Should SDA's attend synagogue on Shabbat if early Jewish believers did?

[Carl Emerson]

Our SDA friends believe we should still keep the Law and therefore the Sabbath on the seventh day. This seems to be from biblical record that the early Jewish believers attended synagogue as was their custom.

The question is did they attend to keep the Law, or to be a light among the Jews.

Also is there any evidence of early believing Gentiles attending synagogue after conversion...

Did Josephus or other early writers comment on this??

Lastly, if Jews today are keeping the Law and are guardians of the Law, why dont the SDA's join them???

I hope we have have a warm and respectful discussion.

 

[Junia]

Our SDA friends believe we should still keep the Law and therefore the Sabbath on the seventh day. This seems to be from biblical record that the early Jewish believers attended synagogue as was their custom.

The question is did they attend to keep the Law, or to be a light among the Jews.

Also is there any evidence of early believing Gentiles attending synagogue after conversion...

Did Josephus or other early writers comment on this??

Lastly, if Jews today are keeping the Law and are guardians of the Law, why dont the SDA's join them???

I hope we have have a warm and respectful discussion.

I

Looking forward.to this discussion too.

 

[Basil the Great]

I seem to recall that both Saturday and Sunday were observed by many early Christians, at least up to the time that the Church banned Saturday Sabbath rest and worship and officially made Sunday the Christian Sabbath. I cannot state with authority how many Gentile Christians observed both days, but I believe that some of them probably did.

As for Josephus, his two references to Jesus make no mention of what you asked about.

 

[Junia]

I seem to recall that both Saturday and Sunday were observed by many early Christians, at least up to the time that the Church banned Saturday Sabbath rest and worship and officially made Sunday the Christian Sabbath. I cannot state with authority how many Gentile Christians observed both days, but I believe that some of them probably did.

I thought so.

I cannot speak for SDAs though as I don't know much about that faith

 

[Basil the Great]

Our SDA friends believe we should still keep the Law and therefore the Sabbath on the seventh day. This seems to be from biblical record that the early Jewish believers attended synagogue as was their custom.

The question is did they attend to keep the Law, or to be a light among the Jews.

Also is there any evidence of early believing Gentiles attending synagogue after conversion...

Did Josephus or other early writers comment on this??

Lastly, if Jews today are keeping the Law and are guardians of the Law, why dont the SDA's join them???

I hope we have have a warm and respectful discussion.

I think that it is a bit unfair to say that the SDA's think that we should keep the law. They are simply putting emphasis upon the Ten Commandments and the last time that I looked, the Ten Commandments call for the 7th day to be a day of rest. It is also interesting that the Nicene Creed makes no mention of which day should be the Christian Sabbath and said Creed was adopted in 325 A.D. As for the SDA's, how can they join the Jews if they consider Jesus to be the Messiah, as the Jews reject such a belief.

Doing a little research, it seems that Pope Sylvester named Sunday as the "Lord's Day" in the year 325. This might indicate that there some disagreement prior to said date as to which day should be the Christian Sabbath. After all, if there was unanimous or near unanimous agreement, why did he even feel the need to make such a pronouncement? What is interesting is why the Council of Nicaea failed to address the issue in the Creed?

 

[Carl Emerson]

I seem to recall that both Saturday and Sunday were observed by many early Christians, at least up to the time that the Church banned Saturday Sabbath rest and worship and officially made Sunday the Christian Sabbath. I cannot state with authority how many Gentile Christians observed both days, but I believe that some of them probably did.

As for Josephus, his two references to Jesus make no mention of what you asked about.

I thought Josephus was still writing at the time of the early church?

 

[Basil the Great]

Yes, Josephus was alive then, but only in the early years of the Church and most believers in the beginning were probably Jewish Christians. I have read both of his references to Jesus several times and do not recall any specific reference to Gentile Christians, but you can double check me.

 

[eleos1954]

Our SDA friends believe we should still keep the Law and therefore the Sabbath on the seventh day. This seems to be from biblical record that the early Jewish believers attended synagogue as was their custom.

The question is did they attend to keep the Law, or to be a light among the Jews.

Also is there any evidence of early believing Gentiles attending synagogue after conversion...

Did Josephus or other early writers comment on this??

Lastly, if Jews today are keeping the Law and are guardians of the Law, why dont the SDA's join them???

I hope we have have a warm and respectful discussion.

hmmmm keeping the law ????

Do you keep thou shalt not steal ????

Do you keep thou shalt not commit adultery?

Do you keep thou shalt not have other gods before me?

Do you believe one should keep any of the 10 commandments?

If not why? If so, then why not join the Jews?

There is nothing wrong with the law ..... without the law we would not know what sin is.

What is sin? Transgression of the law.

So ... you believe no one needs to keep the law?

 

[Carl Emerson]

The context is from another thread regarding keeping the Sabbath Day on Saturday.

The early Jewish believers were known to have attended synagogue on Saturday.

If SDA insist on keeping the Law why do they not join the Jews, being the guardians of the Law ???

Further, did the early Jewish believers go to synagog on Saturday to keep the Law or to be a light of the Gospel?

 

[Tigger45]

Basically because Jews don’t believe Jesus is or was the Christ. Even though most of the first Christians were Jews they faced the same problem, who initially worshipped with Jews then I believe celebrated the Eucharist on their own on Sundays the day Jesus rose from the grave.

 

[Carl Emerson]

hmmmm keeping the law ????

Do you keep thou shalt not steal ????

Do you keep thou shalt not commit adultery?

Do you keep thou shalt not have other gods before me?

Do you believe one should keep any of the 10 commandments?

If not why? If so, they why not join the Jews?

There is nothing wrong with the law ..... without the law we would not know what sin is.

What is sin? Transgression of the law.

So ... you believe no one needs to keep the law?

Sin was known well before the Law was given... Example Gen 4:6-8

Sin is revealed in the conscience - lack of knowledge of the Law is no excuse. Rom 1:18ff

 

[Carl Emerson]

Basically because Jews don’t believe Jesus is or was the Christ. Even though most of the first Christians were Jews they faced the same problem, who initially worshipped with Jews then I believe celebrated the Eucharist on their own on Sundays the day Jesus rose from the grave.

So did they worship with Jews to keep the Sabbath Law?

 

[Tigger45]

So did they worship with Jews to keep the Sabbath Law?

I think it’s ok to keep the Sabbath law you just can’t make it a law.

They were inherently Jewish and attending worship on Saturday was ingrained in them. We have to remember the NT was still being written and full dispersement was going to naturally lag behind. We see a type of these situations being played out in the book of Acts concerning circumcision.

 

[Carl Emerson]

I think it’s ok to keep the Sabbath law you just can’t make it a law.

From the previous thread sabbath observance is being presented as a Law with eternal consequences.

If then the Law is not eclipsed by the New Covenant and Sabbath Observance on the seventh day demarcates between eternal salvation or not, then the Jews being the guardians of the Law, still have a holy authority in regard to the Law and believers should still be attending synagogue.

My position is that the Law has been superseded by the Law of the Spirit and the Sabbath Rest promise is a permanent and ongoing daily peace, and rest that we receive by faith in Jesus. We in fact enter into His 7th day rest by faith and rest from works as He has from His.

Why else would the temple veil be rent from top to bottom by God Himself if not to signify the end of the curse of the Law, the stripping of the authority of the guardians of the law, a permanent end to sacrifice, as all was fulfilled in Jesus.

Where then does this leave the believer...

Are we any less accountable to the fear of God?

No - in fact more accountable...

We work out our own salvation with fear and trembling.

 

[Yeshua HaDerekh]

So did they worship with Jews to keep the Sabbath Law?

They were Jews...

 

[Yeshua HaDerekh]

Why else would the temple veil be rent from top to bottom by God Himself if not to signify the end of the curse of the Law, the stripping of the authority of the guardians of the law, a permanent end to sacrifice, as all was fulfilled in Jesus.

There is no longer separation between man and God. The curse of the law has been eliminated, not the law itself...

 

[Yeshua HaDerekh]

I seem to recall that both Saturday and Sunday were observed by many early Christians, at least up to the time that the Church banned Saturday Sabbath rest and worship and officially made Sunday the Christian Sabbath.

Which church banned it...Rome? The Sabbath is still the 7th day in the Eastern Churches as well as in the Coptic Orthodox.

 

[Junia]

From the previous thread sabbath observance is being presented as a Law with eternal consequences.

If then the Law is not eclipsed by the New Covenant and Sabbath Observance on the seventh day demarcates between eternal salvation or not, then the Jews being the guardians of the Law, still have a holy authority in regard to the Law and believers should still be attending synagogue.

My position is that the Law has been superseded by the Law of the Spirit and the Sabbath Rest promise is a permanent and ongoing daily peace, and rest that we receive by faith in Jesus. We in fact enter into His 7th day rest by faith and rest from works as He has from His.

Why else would the temple veil be rent from top to bottom by God Himself if not to signify the end of the curse of the Law, the stripping of the authority of the guardians of the law, a permanent end to sacrifice, as all was fulfilled in Jesus.

Where then does this leave the believer...

Are we any less accountable to the fear of God?

No - in fact more accountable...

We work out our own salvation with fear and trembling.

I

Biblically this position makes the most sense to me

 

[eleos1954]

Sin was known well before the Law was given... Example Gen 4:6-8

Sin is revealed in the conscience - lack of knowledge of the Law is no excuse. Rom 1:18ff

I agree (made known in the heart/mind), the law was made known to mankind before it was codified (written down).

Romans 5:13
For sin was in the world before the Law was given; but sin is not taken into account when there is no law.

Lastly, if Jews today are keeping the Law and are guardians of the Law, why dont the SDA's join them???

I find this a strange statement.

Nobody else is striving to keep the law .... except Jews and SDA's?

If one has knowledge of the law ..... then what?

What is wrong with keeping the law out of love? With the help of the Holy Spirit are we able to overcome our sin? We will not be made perfect until He returns .... but through the Holy Spirit does He help us overcome sin, or not? (which is transgression of the law).

Sin, being transgression of the law ... then not to sin (overcome it) is to keep the law ... isn't it? If He helps us do that (and He does) .... then are we not to recognize the work He does in us, thank Him for it and give Him praise for the work He does in us?

 

[eleos1954]

Sin was known well before the Law was given... Example Gen 4:6-8

Sin is revealed in the conscience - lack of knowledge of the Law is no excuse. Rom 1:18ff

so ... I ask you again ...

So ... you believe no one needs to keep the law?