lack of debate and controversy over the issue actually speaks volumes as to the remarkable unity that has existed historically among orthodox Christians on this issue.
In the different branches of Christendom, Protestant, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox, there’s never been any real question on the matter of Sunday as the Christian day of worship. It is simply what everyone has done, in multiple geographic locations, and in different theological traditions, from the earliest days where we can find the issue discussed, until our present day. (For the biblical basis for first-day Christian worship see my earlier article on the issue, “Bible Evidence of Sunday Worship”).
Seventh-day Sabbatarianism
Now, when I mention that there’s never been any real debate on the issue, I don’t mean that there have not been any seventh-day sabbatarian advocates. There have been in various different eras. But several things need to be said in regards to the seventh-day advocates. Almost without exception the seventh-day sabbatarians have been outside of orthodoxy, denying such essential Christian doctrines as the deity of Christ and the Trinity (the Adventist pioneers were no exception to this). Seventh-day sabbatarianism has never gained any real traction, either among lay people or among good and sound scholars. Furthermore, without exception, every seventh-day sect in church history has lost sight of the true gospel. All of them have fallen into legalism to one extent or another. There are true gospel-believing churches, and there are seventh-day sabbatarian churches, but it’s almost impossible to find a group that is both.
Some of the most well-respected names from church history could be named (some of whom even Adventism claims to respect), and an investigation of their writings would prove that they were familiar with seventh-day sabbatarian arguments and emphatically rejected them. This could be said of early church fathers; it could be said of Protestant Reformers such as Martin Luther, John Calvin, and others. It could be said of well-respected post-Reformation theologians such as John Owen, John Bunyan, and Jonathan Edwards.
The best scholars Adventism has ever been able to set forth as advocates for its doctrines cannot come close to the biblical scholarship of the great theologians from church history.
If anyone has ever read any of the theological works of these men and seen their expositions of Scripture and their formulation of theology from it, it is so profound and detailed as to make the best Adventist theological work look deficient. The best scholars Adventism has ever been able to set forth as advocates for its doctrines cannot come close to the biblical scholarship of the great theologians from church history.
I say all of this because all of these brilliant minds considered at one point or another the seventh-day sabbatarian arguments. Significantly, they all rejected those arguments due to their deeper biblical exegetical considerations, which proved seventh-day sabbatarianism to not have a sound basis. To suggest these men rejected seventh-day arguments because of compromise with the Papacy, or a preference for tradition over Scripture, would be to prove oneself entirely ignorant of their lives, work, and beliefs. In fact, it would be nothing short of slander produced from desperation and ignorance of the facts.
Now it will be granted that the great names of church history were not infallible; there were a number of issues about which they disagreed. But these facts don’t serve to undermine their teaching about Sunday and the Sabbath; rather, they strengthen strengthen it. The very fact that men that could not see eye to eye on certain issues but yet all had a unanimous agreement concerning the issue of Saturday vs. Sunday, speaks volumes.
Indeed, there is less controversy in Christian history over Sunday as the day of worship than there is over such fundamental Christian doctrines as the nature of God, Christ, and the gospel—yet even these controversies were resolved. Indeed, there is a remarkable unity among Christians concerning Sunday—a unity which is only seen in doctrines such as the Trinity and the deity of Christ.
Altered Reality
I say again that coming from Adventism, what I have said here can seem astounding and shocking. But this just goes to show how much of an alternate reality and world view we lived in as Adventists. What was to us Adventists the most monumental theological issue has been, for most Christians in church history, essentially a non-issue.
I remember going to visit a couple from my current church one Sunday afternoon, and this was the first visit I had made to their home. During the time there I discussed in detail what it had been like being Adventist, and what the issues were. At one point in the conversation I mentioned how strongly it had been drilled into our heads that the Saturday Sabbath is the Lord’s day, and that there was no significance at all to Sunday. In shock the wife responded by saying how bizarre such teaching sounded to her. This couple, who are in their 80s, and had been born into evangelical Christian homes and had always been believing Christians for as long as they could remember. They had never heard such an idea before, nor had the thought ever come into their minds through all their decades of being active Christians and reading God’s word.
Simply put, to them the Lord’s day (Rev. 1:10) was Sunday, for it was the day Jesus rose victorious from the grave, the day He appeared to His disciples, the day the Holy Spirit descended, the day when the disciples gathered to break bread and hear Paul preach, the day that Paul exhorted the Corinthian Church and other churches to set aside offerings, and the day on which Christians had been worshipping ever since. Any question about the first day of the week not being the biblical Lord’s day and the Christian day of worship was quite simply unthinkable and preposterous to this dear Christian couple.
This story illustrates just how foreign and absurd Adventist claims are to anyone who hasn’t been indoctrinated into the religion. On the other hand, it is very sad to realize that a day (Saturday vs. Sunday) is such a huge deal and such a roadblock to the Adventist mind. In fact, this day which is the main vehicle that keeps Adventists trapped in a system that suppresses true gospel understanding, robs its adherents of peace and assurance in Christ, and causes damage and dysfunction in practically every area of life, is completely a non-issue to Bible believers outside of Adventism.
Trust Jesus
I would remind you of a statement from our Lord Jesus. He said that He would build His church and that the gates of hell would not prevail against it. To zoom out and look at the big picture of church history up to our day, there’s no question of the truth in this statement. While church history shows ups and downs, some good times as well as some bad times, in the overall trajectory from the time of Jesus until our day, the story of His church has been one of astonishing progress and success. From twelve disciples originally, the church spread across the Roman Empire in a relatively short time, and then in more recent times it has spread across the entire globe. This being said; does it really make sense that His church has gotten what Adventists claim to be such a major doctrine, dead wrong all along? Has Jesus allowed His church to go on in supposed unchecked disobedience and sin for all these centuries? Was the Holy Spirit given to the church initially to empower and guide it into truth (as Jesus said), but then withdrawn to leave the church in supposed apostasy on the issue of the Sabbath?
Surely this line of thought makes no sense in light of who the Lord Jesus is and what He said would become of His church. The very integrity of the words of Jesus are on the line here. Does He have a true church following Him in all ages, or does He not?
And contrary to Adventist claims, there’s no such thing as an unbroken line of Sabbath keepers in church history.
According to Jesus Himself, He does. And contrary to Adventist claims, there’s no such thing as an unbroken line of Sabbath keepers in church history. The fact that Adventism has tried to claim certain groups were Sabbath keepers (such as the Waldenses) who weren’t, clearly shows the Adventist dilemma on this issue. (See “Did the Waldenses Keep the 7th Day Sabbath?”)
Now a word of exhortation: for those who are still entangled within Adventism because of the Sabbath issue, know this: a decision has to be made. You have to decide what is more important to you: is it more important to you to take a stand for Jesus Christ and His true gospel of salvation, by cutting ties with an organization which teaches heretical doctrines (such as the Investigative Judgement) that undermine Christ’s person and His work, and getting yourself into a “Sunday” church where Christ and the gospel are not compromised, but upheld in purity? Or is it more important to you hang on in Adventism because of the Sabbath, even though you have been realizing there are so many things wrong and problematic with the organization?
In my own experience I had to ask myself this question and decide where I would take my stand. At the time I still wasn’t absolutely sure what to think of Sabbath and Sunday. But I knew that the biblical Jesus and the biblical gospel trumped the Sabbath. When faced with the choice between continuing in Adventism because of the Sabbath, or going to a Christ-upholding, true gospel preaching church, I knew what was more important. And never for a second have I regretted my decision to choose Christ and the gospel rather than the Sabbath. I can say with no hesitation at all: please make Christ and the gospel the most important thing in your life. And if you have not already, find yourself a truly Christian body to connect with. If you do these things you will have zero regrets, even though difficulties may arise. To have Christ and the gospel is beyond anything else we could have or cling to. As Paul says, everything else is rubbish in comparison to Christ! Take your stand with Him and His church today! †
- A Gospel Appeal for Adventists - July 18, 2024
- Adventism and the Sufficiency of Scripture - May 23, 2024
- Do I Need To Be Perfect? - March 28, 2024
I’m curious…would the Seventh Day Baptist Church fit as a true gospel believing, sabbatarian church?
To answer your question, “maybe, but more likely not” is my reply. SD Baptist churches have the same “rut” to get delivered from, namely they seem to be all hung up on the day of the week for congregational worship. As this article said, such people have to decide what is more important: to take a stand for Jesus Christ and His true gospel of salvation, or remain with their pet doctrine of the Sabbath. See Romans 14:4-5. The day of the week should not be an issue dividing any church.
blessings, Vince