Why the Sunday-keeping Church thinks of Sunday as the Sabbath

1. All God-fearers as in the case of Cornelius needed to hear the word of Salvation to be saved (Acts 11:14).

2. Quite a leap, won't you say? I wonder what would happen if we were all to interprete Scripture that way.

3. Why then did they believe the message of Paul, if they had it all together as the people of God? The data point in another direction, my friend.

 

The truth is, there's nothing about the Sabbath in Acts 15. Why would the apostles tell Gentiles to keep the Sabbath when they were not keeping it?

 

Our trusted Christ was under the Law and by the way, you not understanding Mark 2:27 the way it should be understood in light of the context. You're hitting and miss because of a theological grid you're bringing to the text.

 

Gentiles, as you pointed out, were God-fearers who needed to be saved like both Cornelius and Lydia. Besides, Sabbath gave them the best platform to hear the gospel together.

 

You can do better with the Acts 20:7.

 

In Mark 2 Christ states the "Sabbath was MADE for mankind" you seem to be arguing that we should now ignore that.

In Mark 2 Christ's point relies on ACCEPTANCE of the fact that the "Sabbath was MADE for MANKIND" -- to reject that part of Christ's statement is to obliterate the point He was trying to make with that undisputed fact.

In Matt 28 Christ instructs His followers to "teach ALL that I have commanded you" -- in response to that we see not only Gospel preaching we ASLO see the writting out of what Christ said while He was here -- and yet these are the very Words of Christ you say that post-Cross man should ignore???

in Christ,

Bob

 

I happen to be in India at the moment so past my bedtime.

 

Actually I am simply pointing to the inconvenient details in that chapter. My POV does not allow me to gloss over them as you have done with that sweeping verbal gesture -- put bluntly you can not shrug inconvenient details away -- it is not a compelling form of response.

 

Why do Gentiles care to "hear the gospel together" the following Sabbath? Why wouldn't they be just as interested in a "week-day-1" service the very next day even though it be "not together with the Jews"??

The GENTILE invitation to Paul for subsequent Sabbath-day services is "instructive" for the careful reader.

 

From what happened that Sabbath, Jesus pointed to the reason for the then Sabbath--the benefit of man, so the apostles were not in wrong in plucking the corn, but if you want to make a theology out of it, then it's at an avoidance of the true context of Mark 2:27.

 

Were the Gentiles saved? It is clear from the first-century data that Judaism enjoyed the protection of the Pax Romana, while Christianity was known as a new group, the people of the Way.

 

1. No reference to Sabbath at all -- but possibly a negative one as we see for animal sacrifices -- would be mentioned in Acts 15 if half of what you are arguing here were true.

2. By contrast we see this approving reference to the Sabbath

Here is the Sabbath reference connected directly to Gentiles -- that you say should not be found in Acts 15

19"Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles,

20but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood. 21"For Moses from ancient generations has in every city those who preach him, since he is read in the synagogues every Sabbath."

 

That's an allusion my brother and not a point of doctrine to be adhered to.

 

In Acts 13 and 17 they are identified as being among the people of God.

However you have not addressed the issue of 'their request" that additional Sabbath services be allowed for Gospel preaching.

 

James references "a point of fact" in Acts 15 that is apparently "without dispute" accepted by both sides in the debate -- James argues that this fact allows them to make their subsequent lenient statement about Gentiles not needing to become Jews.

Clearly this is an inconvenient detail for your POV

 

Again "a point of fact" referenced by Christ to argue his point - a fact that your POV needs to deny because it is devastating to the "Sabbath NOT made for MANKIND but just made for JEWS" argument.

 

1. Cornelius was considered a God-fearer, yet he and his need to hear words of salvation to be saved (Acts 10-11:18). Amazing, I say!

2. If I'm a part of a group and I know the best time of getting us all together to hear a special message, I would do everything to pass the word around to get everyone in my group to meet at an appointed time.

 

The Jews - including saints seen in Heb 11, and John the baptizer and Timothy whom Paul declares to have obtained salvation from his childhood via the Hebrew scriptures -- were all being called upon to accept the light of truth flowing from Christ --

But this did not mean that John or any other person worshipping and serving the one true God "was not saved".

Still they were being called to accept "the way of salvation" just as Christ urged this of His own followers while He was here on earth.

 

Paul points to the sacred Scriptures as leading to faith in Christ for salvation (2 Tim 3:15). Paul had to persuade the Jews and God-fearers of that fact from the OT (Acts 17:2).

 

No question that Paul and Christ were arguing the case from scripture that Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah.

The key though is that those who did not see the name "Jesus" in the OT text were not "lost until they found it".

as 2Tim 3 state -- Timoth was saved BEFORE he became a Christian.

2Tim 3
15and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

The Bible does NOT teach that all the people of God became lost when Christ died.

Heb 12
1Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

2For by it the men of old gained approval.
3By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.
4By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks. 5By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death; AND HE WAS NOT FOUND BECAUSE GOD TOOK HIM UP; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God.

The "To the Jew first and also to the Greek" argument of Paul in Romans 2 explicitly argues against "jews lost at the cross just because they are Jews" RATHER it argues that Jews following God pre-cross are IN post cross on the SAME basis. Jews in rebellion pre-cross are LOST post-cross on the "same basis"

Gal 1:6-9 ONE Gospel in all of time.

Heb 4:1-2 WE have had the Gospel preached to us JUST as they also

in Christ,

Bob