When most people think of church, they think of Sunday. But why do we go to church on Sunday instead of Saturday? Isn’t Saturday the Sabbath? Isn’t that the day God told us to keep holy? What have we missed? Did we get it wrong somehow? Let’s take a look! In this article, we will explore 7 biblical and practical reasons why Christians today go to church on Sunday instead of Saturday.
Well, first of all, let’s establish our primary objective here. Although we will include various reasons why attending church is very positive for you, our main objective is to determine why most church attenders people go to church on Sunday rather than Saturday, which was the Old Testament Sabbath.
In a nutshell, Christians typically have set aside Sunday as the day they would meet together because Jesus rose from the dead on Sunday. In the Jewish Bible, which is the first part of the Christian Bible, worshippers put aside Saturday as the Sabbath or Lord’s day. When Jesus fulfilled the law by dying and rising from the dead on the first day of the week. Christians, in general, began to set aside Sunday as the Lord’s Day.
Let’s view this topic more closely. Why do we go to church on Sunday instead of Saturday? Let’s take a look at this in quite a bit more detail.
Why Do We Go To Church On Sunday? It’s The Lord’s Day.
So, Christian worship has deep roots in Judaism. As a matter of fact, Christians have an incredible amount of Holy Scripture in common with the Jewish people. The difference lies in the Christian belief that Jesus was the messiah fulfilling the messianic prophecies of the Old Testament, paying the penalty of our sins and freeing us from the Jewish ceremonial law, and providing the Holy Spirit to work in and through us to love and be in an obedient relationship with Jesus Christ.
If you look back at one of the 10 commandments you will find:
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.” Exodus 20:8-11
The sabbath was actually on Saturday, the seventh day, rather than on Sunday. This tradition of meeting on Saturday is still a part of modern-day Judaism.
So let’s go now to the first century as we see the Christian church being born. The disciples of Christ would go to the synagogues with the Jews and they began to preach about Jesus Christ and him crucified. Many began to accept the message and many did not.
Christians began to switch their meeting of worship to the first day of the week because Jesus was rose from the grave on the first day of the week. So, the first day of the week as we look on the calendar today is Sunday, which Christians began to set aside as The Lord’s Day. We see John speaking of worshipping on the Lord’s Day in Revelation 1:10.
It was the Lord’s Day, and I was worshiping in the Spirit. Suddenly, I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet blast.
Revelation 1:10
A lot of these changes occurred during the first decades after the resurrection of Christ as we see documented in the book of Acts (Acts of the Apostles).
In the first day of the week, we gathered with the local believers to share in the Lord’s Supper. Paul was preaching to them, and since he was leaving the next day, he kept talking until midnight.”
Acts 20:7
Also, you can look in the first letter of the Apostle Paul to the church in Corinth and find this verse:
“On the first day of each week, you should each put aside a portion of the money you have earned. Don’t wait until I get there and then try to collect it all at once.”
1 Corinthians 16:2
Why Do We Go To Church On Sunday? Jesus Was Raised!
Keep in mind that in those early days there were still people alive who were aware that Jesus had died, or seen him die, and when they saw Him alive so you can imagine how adamant and compelling those eyewitnesses were about what had happened.
Look at this amazing passage, again from 1st Corinthians.
I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. He was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve. After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles.”
Corinthians 15:3-9
Another reason why Christians go to church on Sunday instead of Saturday has to do with the fact that Jesus appeared to his disciples on the first day of the week after his resurrection. In John chapter 20, verse 1 we read that “while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.” Later that same day, she met her risen Lord face to face. How incredible would that have been for a Christ-follower?
Why Do We Go To Church On Sunday? The Law Has Been Fulfilled.
On the cross, Jesus brought an end to the old covenant of law. He did away with all of its restrictions and requirements. This includes the Sabbath. In its place, he established a new covenant of grace.
Under this new covenant, we are no longer bound by the legalistic requirements of the old covenant. Instead, we are called to a life of freedom and joy in Christ. And what better day to celebrate this freedom than on Lord’s Day?
In the Sermon On The Mount in Matthew, chapter 5 Jesus said this:
“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose.”
Matthew 5:17
We have a fresh beginning – not that the Law was bad or irrelevant, it’s just that we didn’t have the power in ourselves to keep the law. What we have is so much better than living by the law! It’s a whole new day. It’s a whole new life and way of living life. Jesus changed everything and that change eventually resulted in worshipping what we call the Lord’s Day rather than the Sabbath.
Jesus’ fulfillment of the law has given us much liberty – not a license to sin and do anything we want, but much freedom. We have the freedom to worship on Sunday, Lord’s Day.
Now, does that mean that it’s an absolute must for a Christian to attend a Sunday service? No. For example, there are churches that, for reasons of growth and other situations, began to offer Saturday evening worship services. They did so to create more space for new attendees in their Sunday morning gatherings and for those who actually have to work on Sundays.
So, if you’re church provides an alternative worship service day like that, you have the freedom to make that choice. The important thing is to be a part of a local church, be in a community of faith and experience fellowship with others and grow in your faith.
Why Do We Go To Church On Sunday? There Are Incredible Benefits.
So far we have tried to distinguish the Lord’s Day from the Sabbath and give the answer to the question “why do we go to church on Sunday.” So, we’ve talked a bit about why a Christian’s most focused day of worship is normally Sunday rather than Saturday. Now, let’s talk about why, (in terms of the benefits), that we go to church on Sunday.
Why Do We Go to Church On Sunday? To Worship As A Church Family.
The church is not just a building where we go to hear a sermon. The church is the people. And it’s important for us to worship together as a church family. When we do this, we are reminded that we are not alone in our faith.
We should worship God on a daily basis and not only on Sundays. With the Holy Spirit living inside of us helping and prompting us to worship, those daily private times of prayer and worship are needed. We also use this opportunity to give financial resources to the church as God wants us to. These are some of the important reasons in answering why do we go to church on Sunday.
However, when we meet together as a body of believers it reminds us that we are a part of something much bigger – the Church – also known in scripture as the bride of Christ, When you think about it, it makes perfect sense that we would want to gather together with other believers on Lord’s Day. It’s a time for us to encourage one another and build each other up in the faith.
Our local church congregations become families. God doesn’t want us to live this life isolated or alone. He gives us the church family as a crucial and important part of growing in our faith.
“And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.”
Hebrews 10:25
Why Do We Go To Church On Sunday? To Hear The Word Of God Taught.
Well, pastors and teachers have many varieties of styles and communication skills. However, the point is – are they teaching and preaching the truth of God’s word in a skillful manner that helps encourage us, train us, and sometimes gently correct us or point us to a more intimate relationship with God that will lead to a better life and better behavior?
Listen to Men Who Know God’s Word and Communicate it Well.
As mentioned, there are variations in the style of teaching, preaching, and exposition of God’s word. However, we need to make sure that we are sitting under the teaching of a minister who is a diligent student of the Bible.
Always make sure that you are consistently sitting under the teaching of a minister who understands the Bible and who teaches it truthfully. The Bible is the written authoritative word of God. We should read and study on our own for sure. However, let’s make sure that we are in the position to be taught by Godly pastors who have studied and been trained with God’s word. Paul outlines the importance of biblical teaching here:
“All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17
In Summary: Why Do We Go To Church On Sunday?
So, we’ve shown a few reasons that Christians have these are just a few of the reasons why Christians go to church on Sunday.
In terms of the question about the Sabbath or Saturday vs Sunday, it’s fairly simple. You can know that it’s because, after the death and resurrection of Christ, the newly formed Christian church had the freedom to meet on what they called the Lord’s day. It’s the first day of the week – Sunday.
The resurrection, in which our entire faith rests certainly is pivotal in this and virtually every other issue of the Christian faith.
Plus, the fact that Jesus fulfilled the law given us the freedoms that we have is something that, unfortunately, many Christians sometimes fail to realize.
I also hope that the benefits of regular church attendance that we listed might be helpful also. There are so many other benefits that we could mention but there are plenty of online resources to give you further help in that respect. But whatever the reason, one thing is for sure.
Sunday is a special day for Christians around the world. It’s a day when we come together to worship our risen Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Thank You, God!
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