Sabbath, Lord’s Day, Everyday:

Using Two Frameworks to Seek Rest and Unity

This post has benefited from assistance from Perplexity A.I. for succinctness, accuracy, and coherence. Original post with Bibliography HERE

What was the early church’s connection to the Sabbath—and how do Romans 14, Colossians 2, and the “Lord’s Day” in Revelation guide Christians today? This weaves the essay, early church history, and two discipleship frameworks into one, coherent and readable whole.

1. Why This Matters (and a Brief Disclaimer)

This post grows out of an essay for a unit on The Story of the Church (c. AD 100–300), under a lecturer with a PhD in church history. It also occasionally looks back to the late first-century Christian writings, which are minimal; however, our best evidence is the New Testament itself.

The central questions:

• How did the early church (before 300 AD) relate to the Jewish seventh‑day Sabbath?

• How did the Christian practice of the first‑day “Lord’s Day” or Sunday gatherings develop?

• How do texts like Romans 14, Colossians 2, Hebrews 4, Isaiah 66, and Revelation 1:10 fit together?

• And why do some modern movements (Seventh‑day Adventist, Hebrew Roots, some sabbatarian groups) go so far as to condemn Sunday observance or tie it to the “mark of the beast”?

The aim here is not to score points, but to offer a way for Christians to think deeply, listen charitably, and live together in unity around a complex, sensitive topic.

To do that, two tools are used together:

• A Five‑Lens Framework for doctrine and discernment

• A C.U.R.E. Framework for dialogue and disagreement

2. The Five‑Lens Framework for Christian Discernment

Before jumping into proof‑texts or church‑history quotes, this framework helps believers slow down and ask: What does God say, how has the church heard it, and how should we live it?

Lens 1 – Scripture and Interpretation (with 5 sub‑lenses)

Headline question:
What does Scripture teach, carefully and coherently, in light of its whole story and context?

1A. Biblical Theology – Whole‑Bible Narrative

Question: How does Sabbath/Lord’s Day/everyday rest fit into the whole Bible story, centred on Christ?

• Creation: God rests on the seventh day and blesses it (Genesis 2:2–3).

• Covenant with Israel: Sabbath becomes a sign between God and Israel, rooted in creation and exodus (Exodus 20:8–11; Deuteronomy 5:12–15).

• Prophets: Isaiah envisions Sabbath blessing for Israel and foreigners (Isaiah 56; 58), and “from Sabbath to Sabbath” worship in the new creation (Isaiah 66:23)—language many understand symbolically of unending worship, not literal weekly cycles in eternity.

• Jesus: He heals on the Sabbath; defends His disciples’ actions with David and the temple priests; and declares Himself “Lord of the Sabbath” (Matthew 12:1–8; Mark 2:23–28; John 5:1–18; 9). He then invites all to “rest” in Him (Matthew 11:28–30).

• New Covenant: Hebrews 3–4 speaks of a remaining “Sabbath rest” (sabbatismos) for God’s people—entering God’s own rest by faith in Christ, not by calendar‑keeping alone.

• Gospel gatherings: Believers meet “on the first day of the week” to break bread and give (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:2), and Revelation 1:10 refers to “the Lord’s Day,” which most early writers and many modern scholars see as Sunday, the resurrection day.

• Letters on liberty: Romans 14:5–6 and Colossians 2:16–17 treat “days” (and Sabbaths) as matters of Christian conscience and shadows fulfilled in Christ, not as boundary markers of salvation.

Seen as one story, Sabbath is a real, God‑given sign and gift that points beyond itself to Jesus, the crucified and risen Lord who brings ultimate rest and new creation.

1B. Exegetical Theology – Author, Audience, Context

Question: What do key passages mean in their own context?

A few examples:

• Romans 14:5–6: Written to a mixed Jewish–Gentile church in Rome, Paul addresses disputes over food and days. Some believers esteem certain days; others treat all days alike. Paul does not name “Sabbath,” but the context (Jewish scruples over food and calendar) makes it likely that Sabbath and other special days are included among those “disputable matters.” The emphasis is not: “Days don’t matter at all,” but: “Don’t judge or despise one another over them.”

• Colossians 2:16–17: Paul says no one should judge believers “with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath,” calling these things “a shadow of what is to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.” He is warning against legalistic teaching that treats these observances as spiritually necessary or superior.

• Hebrews 4:1–11: The author uses “rest” with multiple layers: Israel’s failed entry into the land, God’s own seventh‑day rest, and the still‑open promise of entering God’s rest “today.” Verse 9’s “sabbath rest” (sabbatismos) has been read in two main ways:

  • As pointing to Christ‑centred salvation‑rest and future glory (fulfilment view).

  • As deepening, not abolishing, the Sabbath principle (continuity view). In both, the focus is on faith and perseverance, not mere outward observance.

• Revelation 1:10 – “the Lord’s Day”: In light of early Christian usage (Didache 14; Ignatius, Magnesians 9) and wider second‑century practice, many scholars (including R. J. Bauckham) conclude this refers to Sunday, the weekly resurrection celebration, not the seventh‑day Sabbath and not simply the eschatological “Day of the Lord.”

Exegetical work reminds believers to let each passage speak in its own voice before building doctrine.

1C. Historical Theology (Context of the Writers)

Question: What was happening historically when these texts were written?

• Paul writes Romans and Colossians into communities where Gentile believers are learning how to relate to the Jewish law and calendar without becoming Judaized or despising Jewish believers.

• The author of Hebrews addresses Christians tempted to drift back toward the old covenant system, urging them to enter and remain in Christ’s superior rest.

• Revelation addresses suffering churches, for whom Sunday likely functioned as a distinct day for worship and identity apart from both synagogue and empire.

This context explains why “days” and Sabbaths appear as pastoral issues: the church is moving from old covenant shadows to new covenant realities, while honouring Jewish roots and protecting gospel freedom.

1D. Systematic Theology – Coherence of Doctrine

Question: How does this fit with the rest of what Scripture teaches?

Bringing the whole Bible together suggests:

• God’s moral will is good and unchanging, but covenantal administrations differ.

• Sabbath as a creation pattern and covenant sign for Israel finds its fulfilment in Christ (He is the true temple, the true rest, the true light of new creation).

• The New Testament never commands Gentile believers to keep the seventh‑day Sabbath as Israel did, nor does it command a legal transfer of the Sabbath to Sunday.

• Instead, it offers:

  • A Christ‑centred rest for all days (Hebrews 4; Matthew 11:28–30).

  • Liberty on “days” so they are not made tests of fellowship (Romans 14; Colossians 2).

  • A strong pattern of first‑day gathering to celebrate the resurrection (Acts 20; 1 Corinthians 16; Revelation 1:10).

Thus, both strict sabbatarianism that binds all Christians to the seventh day and rigid “anti‑day” positions that mock any rhythm of rest and worship can miss the New Testament balance.

1E. Pastoral Theology – Transformation and Practice

Question: How should this shape Christian life and church practice?

• Believers are called to find their ultimate rest in Jesus, not in perfect law‑keeping or calendar observance.

• Rhythms of weekly rest and worship can be deeply good and wise, but they should be held as gifts, not as weapons.

• Teaching must avoid two extremes:

  • Legalism that says: “You are not truly faithful/saved unless you keep this day in this way.”

  • Libertinism that says: “Days and rhythms don’t matter at all; do whatever you like.”

• Romans 14 gives the pastoral tone: welcome one another, don’t pass judgment, don’t despise, and don’t cause a brother or sister to stumble.

Taken together, 1A–1E make “Scripture” a rich, multi‑layered lens rather than a flat proof‑text machine.

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Lens 2 – Experience

Question: How does this doctrine intersect with lived Christian experience—without overruling Scripture?

• Some believers testify that seventh‑day Sabbath‑keeping has brought deep rest, joy, and rootedness in God’s creation design.

• Others testify to profound spiritual refreshment in Sunday Lord’s Day worship as a weekly resurrection celebration.

• Still others emphasise resting in Christ daily, finding that treating every day as “the Lord’s” (Romans 12:1–2; Psalm 118:24) guards against both ritualism and spiritual complacency.

Experience can confirm and illuminate Scripture, but where experience clashes with Scripture, Scripture corrects.

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Lens 3 – Tradition and Church History

Question: How has the church understood this through history?

From ~AD 100–300, the sources show:

• Ignatius of Antioch speaks of Christians “no longer observing the Sabbath, but living according to the Lord’s Day,” seeing in it “a new hope” grounded in Jesus’ resurrection.

• Justin Martyr connects the “eighth day” to Christ’s rising and to a spiritual circumcision of the heart.

• Clement of Alexandria and Cyprian speak of Christian rest as moral and spiritual—abstaining from evil, walking in the light of Christ.

• The Didache, Pliny’s letters, Justin, and the Didascalia present Sunday as the primary day of Christian gathering, Eucharist, confession, exhortation, and teaching—while Sabbath appears mostly as a Jewish practice, often treated typologically or as fulfilled.

• Tertullian (before later excesses) and others see Sabbath as given to Israel under Moses and often interpret it eschatologically as pointing to the eternal rest to come.

• Irenaeus, Origen, and others speak of a “perpetual Sabbath” for Christians—living daily in faith and obedience.

• At the same time, Jewish‑Christian groups like the Nazarenes and Ebionites continued to keep the seventh‑day Sabbath, and in some cases also the Lord’s Day.

Modern sabbatarian scholars such as Samuele Bacchiocchi and Messianic writers like D. T. Lancaster argue for a stronger and longer seventh‑day continuity, sometimes attributing Sunday’s rise to antisemitism, Rome, or pagan influence. Other scholars (e.g., David Brattston, R. J. Bauckham, D. A. Carson and colleagues) push back, showing that Sunday worship appears early and widely, not as a simple Roman imposition, and that the dominant orthodox view was that Mosaic Sabbath law was not binding on all Christians.

Tradition, then, reveals both diversity and broad patterns:

• Sunday quickly became the primary day of Christian corporate worship.

• Seventh‑day observance continued in some Jewish‑Christian circles.

• Many Fathers read Sabbath typologically and emphasised daily, spiritual rest in Christ.

Tradition is a wise conversation partner to test against Scripture, not a final authority.

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Lens 4 – Intellectual Reasoning

Question: Is this view coherent, and does it account for all the relevant data?

Using careful reason under Scripture helps:

• Expose assumptions (e.g., “If Sabbath is in the Ten Commandments, it must apply unchanged to all Christians in exactly the same way”).

• Question extreme claims (e.g., “Sunday keeping is the mark of the beast”) that are not supported by sober exegesis of Revelation 13–14.

• Recognise that binding two holy days (Saturday and Sunday) as universal obligations risks rebuilding the very kind of calendar‑law system Paul warns about in Galatians 4:9–11.

• Affirm that weekly rhythms of rest and worship make deep sense of our embodied, communal nature.

Reason serves faith by helping believers avoid both contradiction and over‑simplification.

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Lens 5 – Emotions and Intuition

Question: What do my reactions show, and how should they be refined?

Many feel strong emotions around Sabbath/Lord’s Day issues:

• Relief and joy at discovering rest in Christ rather than performance.

• Anger or fear when traditions are challenged.

• Anxiety if told their practice might make them apostate or mark them as aligned with “the beast.”

Bringing these feelings under Christ’s lordship helps believers discern:

• Where reactions are shaped by Scripture and Spirit.

• Where they may be shaped by fear, past spiritual abuse, or cultural pressure.

Emotions are not enemies but must be discipled; they should drive believers back to Scripture and to humble, patient listening.

3. The C.U.R.E. Framework for Christian Dialogue

If the Five‑Lens Framework helps believers think, the C.U.R.E. framework helps them talk. It encourages Christlike posture in disagreement:

C – Connect with Curiosity
Begin by genuinely connecting. Ask how others came to their convictions about Sabbath or Sunday. Avoid assuming motives:

• “Can you share how you came to see the Sabbath that way?”

U – Understand with Undivided Attention
Listen to understand, not to reload. Reflect back what you heard:

• “So if I’m hearing you right, you believe… Have I understood?”

R – Respond with Respect, Reason, and Kindness
Only after listening do you respond. Engage Scripture and theology clearly, but with gentleness. Represent their view fairly, even as you disagree. The goal: serve the person, not win the argument.

E – Evaluate and Engage the Holy Spirit
As you talk, keep praying quietly:

• “Lord, help me listen. Help me speak truth in love.”
  Let the Spirit check your tone, pride, and impatience, producing the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23).

CURE + the Five Lenses together help believers honour both truth and love, even on contested doctrines.

4. Sabbath, Lord’s Day, Everyday: Pulling It Together

Using these frameworks, a balanced, biblically informed picture emerges:

• The seventh‑day Sabbath was a God‑given creation gift and covenant sign for Israel, rich in theology and still instructive for Christians.

• The Lord’s Day (Sunday) emerged very early as the main weekly day for Christian gathering in honour of the resurrection, especially among Gentiles, without a formal “change of Sabbath law” decree from the apostles.

• The New Testament presents both Sabbaths and other days as non‑salvific matters of conscience under the new covenant, warning against judging or despising one another over them (Romans 14; Colossians 2).

• Many early Christians spoke of a “perpetual Sabbath”—living every day in faith, obedience, and hope as those who already taste new creation in Christ.

Therefore:

• Christians who keep the seventh‑day Sabbath to honour God and rest in Him, without making it a condition of salvation or a badge of superiority, should be respected.

• Christians who honour Sunday as the Lord’s Day, gathering for Word and Table to celebrate the resurrection, should be respected.

• Christians who focus on resting in Christ every day, while still valuing some weekly rhythm, should be respected.

What Christians must resist is condemnation of one another—especially claims that Sunday observance is the “mark of the beast” or that those who do not keep a particular day are necessarily apostate. Such teaching clashes with the tone and teaching of Romans 14, Colossians 2, and the gospel of grace.

5. A Pastoral Word: Unity in the One Who Gives Rest

At the end of your essay and this long conversation stands a simple, profound truth:

• Salvation is not about whether believers mark Saturday or Sunday.

• Salvation is about being united by faith to Jesus Christ—crucified, risen on the first day of the week, ascended, and returning—who is the true Sabbath rest.

From that union flows sanctification: offering bodies as living sacrifices every day (Romans 12:1–2), walking as one body with many members (Romans 12; 1 Corinthians 12), and bearing fruit by the Spirit.

So:

• Use the Five Lenses to read Scripture deeply.

• Use C.U.R.E. to speak with brothers and sisters gently.

• Honour those who hold different convictions on Sabbath and Lord’s Day, as long as they cling to Christ.

And rest—really rest—in the Lord of the Sabbath, who has already finished the work that matters most.