Questions for Those Who Observe the Sabbath

Some religious groups claim that Sabbath observance is still required today—whether on Saturday or Sunday. However, the Bible teaches that the Old Covenant, including the Sabbath law, was given only to Israel and was never intended to be a law for all people in all generations. Under the New Covenant, Christians follow the Law of Christ, not the Law of Moses. The following questions are designed to challenge the belief that Sabbath-keeping is still binding today.

If the Sabbath was a command since creation, why is the word “Sabbath” never mentioned in the 50 chapters of Genesis?
Where is any command given to Adam, Noah, Abraham, or any patriarch to keep the Sabbath?
Where does the Bible ever say the Sabbath was binding before the time of Moses?
Why are there no examples or punishments for Sabbath-breaking prior to Exodus 16?
Why does Nehemiah 9:13-14 say God “madest known unto them thy holy sabbath” at Mount Sinai if it had been known before then?
If the Sabbath is part of the “universal moral law,” why is it called a “sign” between God and Israel in Exodus 31:13-17?
If the Ten Commandments are part of a separate, eternal “moral law,” why does Deuteronomy 4:13-14 include them in the same covenant as the other statutes and judgments given through Moses?
If the Ten Commandments are part of a separate, eternal “moral law,” why does Deuteronomy 4:13 call them “the covenant” which the Lord made with Israel?
If the Ten Commandments were “the covenant” God gave to Israel, and Christ came to establish a new covenant, does that not imply the old covenant—including the Ten Commandments—was replaced? (Hebrews 8:6-13)
If the Sabbath was a universal law from creation, why does Ezekiel say God gave the Sabbath after bringing Israel out of Egypt, as a sign between Him and them—not all mankind (Ezekiel 20:10-12, 20)?
Why does Deuteronomy 5:15 say the Sabbath was given because God brought Israel out of Egypt?
If the purpose of the Sabbath was to remember Israel’s deliverance from Egyptian bondage (Deuteronomy 5:15), what does that have to do with Christians today, especially Gentiles?
Where does the Bible say the Ten Commandments from the time of Moses will judge us who are alive today?
Why does the New Testament never restate the Sabbath command as binding for Christians?
Why does Colossians 2:16-17 say not to let anyone judge you regarding Sabbaths, calling them a shadow? (cf. 2:14).
Why do you bind the Sabbath when Acts 15 deliberately omits it from the essentials for Gentile converts?
Why is the first day of the week repeatedly associated with Christian worship (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2)?
If Christians gathered on the first day of the week to break bread, should we not follow that same example?
Why did Jesus rise on the first day of the week instead of the Sabbath?
Why was the Holy Spirit given on Pentecost, the first day of the week?
Why did God symbolically connect the Feast of Firstfruits and Pentecost to the first day, not the Sabbath?
If the Feast of Firstfruits symbolized Christ’s resurrection on the first day of the week, and Pentecost symbolized the beginning of the church on the first day of the week, does this not show God’s emphasis on the first day, not the seventh?
Where does the Bible ever call Sunday “the Sabbath”?
If the early church met every first day of the week (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1–2), and we are to hold fast to apostolic traditions (2 Thessalonians 2:15), why would we go back to a day never once taught or practiced by them under the New Covenant?
Does not Matthew 28:1 make a clear distinction between the Sabbath and the first day of the week, the day of Christ’s resurrection?
Where does the Bible say the Sabbath was changed from Saturday to Sunday?
If the Sabbath was not changed but abolished, why do you still try to keep it?
Why do most modern Sabbath-keepers not observe the Sabbath in the same way ancient Israelites were commanded?
If the Sabbath law is still binding, should Sabbath-breakers still be stoned (Exodus 31:15; Numbers 15:32-36)?
If Paul’s synagogue visits were evangelistic efforts and not Christian worship assemblies (Acts 17:1–3), is it not misleading to cite those visits as proof of Christian Sabbath observance?
Do you travel more than a “Sabbath day’s journey” (Acts 1:12) to attend worship?
If the Sabbath had been moved to Sunday, would that not imply that Christians must also follow Sabbath-day travel restrictions? If so, would this not cause many congregations to cease to exist?
Do you kindle a fire or cook on the Sabbath (Exodus 16:23; 35:3)?
Are all your Sabbath meals prepared beforehand, as required in the Old Testament (Exodus 16:23)?
Does anyone work for you on the Sabbath (Exodus 20:10)?
Do you enforce the same Sabbath restrictions on “strangers in your gates” (Exodus 20:10)?
Do you enforce the Jubilee cycle, sabbatical years, or land rests (Leviticus 25)?
Where do you find New Testament commands for Sabbath offerings (Numbers 28:9-10)?
Why do you separate “moral” and “ceremonial” laws (the Law of Moses versus “the Law of the Lord”) when the Bible doesn’t (Ezra 7:6, 10; Luke 2:22-24)?
If the Law is one unit, how can you keep only part of it (Exodus 12:49; Leviticus 7:7; Numbers 15:16, 29)?
Why do many call Sunday worship a pagan tradition when the Bible approves of Christians assembling on the first day?
If the New Covenant is better (Hebrews 8:6), why go back to a part of the Old Covenant that Hebrews says was ready to vanish (8:13)?
If the book of Hebrews argues repeatedly for the superiority of Christ’s covenant over the Mosaic covenant (Hebrews 7–10), how can we justify returning to a practice like the Sabbath that is never once affirmed under the new and better covenant?
How can you say the Old Law is still binding when Ephesians 2:15 says it was abolished?
Why does Galatians 5:4 warn of falling from grace by going back to the old Law?
If the Law was formerly a “schoolmaster” to bring us to Christ, why are you trying to go back to the schoolmaster (Galatians 3:24-25)?
If Jesus nailed the Law to the cross (Colossians 2:14), are you saying He failed?
If Hebrews says God “took away the first” covenant to “establish the second” (Hebrews 10:9), and the Sabbath was part of the first, what authority do we have to bring it into the second?
If God had wanted us to keep the sabbath, would He not have told us in one of the New Testament books?
If you believe the Sabbath is essential for salvation, are you not adding to the Gospel?
If the temple has been changed, the priesthood changed, and sacrifices changed to the one Sacrifice of Christ forever, why keep one element of that old system?
Why bind the Sabbath but no other laws such as circumcision or animal sacrifices?
If you are consistent, do you also avoid mixed fabrics, shaving beards, and eating shellfish (Leviticus 11:10-12; 19:19, 27)?
Why does Hebrews 4:9 speak of a future rest, not a weekly Sabbath rest?
How could Paul say he was as one who was not under “the law” but under Christ (1 Corinthians 9:21) if the Sabbath was still binding?
Why did Paul describe the Gentiles as not being under the law, but under Christ (1 Corinthians 9:21)?
Why do you ignore or diminish Paul’s warnings about going back under the old Law?
If binding Old Testament commands such as circumcision under the New Covenant causes condemnation (Galatians 1:6-9; 5:1-4), would not binding other Old Testament commands—such as the Sabbath—have the same effect?
How do you interpret Matthew 5:17–19, where Jesus said He came not to destroy the Law but to fulfill it, in light of Colossians 2:14–17, Ephesians 2:15, and Hebrews 10:9 which say the Old Law—including the Sabbath—was taken away?
If Christ is the fulfillment of the Law (Romans 10:4), why are you clinging to its shadows (Colossians 2:17)?
If Jesus abolished the “law of commandments” that divided Jew and Gentile (Ephesians 2:14–16), why do you promote the Sabbath, which was one of those dividing commandments?
If we are dead to the Law that said, “thou shalt not covet,” are we not dead to the Sabbath commandment (Romans 7:4, 7)?
Since both the so-called “ceremonial law” (like the Levitical priesthood) and the so-called “moral law” (such as “Thou shalt not covet”) have been removed (Romans 7:4, 7; Hebrews 7:11–14), has not the entire Old Testament system been removed? If not, why not?

These questions highlight the serious difficulties faced by those who believe that Sabbath-keeping is still required today. The Scriptures consistently show that the Sabbath was a special covenant sign given to Israel, not a universal law for all time. Under the New Covenant, faithful Christians follow Christ, not Moses, and worship on the first day of the week, according to the New Testament pattern.

Questions for Those Who Observe the Sabbath

Like this:

Leave a Reply Cancel reply