WHEN TO WORSHIP
by Richard Burkard
It's a verse that's become almost a cliche for some religious radio stations and ministries. It's a verse that's been turned into a couple of praise songs; I'll never forget hearing a Salvation Army band play it outdoors on a busy October Saturday afternoon in a small Dutch city. But one recent Sabbath, I heard a Pastor turn this verse into something I'd never heard before - a verse proving you should worship only on the Seventh-Day Sabbath.
The verse? Psalm 118:24 - "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."
The minister actually suggested God only made one day to rejoice and be glad - the day "He made," which is Saturday Sabbath. If anything, this shows how far some Sabbath-keepers will stretch to justify what they do. Yet since "The Changes" developed in the Worldwide Church of God several years ago, Sabbath-keepers are not the only ones who do this.
"Every time the disciples encountered Jesus after His resurrection," one WCG District Superintendent used to say (and for all I know still may), "it was a Sunday." If you know your Bible well -- especially the accounts after the resurrection -- that statement should raise immediate suspicion.
All this inspired me to ask a basic question - and perhaps I asked it years behind other Church of God members. When should a Christian worship God? Related to this: are there some days when God does and does not accept worship? It's a key question in the spinoff of groups from the WCG in the last decade -- and for many, when to worship is a far more vital question than how to worship, which we've addressed elsewhere.
"The Day" God made
Let's begin with the verse the spinoff group's Pastor cited. When the psalmist wrote, "This is the day the Lord has made," was he thinking about a Sabbath? A simple breakdown of the verse should answer this question:
* Did God "make" only one day? Not according to my Bible - He made all seven! (Gen. 1:1-2:4) He declared only one day "holy" (KJV "sanctified") - the seventh day, in Genesis 2:3.(1)
* What is "the day" referencing? The New International Version provides a clue the King James Version does not: "With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession up to the horns of the altar." (Psm. 118:27) "Jewish sources, Targum and Talmud, say that the psalm was used.... with the Feast of Tabernacles.... recent exposition associates the psalm with the postulated autumn festival of enthronement in which the Davidic king.... is delivered by the Lord and restored to kingship." (New Bible Commentary: Revised, 1970 ed., p. 525)
While a weekly Sabbath is not specifically mentioned in Psalm 118, some might see symbolism in verses 19-21, where believers enter "the gates of righteousness," giving thanks because "you have become my salvation." Could this be a picture of an upcoming millennial rest? Or is this rest available now by accepting Jesus (the "capstone" mentioned in verse 22) as your Savior? That's another Church of God debating point entirely, and we'll pass on that here.
* What about rejoicing - are believers allowed to do that only on the Sabbath? The apostle Paul says no. "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" (Phil. 4:4) In fact, "rejoice evermore...." (I Thes. 5:16, KJV)
* Should you "be glad" only on the Sabbath? Apparently not, based on the New Testament. "I am glad therefore on your behalf," Paul writes to the Romans, seemingly irrespective of the day. (Rom 16:19, KJV) Peter adds when Jesus is revealed in glory, "ye may be glad also with exceeding joy...." (I Pet. 4:13, KJV)
What the Pastor did with this verse in Psalm 118 is a textbook example of what today's WCG calls "prooftexting" - claiming one isolated scripture proves a deep point of doctrine. It didn't take long for me to determine that, in a study at home. But current WCG ministers are not blameless on this, either.
Encounters with Jesus
Did Jesus only meet with His disciples on Sundays, after His resurrection? The old WCG would have said no, based on what John 20:26 says in the King James: "And after eight days again his disciples were within.... then came Jesus...." This was commonly understood as eight days after the first encounters with our resurrected Lord. But the "new WCG" claims "after eight" really means seven; another article on our web site examines this a bit more closely.
Beyond this issue, consider what Acts 1:3 says about Jesus. "He appeared to them over a period of 40 days and spoke about the Kingdom of God."(2)
Did He do this exclusively on the six Sundays in that 40-day period? The Bible does not say directly, one way or the other! But read on a few verses, and you'll find one such appearance.
Jesus promised His disciples would receive power from the Holy Spirit and be His witnesses "to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:6-8) "After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight." (v. 9) Many commentaries consider this "the farewell appearance of the risen Lord.... Hence in the Christian calendar Ascension Day falls on the fortieth day after Easter." (N.B.C., p. 974)
When is Ascension Day commonly marked? Not on a Sunday, or even a Saturday -- but on a Thursday! (Webster's New World Dictionary, 1966 ed., p. 85) So the Biblical evidence indicates meetings with Jesus could occur any day of the week. This leads, however, to the more challenging topic of when during the week actual worship occurred in the Bible.
What the women did
The first people to see the resurrected Jesus included a group of women, among them Mary Magdalene and the mother of Zebedee's sons. When Jesus greeted them, "they came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him." (Mt. 28:9) This occurred early on a Sunday morning, as even Herbert Armstrong wrote in one of his booklets.(3)
Notice how Jesus responded to people worshiping Him on a Sunday. Did He tell the women they had their calendar confused? Did He say, "Don't do that today! People years from now will get the wrong idea!" ?! Not at all. Jesus accepted their worship, telling them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me." (v. 10)
"AHA!" some might exclaim. "This proves the Sabbath is moved to Sunday!" Well, not so fast. We have an article examining whether the Sabbath changed at this point. But besides that, consider again Christ's ascension to heaven.
"While He was blessing them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they, after worshiping Him, returned to Jerusalem with great joy." (Lk. 24:51-52, NASB) We've already established this departure likely was on a Thursday; even a 40-day count from a Saturday afternoon resurrection brings this result. While some might say "after" implies a period of time elapsed before the worship occurred, we could also conclude just as reasonably the worship occurred at that location and time.(4)
In heaven and on earth
What about the angels and spirit beings in heaven? Do they only worship God on one particular day of the week? Rev. 11:15 tells of the seventh angel sounding a trumpet -- preparatory to Jesus's second coming, which some Church of God groups believe well could occur on a Feast of Trumpets holy day. When the angel sounds the trumpet in John's vision, "....the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God...." (v.16; note the parallel with Isa. 27:13)
Yet before we conclude the courts of heaven do this based on the Jewish calendar, consider another part of John's vision. "Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever." (Rev. 4:9-10) Based on other passages in Revelation (5:14, 7:12, 19:4), it appears the angelic elders are free to worship God anytime they please! It's a detail old WCG books about Revelation never addressed.
"But wait a minute," a Sabbath-keeper might argue. "Didn't Jesus say He was the Lord of the Sabbath day?" I heard a spinoff group's Pastor say this during a sermon - but that's not exactly how the Lord put it.
"So the Son of Man is Lord even of the sabbath," Mark 2:28 says ("also" in KJV). "Even" is from the Greek word kai - "having a copulative and sometimes also a cumulative effect." (Strong's Concordance) That means it can connect groups of words, or can translate as words such as "also, even, moreover."(5)
This obviously invites the question of what "even" is referencing. Is Jesus connecting the Sabbath to the other days of the week? Or is it a connection to other miracles the Lord did, to show He's on a par with God? We're still pondering that one, and we'd appreciate your thoughts about it.
When Paul was on trial before Felix for being a troublemaker among the Jews, he admitted: "....I worship the God of our fathers as a follower of the Way, which they call a sect." Does this mean he did it on Sundays? Keep reading: "I believe everything that agrees with the Law and that is written in the Prophets...." (Acts 24:14)"Non-Christians called it a sect - a party within Judaism...." (N.B.C., p. 1005, emphasis mine) If it was within Judaism, it seems presumptuous to conclude he'd switched from Saturdays; after all, he preached to large crowds on Sabbaths. (13:44)
New Testament cases
One of the most bizarre examples of New Testament worship occurs after Jesus's arrest. Soldiers dress the Savior in a crown of thorns and a purple robe - "And began to salute him, 'Hail, King of the Jews!' And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him." (Mk. 15:18-19, KJV)
Aw, c'mon - this wasn't really worship, was it? Well, it's the same Greek word used elsewhere in the New Testament, including many of the other passages mentioned above. So even mocking and ridiculing worship can be considered worship - and some research indicates the time of this scene was a Wednesday morning! (15:1)
Note briefly some other cases of New Testament worship, which do not seem day-specific:
* Mt. 8:2 (KJV) - No one accuses Jesus in this passage of breaking the Sabbath when the worshiping leper is healed. (See similar passages in 9:18, 15:25, 20:20; Jhn. 9:38)
* Mt. 14:25, 33 - After Jesus walks on water, which could have occurred any night of the week.
* Mt. 28:17 - The text really does not say whether this occurred on a Sunday or some other day.
* Jhn. 12:20 - People were worshiping in Jerusalem to mark the Feast of Unleavened Bread when Jesus was crucified. While some could argue they were worshiping in vain (Mt. 15:9), they seemed to worship God as best they understood Him from the Old Testament -- doing so especially on "Holy Days."
Trips to the Temple
Where do some ministers get the idea that worship of God is only allowed on certain days of the week, and at certain times of year? The most complete scriptural answer we could find was a passage in the book of Ezekiel, where the prophet envisions a great future temple (Ezek. 43:3-5). At one point the Lord says to him:
"....The gate of the inner court facing east is to be shut on the six working days, but on the Sabbath day and on the day of the New Moon it is to be opened.... the gate will not be shut until evening. On the Sabbaths and on the New Moons the people of the land are to worship in the presence of the Lord at the entrance to that gateway." (Ezek. 46:1-3) Verse 9 goes on to imply annual "feast days" are included as well.
A similar passage appears at the end of Isaiah: "'From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me,' says the Lord." (Isa. 66:23) Yet do you see the problem with using these passages to justify "Sabbath-only" worship? Most Church of God groups do not have special worship on New Moons -- save for the Feast of Trumpets, on the first day of the seventh month! (Lev. 23:23-25) If they're "not applicable today," as some spinoff groups suggest, why should the Sabbath be applicable?
Here are some other examples of Old Testament worship, which challenge the traditional reasoning:
* Neh. 9:1,3 - Israel worships with fasting on the 24th day of the seventh month. Is this a Sabbath? Maybe or maybe not; it was two days after the Last Great Day.
* II Chron. 29:17, 20, 29 - A service to mark the purification of the temple occurred on the 17th day of the first month. We're not told which day of the week this occurred, either.(6)
* II Chr. 20:18 - Another time of worship on a day of declared fasting. We're never told what day of the week this was.
To be fair, the Old Testament does mention cases of worship during particular Holy Days and seasons of the year. They include the night of the Passover (Ex. 12:27), the Feast of Trumpets (Neh. 8:2, 6), and the Tabernacles season (II Chr. 7:3, 9).
A Seven-Day Jesus
So what's the point of all these verses and all this analysis? Simply to show this - according to the Bible, you can worship God anytime you wish. Some have referred to it as "24/7' worship, or the "Seven-Day Jesus" principle used by the name of a Christian band. But the Seventh-Day Sabbath still exists. How can I say that? Because the New Testament offers no definitive statement that it has been changed, moved or revoked; again, check our other article examining that issue in detail.
This conclusion may stun some of you. You might ask, "Aren't you endorsing the Worldwide Church of God's position?" Well, yes and no. The Scriptural evidence we've shown is clear -- godly worship has occurred at times outside Saturday. Yet WCG leaders have taken such an anti-Sabbath, anti-Holy Day slant that it seems to go to the other side of the ditch. While some WCG congregations still meet on Saturdays, the current message from Pasadena clearly is one of opposing services on those days and preferring Sunday services.
I'm hesitant to admit I agree with this man (and I don't agree with him on much else), but Sabbath-keeping radio preacher R.G. Stair explains the position quite well. We can worship God anytime we'd like - but He expects us to worship Him on the Sabbath.(7)
We could liken it to the traditional Church of God position on donating money. God expects a tithe - but you're free to give more as an offering, as you consider how much God has blessed you.
"You can't outgive God," Church of God ministers have said - to which I've sometimes added, "It's fun to try." Assuming that principle is true, is it wrong to try to move toward the heavenly, angelic example of worshiping God more? Is it really a credible argument to suggest God puts a giant "CLOSED TODAY" sign on His throne on Sunday mornings? (After all, what if someone comes to God and Jesus Christ by watching a Church of God telecast at that time?)
Questions and Answers
You're probably asking more questions, though. What about Christmas and Easter services? I still personally cannot justify keeping Christmas, because so much falsehood and misunderstanding is attached to it. (Note the link for much more on that.)
Easter likewise has become watered down with things that don't belong, from bunnies to eggs to Disney World parades. BUT Leviticus 23:9-14 does speak of a wave-sheaf offering ceremony, which some ministers even in the old WCG likened to Christ's resurrection. Note a couple of things, however: the ceremony is not called a "sacred assembly" as the Holy Days around it are - and there apparently was a historical dispute over whether to mark this on the Sunday during the days of Unleavened Bread, and the first day of Unleavened Bread itself.(8)
So what do we make of the Old Testament prophecies mentioned above? Note the passage in Ezekiel 46 talks about corporate worship at the temple. It says nothing about worshiping away from the temple, on your own - either for or against it. It's not commanded, but also not prohibited. I personally believe resurrected, long-suffering believers with their own "vine and fig tree" will want to give God worship and thanks far more than one day a week.
(Note also what the New Bible Commentary says about Isaiah 66:23 "New moon and sabbath.... stand here for their substance, the joyful dedicating of all life to the Creator."(9)
The statements "from one.... to another" could well be inclusive, as in a worship that is all month or all week long!)
Conclusion
Shortly after the Worldwide Church of God made "The Changes," I heard a friend give a testimony in one WCG congregation. He'd attended services for years, and reached the conclusion that "keeping the Sabbath holy" meant he was only required to act like a Christian 24 hours a week. It was a conclusion he now realized was in error.
I don't think the ministers of years ago meant to present that message -- but I can see where the way it was presented could make some think that way. Sadly, I can see where some might reach that faulty conclusion even today. It's a common misconception in many Christian denominations, really.-- else you wouldn't hear so many TV and radio preachers get on their congregations about looking religious on Sunday, then doing their own thing on Monday.
We've attempted to show God welcomes your worship anytime - night or day, Saturday or Sunday or weekday. But it does not diminish from the Sabbath God created long ago on the seventh day. That day is still there, offering both beneficial physical and spiritual rest for those who keep it. And in case you're wondering: I attend a church which meets on Saturdays, and keeps the Holy Days listed in the Old Testament. But I went to other denominations for special prayer services in the hours after the September 2001 skyjackings, because the church I attend did not hold special services.
"Be holy, because I am holy," Peter quotes the Lord as saying in I Peter 1:16. While only one day per week is declared holy in the Bible, the process of being holy is more than a one-day challenge. Finding times throughout the week to worship, whether in group meetings or individual prayer and study, can make it a seven-day-per-week experience.
To reply to this article, e-mail: rburkard@yahoo.com
1. The Moffatt translation, in fact, says: "This is a day we owe to the Eternal...." Some believers rightly could contend they owe every day of their lives and every breath they take to God.
2. For an interesting meditative study, consider the other "40-day" periods of the Bible. For instance, the rain at the start of the flood lasted that long in Genesis 6 -- and Jesus fasted that long, in Matthew 4.
3. The Resurrection Was Not on Sunday, 1972 ed., p. 10.
4. While all the translations we checked refer to the disciples worshiping at this point, we must in fairness note the margin of the Contemporary English Version, which says those words are not in some manuscripts.
5. Notice also the similar passages in Matthew 12:8 and Luke 6:5, where only KJV has the words "even" and "also." We should note this issue was brought up by a strongly pro-KJV minister.
6. Note also chapter 30, where Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread were kept by a large number of people during the second month on this occasion.
7. As I prepared this article, I came across a posting at Delphi Forums' "Sabbath-Keepers Meeting House," which noted Christian singer and songwriter Michael Card keeps the seventh-day Sabbath with his family, then worships at a Presbyterian church on Sundays.
8. N.B.C., p. 162.
9. N.B.C., pg. 625.
© 2002 Richard Burkard/www.LaughLine.com , All Rights Reserved.