Q. You’re being dishonest and twisting Acts 17, while avoiding passages which show a Sunday resurrection. In Acts 17, Paul went to the synagogue to preach Christ for salvation. You purposefully left out verses 3-4: “Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ. And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.”
You claim there is no evidence that the church met on Sunday in the Bible, that’s baloney.
Acts 20:7: “And upon the first day of the week when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.”
This passage verifies that church was held on the first day of the week. They broke bread (had the Lord’s Supper) and Paul preached.
1 Corinthians 16:2: “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.”
Collection was taken on the first day of the week, showing that the church met on Sunday.
Mark 16:9: “Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.”
Firstfruits was not on the Sabbath but after the Sabbath. Lev 23:10 states, “Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest: 11 And he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.”
1 Corinthians15:23 also states, “But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.”
The Bible confirms that it is the first day of the week that Jesus rose from the dead; it was the first day of the week the Lord’s Supper was to be taken; it was the first day of the week collection was taken; and the firstfruits was on the day after the Sabbath which is Sunday, and Jesus is the firstfruits
Also, in A.D. 140 Justin Martyr stated: “But Sunday is the day which we all hold our common assembly, because Jesus Christ, our Saviour, on the same day rose from the dead.” Apology, Chapter LXVII.
A. We respectfully disagree with your conclusions. While Paul certainly went to the synagogue to witness Yahshua the Messiah, it was also his custom or manner, Acts 17:2. The word “manner” comes from the Greek ethos and means, “…a usage (prescribed by habit or law),” Strong’s. Based on the Greek ethos, clearly it was Paul religious practice and conviction to worship on the Sabbath.
Regarding your other claims, below is a point-by-point reply:
Acts 20:7 is not referring to Sunday or to the “Lord’s Supper.” Instead, it refers to the first week to the count to Pentecost. The phrase “first day of the week” would be better read, “…the first of the Sabbaths” The word “day” is absent in the Greek and the word “week” derives from the Greek sabbaton and refers to the Sabbath. Strong’s defines sabbaton as, “…the Sabbath (i.e. Shabbath), or day of weekly repose from secular avocations (also the observance or institution itself); by extension, a se’nnight, i.e. the interval between two Sabbaths.” In addition, the word bread comes from the Greek klao and refers to bread in general. Interestingly, verse 6 references the Feast of Unleavened Bread and verse 20 references Pentecost. This further verifies that verse 7 refers to the count to Pentecost.
1 Corinthians 16:2 is not referring to Sunday as a day of worship. First, the word “day” is absent in the Greek. In the Greek it simply states, “Upon the first of the week.” There is no evidence that this was Sunday. It simply states that it was the first part of the week. In this passage Paul is instructing the brethren in Corinth to gather supplies for their brethren in Judea. Acts 11:27-30 confirms that Judea at this time was suffering from a severe famine.
While Mark 16:9 appears to state that Yahshua arose on the first day of the week, this passage can also be understood by readjusting the comma. The passage would be better read, “Now when Yahshua was risen, early the first day of the week he appeared first to Mary Magdalene out of whom he had cast seven devils.” By moving the comma after the phrase, “Now when Yahshua was risen,” this passage confirms that after Yahshua had risen the women had come to the tomb on the first day of the week. At this point, Yahshua had already risen from the grave. According to Matthew 12:40, He would be in the grave for three days and three nights, making the traditional time between Friday afternoon and Sunday morning impossible. The biblical record shows that He was in the grave from late Wednesday through late Saturday.
As a side note, even if Yahshua rose on Sunday, nowhere in the Bible does it state that the Messiah’s resurrection day is to be observed as a Sabbath. Some tie this phrase into the “Lord’s Day,” but this is not referring to Sunday, but to Yahshua’s return. Like so many of the teachings within Christianity, Sunday is built upon the precepts of man and solidified through 2,000 years of church tradition.
Regarding Yahshua fulfilling the firstfruits offering, we agree that this occurred on Sunday. However, it’s important to note that Yahshua fulfilled this after being resurrected. We believe this occurred when Mary saw Him in the garden perceiving Him at first to be the gardener, John 20:15: “Yahshua saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.”
Concerning your reference to Justin Martyr, Sunday worship, along with many other Church traditions, was already established by the second century CE.
For additional information, what our video: SABBATH – Sunday or Saturday?
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