Europe Pushing Sunday, SDAs Opposed. Seventh Day Baptists Do Not Consider Saturday of High Importance

Sunday Church Naxos Greece

“Sunday Church”, Naxos Greece

Many in Europe are trying to take steps that would promote additional Sunday restrictions:

A new alliance promoting fair and balanced work conditions in Europe asked the European Union’s Economic and Social Committee last week to declare Sunday a “work-free day” in its new working guidelines for member states…

“We support the notion that people need a day of rest to achieve a life/work balance to maintain the health and safety of workers,” said Raafat Kamal, Public Affairs and Religious Liberty director for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Northern Europe, adding that the idea was first modeled by God, who rested following the biblical creation week.

“At the same time, we want to be sure that those who don’t have Sunday as a designated religious day of rest will be respected and tolerated,” Kamal said. http://news.adventist.org/2011/06/religious-liberty-ad-2.html

This European advocacy of Sunday is not a surprising move. Future Sunday laws have long been considered likely by those of us who observe the seventh-day Sabbath. And of course, those of us who observe the biblical Sabbath (which is on Saturday and not Sunday) do not consider that Sunday laws are “fair and balanced”.

Sunday has been considered as “the mark of the Beast” by many.

Almost ironically, a group that, in a sense, both the Seventh-day Adventists and the Church of God trace their 18th century history through, the Seventh Day Baptists no longer seem to think that Saturday is that important:

Associated Baptist Press – June 29, 2011

National staff leadership for Seventh Day Baptists say “Baptist” is more important than “Seventh Day” in their identity.

They are from left, Nick Kersten, Gordon Lawton and Rob Appel, executive director….The Conference has issued no statement on ordination, although it has accredited some female pastors…“We’re Baptists first,” Kersten said. “When I send kids off to college, I encourage them to keep the Sabbath and find a good Sunday Baptist Church.” He said there are “so many theological problems” in other Sabbatarian groups that “Baptist” is more important than Saturday worship. http://www.abpnews.com/content/view/6526/53/

I would have thought that the SDBs would have declared that it was important to be Christians first and to walk as Jesus walked. And as was the case, Jesus kept the seventh-day Sabbath (Luke 4:16,31; 6:6; 13:10). The “theological problems” that the SDBs have with groups like the Living Church of God include the fact that we have retained historical Christian beliefs on matters such as the Godhead (see Did the True Church Ever Teach a Trinity?) as well as others that the SBDs have abandoned (see also The Sardis Church Era and The Philadelphia Church Era).

It was Jesus who declared Himself:

Lord of the Sabbath (Matthew 12:8; Mark 2:28)

The Apostle Paul was clear that the seventh-day rest was still something that real Christians should observe:

Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said, “So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.'” And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world. For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: “And on the seventh day God rested from all his work.” And again in the passage above he says, “They shall never enter my rest.” It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience…There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience (Hebrews 4:3-6,9-11, NIV).

He did not say such things about Sunday (which is the first, not seventh, day. Nor did Jesus nor any writers of the New Testament.

The Europeans and Seventh Day Baptists may wish to consider what the Bible itself actually teaches.

Some articles of possibly related interest may include:

Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe?
Sunday and Christianity Was Sunday observed by the apostolic and true post-apostolic Christians? How clearly endorsed Sunday?
The Sabbath in the Early Church and Abroad Was the seventh-day (Saturday) Sabbath observed by the apostolic and post-apostolic Church?
SDA/LCG Differences: Two Horned Beast of Revelation and 666 The Living Church of God is NOT part of the Seventh-day Adventists. This article explains two prophetic differences, the trinity, differences in approaching doctrine, including Ellen White. Did Ellen White make prophetic errors? Did Ellen White make false prophecies?
Seventh-day Adventist President Ted Wilson’s Comments on the Remnant Church Ted N. C. Wilson spoke on the SDAs striving to be the “remnant church”, but what do the related scriptures actually teach?
Women and the New Testament Church Were women important in the New Testament Church? Which women and how were they involved?
The Sardis Church Era was predominant circa 1600 A.D. to circa 1933 A.D. Discusses early history of the Seventh Day Baptists, Seventh-day Adventists, and COG-7th Day.