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I got this email from the Christian Research Institute in regard to my question regarding the sanctification of the 7th day.
My question was that if the seventh-day was set apart and sanctified on the seventh day where can I find in scripture that the seventh-day day sanctification was removed by God. Here is the complete response:
Dear David,
Greetings in the precious name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and thank you for contacting the Christian Research Institute!
Although the volume of inquiries we receive has continued to increase, we do not currently have the staff to consistently provide a timely and in-depth response to each inquiry.
We read in Genesis 1 that God declared the seventh day holy and sanctified it. It is our belief that neither Jesus nor the New Testament writers abolished the principle of working six days and resting on the seventh. Whether or not a Christian is obligated to make Saturday or the seventh day the holy day is debatable.
Christians variously understand the Law in terms of how aspects relate to believers today. A dispensational Christian, for example, would consider the relevance of certain Old Testament passages differently than Lutheran and Reformed Christians. Reformed theonomists (theonomy meaning governed by God rather than others) would differ somewhat in their interpretation. We will present the position that Hank Hanegraaff generally believes the Bible teaches, since space does not allow us to examine how each of the above would define the Christian’s relationship to the Mosaic Law, or interpret numerous Old Testament passages.
The Law of Moses can be broken down into three basic divisions: the moral law, the ceremonial law, and the judicial (civil) law.
God’s moral law is relevant, applicable, and obligatory. It is encapsulated in the Ten Commandments (Exod. 20:3-17; Deut. 5:7-20) or, more concisely, summarized in the words of Jesus: “You shall love the Lord Your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (Matt. 22:37-40, NKJV). Our Lord here declares that all of the moral demands in the Law are ultimately fulfilled in these two commandments. Those who truly love God with all of their heart, soul, and mind will not have any gods before Him, make any idols, take His name in vain, or dishonor His Sabbath. Those who truly love their neighbors as themselves will honor their parents, and not commit murder, adultery, or theft, or bear false witness or covet their possessions. God’s moral commands are binding on all men, in all eras, in every nation, including believers today.[1] He has bound all men under the moral law in order to also have mercy on all men (Rom. 11:32). We do not and cannot receive salvation by observing these commandments (Gal. 3:21-22); however, we can do our utmost to imitate and demonstrate the righteous character of God in response to the salvation that is ours freely through faith. We can affirm that while salvation is by grace through faith apart from works (Eph. 2:8-9), our guide for living is manifested in the moral law (Rom. 3:31).
We are no longer under ceremonial aspects of the Law. It consists of the commands contained in the Mosaic Law that describe the dietary restrictions, ritual cleansings, blood sacrifices, observance of holy days, and so forth that pointed to the Christ who would come to redeem His people, and were more “shadow” than “substance.” The ceremonial aspect of the Law has been “nailed to the cross” (Col. 2:14, NKJV), since that which was foreshadowed in the promise has come in His fullness (Col. 2:17). Christians are free to eat, drink, and celebrate holy days as they please (Acts 10:9-16; Mark 7:14-19; Col. 2:16; 1 Tim. 4:3-5).
Many nations today implement adapted tenets of the judicial (civil) aspect of the Law in order to maintain justice; however, this aspect of the Law is no longer mandated by God (other than the call to obey civil authorities [e.g., Rom. 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-17], which is a moral obligation). The judicial law, under a theocratic form of government, informs followers of the moral and ceremonial law how to enforce the statutes contained therein. It, for instance, directs that those who dishonor their parents shall be put to death (Lev. 20:9), which we do not observe because we are not under a theocratic form of government.
It is furthermore evident from the historical evidence available, as well as the New Testament witness, that Jewish authorities in the first century were not observing the entire judicial law, since the Romans officially took away their right to execute capital punishment. The Jews occasionally tried to fulfill the civil law for severe offences, such as blasphemy or adultery (Luke 20:6; John 8:7; 10:31; etc.); however, Scripture clarifies that the Law is an all-or-nothing proposition: you either fulfill it in its entirety or you are guilty of offending in all points (James 2:10).
We believe the following Web resources will be helpful:
CP0715 - Does Sunday Observance Violate the Sabbath?
CP0710 - The Atonement
DL300 - Addressing the Legalist
DP801 - President Bartlet's Fallacious Diatribe
DS420 - Should We Keep the Sabbath?
DS421 - Sabbath Keeping and the New Covenant
DT175 - Tithing
The Atonement: Its Meaning and Significance
SB656/$15.00
The Murder of Jesus
B577/$14.99
The Apocalypse Code
B958/$21.99
The Last Sacrifice
B820/$19.99
This response was made possible by the sacrificial gifts and prayers of people who have been helped by the ministry of the Christian Research Institute. We ask that you prayerfully consider sending a donation, which will allow CRI to pass life-changing resources along to someone else, giving you the direct opportunity to touch a life for Christ.
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you always!
In Christ,
Warren Nozaki
Research Consultant
Christian Research Institute
My question was that if the seventh-day was set apart and sanctified on the seventh day where can I find in scripture that the seventh-day day sanctification was removed by God. Here is the complete response:
Dear David,
Greetings in the precious name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and thank you for contacting the Christian Research Institute!
Although the volume of inquiries we receive has continued to increase, we do not currently have the staff to consistently provide a timely and in-depth response to each inquiry.
We read in Genesis 1 that God declared the seventh day holy and sanctified it. It is our belief that neither Jesus nor the New Testament writers abolished the principle of working six days and resting on the seventh. Whether or not a Christian is obligated to make Saturday or the seventh day the holy day is debatable.
Christians variously understand the Law in terms of how aspects relate to believers today. A dispensational Christian, for example, would consider the relevance of certain Old Testament passages differently than Lutheran and Reformed Christians. Reformed theonomists (theonomy meaning governed by God rather than others) would differ somewhat in their interpretation. We will present the position that Hank Hanegraaff generally believes the Bible teaches, since space does not allow us to examine how each of the above would define the Christian’s relationship to the Mosaic Law, or interpret numerous Old Testament passages.
The Law of Moses can be broken down into three basic divisions: the moral law, the ceremonial law, and the judicial (civil) law.
God’s moral law is relevant, applicable, and obligatory. It is encapsulated in the Ten Commandments (Exod. 20:3-17; Deut. 5:7-20) or, more concisely, summarized in the words of Jesus: “You shall love the Lord Your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (Matt. 22:37-40, NKJV). Our Lord here declares that all of the moral demands in the Law are ultimately fulfilled in these two commandments. Those who truly love God with all of their heart, soul, and mind will not have any gods before Him, make any idols, take His name in vain, or dishonor His Sabbath. Those who truly love their neighbors as themselves will honor their parents, and not commit murder, adultery, or theft, or bear false witness or covet their possessions. God’s moral commands are binding on all men, in all eras, in every nation, including believers today.[1] He has bound all men under the moral law in order to also have mercy on all men (Rom. 11:32). We do not and cannot receive salvation by observing these commandments (Gal. 3:21-22); however, we can do our utmost to imitate and demonstrate the righteous character of God in response to the salvation that is ours freely through faith. We can affirm that while salvation is by grace through faith apart from works (Eph. 2:8-9), our guide for living is manifested in the moral law (Rom. 3:31).
We are no longer under ceremonial aspects of the Law. It consists of the commands contained in the Mosaic Law that describe the dietary restrictions, ritual cleansings, blood sacrifices, observance of holy days, and so forth that pointed to the Christ who would come to redeem His people, and were more “shadow” than “substance.” The ceremonial aspect of the Law has been “nailed to the cross” (Col. 2:14, NKJV), since that which was foreshadowed in the promise has come in His fullness (Col. 2:17). Christians are free to eat, drink, and celebrate holy days as they please (Acts 10:9-16; Mark 7:14-19; Col. 2:16; 1 Tim. 4:3-5).
Many nations today implement adapted tenets of the judicial (civil) aspect of the Law in order to maintain justice; however, this aspect of the Law is no longer mandated by God (other than the call to obey civil authorities [e.g., Rom. 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-17], which is a moral obligation). The judicial law, under a theocratic form of government, informs followers of the moral and ceremonial law how to enforce the statutes contained therein. It, for instance, directs that those who dishonor their parents shall be put to death (Lev. 20:9), which we do not observe because we are not under a theocratic form of government.
It is furthermore evident from the historical evidence available, as well as the New Testament witness, that Jewish authorities in the first century were not observing the entire judicial law, since the Romans officially took away their right to execute capital punishment. The Jews occasionally tried to fulfill the civil law for severe offences, such as blasphemy or adultery (Luke 20:6; John 8:7; 10:31; etc.); however, Scripture clarifies that the Law is an all-or-nothing proposition: you either fulfill it in its entirety or you are guilty of offending in all points (James 2:10).
We believe the following Web resources will be helpful:
CP0715 - Does Sunday Observance Violate the Sabbath?
CP0710 - The Atonement
DL300 - Addressing the Legalist
DP801 - President Bartlet's Fallacious Diatribe
DS420 - Should We Keep the Sabbath?
DS421 - Sabbath Keeping and the New Covenant
DT175 - Tithing
The Atonement: Its Meaning and Significance
SB656/$15.00
The Murder of Jesus
B577/$14.99
The Apocalypse Code
B958/$21.99
The Last Sacrifice
B820/$19.99
This response was made possible by the sacrificial gifts and prayers of people who have been helped by the ministry of the Christian Research Institute. We ask that you prayerfully consider sending a donation, which will allow CRI to pass life-changing resources along to someone else, giving you the direct opportunity to touch a life for Christ.
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you always!
In Christ,
Warren Nozaki
Research Consultant
Christian Research Institute
