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Monday, January 18, 2010

Seventh Day Adventism & Colossians 2:16f

Seventh Day Adventists are a denomination of Protestantism that are best know for their stand that the Sabbath Day (7th Day of the week) is God's true day of worship, and that "Christendom" as a whole has corrupted this, making Sunday the day that Christians should set aside to worship on. The subject of this post is whether their position aligns with Scripture, in which Catholics and most Protestants believe no.

Most Adventists are aware of Colossians 2:16-17,
16Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. 17These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.
Here, non-Adventists argue that according to the plain teaching of Scripture, the Sabbath Day regulations have been abolished, thus refuting an essential tenet of Seventh Day Adventism. Most Adventists are aware of this passage and argue that it isn't talking about the 'Seventh-Day-Sabbath' because the Greek term for Sabbath in this passage is in the plural (i.e. Sabbaths), and thus it must refer to the annual 'feasts days' of the Old Testament sometimes referred to as "Sabbaths" (e.g. the Day of Atonement, Lev 16:31).

But is that response valid? Here are two considerations which indicate a negative response to that question:

1) The Greek term for Sabbath - "sabbaton" (sabbatwv) - is in plural form in Col 2:16. However, this same plural form is used in Mat 28:1, Luke 4:16, and Acts 16:13, yet they all are in reference to the 7th-Day Sabbath. The plural form even appears in the Greek Old Testament in Exodus 20:8, which is discussing the 7th-Day Sabbath of the 4th Commandment! Thus the plural form can easily mean 7th Day Sabbath, and there is no indication it is used in the New Testament in the form of Day of Atonement type sabbath.

2) The format of Col 2:16 is that of: Yearly-Monthly-Weekly. This three-term format appears in various Old Testament passages, referring to yearly feasts, new moons, sabbaths. Given this, it wouldn't make sense for Paul to say the Sabbath in Col 2:16 is the Day of Atonement Sabbath, because that would fall under the yearly feasts category he just mentioned.

The more important point to consider here is that those were all foreshadowing Christ in some way, and thus were pointing to something bigger than themselves. So the Sabbath being the day of rest in the OT was actually the day Jesus was in the tomb, preparing the way for New Life, Sunday. Further, Hebrews 4 speaks of the Sabbath in it's fulfilled sense as being reconciled and thus at peace with God, not a day of the week, but a state of being.

While SDA reasoning can at first seem valid, it really doesn't do justice to the Biblical testimony.

3 comments:

Wesley Falcao said...

Nice!

Wesley Falcao said...

Nice!

john reqsan rey said...

hi ,


does it correct to conclude that even sunday is sabbath?

because in greek


Mat 28:1 ᾿Οψὲ δὲ σαββάτων, τῇ ἐπιφωσκούσῃ εἰς μίαν σαββάτων, ἦλθε Μαρὶα ἡ Μαγδαληνὴ καὶ ἡ ἄλλη Μαρία θεωρῆσαι τὸν τάφον.

[Opse de sabbaton te epiphoskouse eis mian sabbaton elthen Maria e Magdalene kai e alle Maria theo resai ton taphon.]


so we can see that after the sabbath, the day also said is sabbath. sunday it is refer in the
Heb 4:8 "another day"

there is a version in the bible translate this

Matthew 28:1-7 (Young's Literal Translation)

1 And on the eve of the sabbaths, at the dawn, toward the first of the sabbaths, came Mary the Magdalene, and the other Mary, to see the sepulchre, 2 and lo, there came a great earthquake, for a messenger of the Lord, having come down out of heaven, having come, did roll away the stone from the door, and was sitting upon it, 3 and his countenance was as lightning, and his clothing white as snow, 4 and from the fear of him did the keepers shake, and they became as dead men. 5 And the messenger answering said to the women, `Fear not ye, for I have known that Jesus, who hath been crucified, ye seek; 6 he is not here, for he rose, as he said; come, see the place where the Lord was lying; 7 and having gone quickly, say ye to his disciples, that he rose from the dead; and lo, he doth go before you to Galilee, there ye shall see him; lo, I have told you.'



so can conclude that the Lord's Day which is Sunday can be also sabbath?