"The Lord's Day"

“The first day of the week is the Lord’s Day. It is a Christian institution for regular observance. It commemorates the resurrection of Christ from the dead and should include exercises of worship and spiritual devotion, both public and private. Activities on the Lord’s Day should be commensurate with the Christian’s conscience under the Lordship of Jesus Christ.”

Psalm 122:1 ESV

I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord!”

We gather, as Christians, together - as the body of Christ - for worship on the Lord’s Day. This is rooted in the Christian tradition and in the practice of Christian churches from the time of the apostles.

Sunday was not arbitrarily chosen as the day we worship but is based on the Scriptures.

Acts 20:7 ESV

On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.

This practice is tied to the resurrection of Jesus on the first day of the week indicating the centrality of resurrection faith to the very structure of the church in Christian worship.

REGULAR OBSERVANCE

A weekly event. Why regular? In the rhythm of life, Christians gather on the first day of the week, and this regular observance gives structure to Christian commitment and discipleship.

“In a very real sense, the Lord’s Day is the day by which all other days are judged. The Lord’s Day is the one day when we affirm that Christians are to give priority not only to acts of personal devotion and discipleship in obedience to Christ but also to corporate worship.”

We are to be engaged in the world and we are during the week - jobs, life, etc. We are to be salt & light in the world. But the church is called together on the Lord’s Day to fulfill the biblical command...

Hebrews 10:25 ESV

not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK

It’s been a long debate over which day is appropriate for worship - 7th Day Adventists, 7th Day Baptists. The Jews considered Saturday as the Sabbath - and it is! This raises the question: Is the Lord’s Day the Sabbath?

2 problems:

Biblical - We have ample reason to believe that the earliest Christians shifted their day of observance from Saturday to Sunday because Christ appeared to His disciples on the first day of the week.

1 Corinthians 15:3–4 ESV

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,

John 20:19 ESV

On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.”

The resurrection is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. It’s not the bible, it’s not the teachings and miracles of Jesus, etc. It is the resurrection of the dead.

1 Corinthians 15:13–14 ESV

But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.

1 Corinthians 15:12-13

2. The practice and tradition of the church…again,

Acts 20:7 ESV

On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.

The precedent of the earliest followers.

WORSHIP & SPIRITUAL DEVOTION

This is a can of worms that has been opened and discussed for a LONG time. What should or shouldn’t Christians do on the Lord’s Day? I know for many of you, you had parents or grandparents that would do ANYTHING on the Lord’s Day.

ANY EXAMPLES?

Some argue that obedience to the 4th Commandment prohibits work of any kind - but, again, is this the difference between the Sabbath & Lord’s Day?

This debate actually goes all the way back to the time of the apostles!

Romans 14:5–6 ESV

One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God.

The Jewish authorities had turned the Sabbath into a burden for God’s people. Rabbis were involved in pointless debates over what could or couldn’t be done.

Mark 2:27 ESV

And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

We can do the same thing…we can turn the Lord’s Day into legalism missing the entire point of the day. It is one of God’s gifts to the church. it reminds us that true Christian worship is a celebration and that the Lord’s Day should be a day of great joy and peace - EXCITING!

This is why we should make corporate worship a REGULAR PRACTICE & PRIORITY IN OUR LIVES. It should bring us joy!

What is most important is that we DO gather for corporate worship…the rest is whatever we feel the Lord leading US - INDIVIDUALLY - to do. Together, each week, we proclaim the majesty and glory of God and proclaim the gospel!

Again, this past week’s songs - not about the beat, or tempo, or style - does it proclaim the gospel?

The second part of the importance is the acts of spiritual discipleship. Scripture encourages Christians to engage in private acts of devotion, such as Scripture reading and prayer, and in acts of Christian service.

The heart behind HG’s - APPLICATION OF THE MESSAGE ON SUNDAY!!!!

Colossians 3:16 ESV

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

Psalm 63 ESV

A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me. But those who seek to destroy my life shall go down into the depths of the earth; they shall be given over to the power of the sword; they shall be a portion for jackals. But the king shall rejoice in God; all who swear by him shall exult, for the mouths of liars will be stopped.