THE ANCIENT ORDER: ASSEMBLING ON THE FIRST DAY OF EVERY WEEK WITH THE CHURCH
When we consider an act of worship, wise reverence asks, “What does this mean?” and “Who does this serve?”
The Significance of Sunday, the First Day of the Week, the Lord’s Day:
“Sunday” means “day of the sun god.” The name of the day means nothing to Christians. We certainly don’t revere any sun god. We only revere the one God who made the sun and everything else. Whatever the day is called in every language, what matters is the “first” day of the week. It is the set day for Christian assemblies. We all ought to worship God every day, and the church is free to come together as often as desired, but the day called the Lord’s Day since ancient times is the time the Lord through His holy apostles has set as the day to assemble and partake of communion together.
There are good biblical reasons why. Mark 16:1–7 says,
When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.” (ESV)
Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week, and so sanctified it as the beginning of new creation. His followers regard all days as holy to Him, but His resurrection made Sunday special.
Sunday isn’t the Sabbath. For centuries many Christians have regarded Sunday as the “Christian Sabbath.” While there’s nothing particularly harmful about the idea, it’s not exactly biblically right. “The Sabbath” refers to the seventh day, which is Saturday. More on this below, but, “There remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God” (Hebrews 4:9 ESV), and it’s no longer Saturday. Read the context of Hebrews 4:9 and you’ll start to understand.
Christians are not under the Law of Moses! The apostle Paul writes in Colossians 2:16–17:
Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. (ESV)
It’s perfectly acceptable to God to observe the Sabbath (as many Jewish Christians do) AND the Lord’s Day, but it’s not acceptable to observe the Sabbath instead of Sunday. See Acts 20:7 and 1 Corinthians 16:1–2.
A quote from the Second-Century Christian writer, Justin Martyr, will shine light on the original and ancient order of things:
First Apology, Chapter LXVI—Of the Eucharist:
And this food is called among us Εὐχαριστία [the Eucharist], of which no one is allowed to partake but the man who believes that the things which we teach are true, and who has been washed with the washing that is for the remission of sins, and unto regeneration, and who is so living as Christ has enjoined. For not as common bread and common drink do we receive these; but in like manner as Jesus Christ our Savior, having been made flesh by the Word of God, had both flesh and blood for our salvation... For the apostles, in the memoirs composed by them, which are called Gospels, have thus delivered unto us what was enjoined upon them; that Jesus took bread, and when He had given thanks, said, ‘This do ye in remembrance of Me, this is My body;’ and that, after the same manner, having taken the cup and given thanks, He said, ‘This is My blood;’ and gave it to them alone.”
The very next session is Chapter LXVII—Weekly Worship of the Christians:
And we afterward continually remind each other of these things. And the wealthy among us help the needy, and we always keep together; and for all things wherewith we are supplied, we bless the Maker of all through His Son Jesus Christ, and through the Holy Ghost. And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; then, when the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. Then we all rise together and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine and water are brought, and the president, in like manner, offers prayers and thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying Amen; and there is a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have been given, and to those who are absent, a portion is sent by the deacons... But Sunday is the day on which we all hold our common assembly because it is the first day on which God, having wrought a change in the darkness and matter, made the world, and Jesus Christ our Saviour the same day rose from the dead. For He was crucified on the day before that of Saturn (Saturday); and on the day after that of Saturn, which is the day of the Sun, having appeared to His apostles and disciples, He taught them these things, which we have submitted to you also for your consideration.
Lord’s Day assemblies are the ancient order. And these assemblies are not optional. False teachers have sadly misinformed quite a few believers into thinking accepting Jesus as Savior is all the Lord asks of us and that a life of faithful service to Him is not required. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
The apostolic writer of Hebrews says,
And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 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 (10:24–25 ESV).
Sunday Assembly Isn’t Optional:
• It’s a matter of commandment (Bible): Jesus commands we partake of communion together (Luke 22:15–20).
• It’s a matter of apostolic example (Bible): The apostles were led by the Holy Spirit to lead the churches to assemble on the First Day of the Week (Acts 20:7).
• It’s a matter of implication (Bible): The first day of the week comes every week (1 Cor 16:1–2).
Remember Justin Martyr’s writings. There are always brothers and sisters who cannot assemble with us. We call this the principle of Providential hindrance. God doesn’t have a problem with cannot. His problem is with will not. Hopefully, this is all clear enough.
For now, I’m bringing this series of posts about worship to a close. For the sake of simplicity, here’s a summary of biblical truth about worship:
1. Worship is recognizing, serving, praising, and gratefully submitting to God as preeminently worthy of such honor. God deserves worship!
2. God calls us to worship through Scripture.
3. Our worship response is a matter of free will.
4. There are right and wrong ways to worship.
5. When God has specified something, everything else is excluded (The Law of Exclusion).
6. Where there’s no commandment, we’re free to act as we choose, provided we follow biblical principles.
7. Scripture regulates worship.
God only knows what happened to the cup Christ used to institute holy communion. I don’t imagine any of the disciples thought anything further about it when they left the upper room heading for Gethsemane. They weren’t expecting what the Lord knew was coming that night. So, the quest for the Holy Grail is a myth, but, like all the old myths, it’s a myth with the purpose of teaching us how to think.
When we consider an act of worship, wisdom asks, “What does this mean?” and “Who does this serve?”
Do we turn church into a rock concert? Do we hear performances from a special choir? Do we honor human talent in singer solos? Do we surround ourselves with excessively costly ornamentation? Is church the sharp-dressed fashion show? All of these are questions of purpose that reveal why we’re assembling. If it’s to please ourselves it’s not the biblical purpose.
“What does this mean?” and “Who does this serve?”
C. S. Lewis wrote,
It looks as if [church leaders] believe people can be lured to church by incessant brightenings, lightenings, lengthenings, abridgments, simplifications, and complications of the service. Novelty, simply as such, can have only an entertainment value. And they don’t [keep going] to church to be entertained. The perfect church service would be one we were almost unaware of; our attention would have been on God. Every novelty prevents this. It fixes our attention on the service itself, and thinking about worship is a different thing from worshipping. The important question about the Grail was, “For what does it serve?” It’s mad idolatry that makes the service greater than the God.
This world is more than it appears to be. Our lives depend on living as if seeing the invisible God. Every Lord’s Day, we come into His presence as blind people who, by His light, would see. He guides us, orders our lives, shows the way, & clears our paths. Every Lord’s Day, you prove whether you’ve seen the light by where you choose to be at the worship hour. Lord’s Day worship is essential. Worshipping biblically is essential. Through submission to these callings, we are proven to be believers. The first two steps along the path are obeying the gospel & making worship central in your life.
---JLP
Excellent article brother!
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