#1. The Seventh-day Adventist position:

Christians originally kept the sabbath right from the time of the apostles, but due to the influence of the devil, Christians went into universal apostasy for over 1600 years until, of course the arrival of Ellen G. White, the Adventist prophet, who saw, contrary to what the Bible says in Col 2:16, that the sabbath law was not nailed to the cross. Historically, it was in 1844 the first Adventists (known then as Millerites) started keeping the Sabbath, introduced to them by a Seventh-day Baptist who convinced their Methodist minister that the Bible teaches us to keep the Sabbath. But God chose Ellen White and the modern Seventh-day Adventist movement as the medium through which to reveal and confirm this "truth" through direct inspiration and revelation. Although Adventists believe that a tiny unknown remnant has always kept the sabbath day, (like the Seventh-day Baptist preacher mentioned above) only in the 19th century did God, through the Seventh-day Adventist church, restore in any measurable way, by direct revelation, the truth that the day Christians worship was Saturday. Adventists openly teach that early Christians borrowed Sunday as the day of worship from the pagan religion of Mithraism in about 140 AD. Gradually Sunday replaced the sabbath day (Saturday) so that today the worship on Sunday is an almost universal Christian practice of apostasy and totally contrary to the will of God. "Sunday keepers", as Sabbatarians call them, have been deceived by the devil. SDA's interpret "The Seal of God" to be "Saturday Sabbath-keeping" vs "The Mark of the Beast" which they interpret to mean "Sunday Sabbath-keeping" - not now, but AFTER an assumed national Sunday law is passed so all must choose between the two. Of course these interpretations are apostate in themselves.

 #2. The Catholic Position

Christians have always met on Sunday, but the significance of the sabbath commandment was transferred to Sunday. The resurrection of Christ is the primary reason why God, through the vehicle of the Catholic church, transferred the sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. Catholics have always taught that Acts 20:7, 1 Cor 16:1-2 and Rev 1:10 are clear Biblical references supporting the practice of worshipping on Sunday. Although some Catholics have suggested that the pope changed the sabbath well after Christians had an established practice of sabbath keeping, this point has been strongly rejected by the highest Catholic authorities today. In reality, what the Catholic church believes is that apostle Peter was the first pope and that the very earliest Christians, in apostolic times "transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday", by the will of God. Officially Catholics have always taught that the universal practice of the earliest Christians was to meet every Sunday. Seventh-day Adventists actually misrepresent the official teaching of the Catholic church. Yes the Catholic church does teach that it, by authority given to it by God, made the change, but that change was realized early in the Apostolic age. (33-96AD)

Peter Geierman, The Convert's Catechism of Catholic Doctrine, p. 50.

Q. What is the Third Commandment?

A. The Third Commandment is: Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath day.

Q. Which is the Sabbath day?

A. Saturday is the Sabbath day.

Q. Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday?

A. We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday."

Notice that Catholics DO NOT say that Christians once kept the sabbath, (Saturday) then CHANGED the day of worship to Sunday. Rather they actually teach that this change took place at the time when Christians first started to worship on Sunday in 33AD. It is critical to keep in mind that the Catholic church claims direct apostolic authority from the present Pope in Rome right back to Peter.

 #3. The Mistaken Protestant Position

The universal practice of Christians has always been to worship on Sunday. Similar to the Catholic position, the meaning of the sabbath was transferred to Sunday, to commemorate the resurrection of Christ. However, some are doing the right thing for the wrong reason. When Christians today wrongly apply the 4th commandment as the reason why they worship on Sunday, they are not only mistaken, but are making themselves very vulnerable to manipulation by the various Sabbatarian groups. Any church that claims to keep the 10 commandments or the sabbath day are highly vulnerable to any Sabbatarian group. Such churches will be hard pressed to justify their practice of worshipping on Sunday, while quoting the 4th commandment. "Six days you shall labour, but the seventh is the Sabbath." A simple kitchen calendar showing that Saturday is the "seventh" day of the week (just count them off) is the only evangelistic tool Sabbatarians need to convert these Christians to their Saturday keeping churches. Therefore, a correct understanding of why we worship on Sunday needs to be taught.

 #4. THE TRUTH: The Actual Protestant Position

The 10 commandment law including the requirement to keep the sabbath day were abolished at the cross along with all the rest of the law of Moses. God gave a covenant at Mt. Sinai through Moses to the Jews. It is called the first/old covenant/testament. The ten commandments are the foremost visible representation of this first/old covenant was replaced by a new covenant called, among other things "the law of Christ". 100% of the old covenant was abolished. No part of the Old Covenant remains in force. No one prior to Moses (Abraham or Adam) ever heard of the sabbath law much less kept it. The very first time that anyone was commanded to keep the sabbath was in Exodus 16. The word "sabbath" is not even found in the book of Genesis. Gen 2:2-3 was written by Moses to tell Jews at Sinai the meaning behind WHY they were to keep the sabbath, NOT WHEN the sabbath was instituted. The universal meeting day of Christians after the resurrection was Sunday, and so has been to this very day. Sunday is not a Christian sabbath or a day of rest, or a holy day to be kept. It is the day God requires all Christians to gather together to worship and eat the Lord's Supper (communion, break bread) Acts 20:7. Christians do not keep the ten commandment law of Moses. This is not to say that Christians are free to steal, murder and commit adultery, just because the 10 commandments have been abolished. No! Christians are under a new law, a better Law, the law of Christ, (Gal 6:2) a better covenant (Heb 8:6-7). Paul stated, "If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize that the things which I write to you are the Lord's commandment." (1 Corinthians 14:37) Apostle Peter said at the beginning of the establishment of the church, "Moses said, 'THE LORD GOD SHALL RAISE UP FOR YOU A PROPHET LIKE ME FROM YOUR BRETHREN; TO HIM YOU SHALL GIVE HEED in everything He says to you. 'And it shall be that every soul that does not heed that prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.'" Thus we listen to Christ in all things and Moses in nothing. This is New Testament Christianity!