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Did Paul SELF-APPOINT Himself to be an Apostle?
Or more specifically “Is Paul a TRUE Apostle of Jesus Christ?” Now the purpose of this study in God's word is more than just merely answering the question of whether or not that Paul is a TRUE Apostle of Jesus Christ.
This Bible study will indeed answer this question by first answering the question of “What IS an Apostle of Jesus Christ”. For you see, some Christians are claiming that Paul is a FALSE Apostle and that he exalted himself to be an Apostle.
And the REASON that they make this claim is because of the teachings of Paul expose their teachings to be FALSE teachings.
So then, “What IS an APOSTLE of Jesus Christ?”
What I mean by this is that there were MORE than just the original TWELVE Apostles of Jesus Christ?
So then, the question has arisen “Are these other apostles who were not of the originally TWELVE Apostles TRUE Apostles of Jesus Christ?”
Or did all of the others who are called Apostles in the Bible simply appoint themselves to be Apostles of Jesus Christ as well?
In other words, if so be, that Paul appointed himself to be an apostle, then he would not be a true apostle of Jesus Christ, but rather Paul would be his OWN apostle, of his OWN gospel, having his OWN agenda, which would be another gospel and not the true gospel of Jesus Christ.
To say this another way, is it SOUND Biblical teaching to teach that Paul is a FALSE Apostle of Jesus Christ and thus Paul is a FALSE teacher by saying that Paul is NOT a TRUE Apostle of Jesus Christ by claiming that Paul appointed himself to be an apostle of Jesus Christ?
Is not the opposite of something that is TRUE being something that is FALSE? If one says, “that is NOT TRUE”, then they are saying that it is FALSE.
So then, to say that Paul is NOT a TRUE Apostle of Jesus Christ is to say that Paul is a FALSE Apostle of Jesus Christ.
And to say that Paul is a FALSE Apostle of Jesus Christ is to say that Paul is NOT an Apostle of Jesus Christ at ALL in ANY sense of the word.
And thus, according to that line of reasoning, Paul would be a false teacher. And that is the goal of the “Jesus words only Christians” who are claiming that Paul is not a TRUE Apostle of Jesus Christ.
Now, the main purpose of this study in God's word is NOT focused on whether or not Paul replaced Judas Iscariot to be the TWELFTH chosen Apostle of Jesus Christ in order to have his name written with the TWELVE, on the twelve foundations of the New Jerusalem and to sit with the TWELVE on the twelve thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel. But rather, the main purpose of this study is to see if Paul is actually a true apostle of Jesus Christ in ANY sense of the meaning of the word apostle. The Bible itself teaches us that Jesus himself personally chose TWELVE disciples originally and one of those ORIGINAL twelve disciples named Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus. Later we learn that the remaining 11 disciples appointed Mathias to be numbered among the twelve apostles. But then later Jesus HIMSELF called Paul to be his Apostle to the Gentiles. We know that there are only TWELVE thrones and TWELVE foundations, so the question is will Matthias or Paul be that TWELFTH Apostle whom Jesus HIMSELF called?
You see dear children of God, the Bible itself does indeed call, name or refer to OTHERS as being apostles, who are NOT one of the original TWELVE Apostles. In other words, if the Bible ITSELF calls Paul and others “apostles”, then that is what the Bible means. So then, does this mean that Paul's teachings are SOUND Biblical teachings? I mean is that not the VERY REASON of WHY some Christians question whether or not Paul is a true apostle of Jesus Christ, in order to try and prove that Paul is a FALSE teacher?
Again, the focus of this study is not to prove whether or not that Paul is a false teacher or a sound Biblical teacher of the true gospel of Jesus Christ. Rather the main purpose of this study is to teach you, my readers and seekers of the TRUTH of the WHOLE word of God, what the Bible ITSELF teaches us, and the word of TRUTH, the Holy Bible clearly teaches us that Paul is indeed an apostle of Jesus Christ along with others, who are also called apostles like it or not, it IS the word of TRUTH.
There are no GREATER and LESSOR Apostles of Jesus Christ in the eyes of Jesus, because he himself taught us to NOT lord over each other, as in, for one to EXALT him or herself ABOVE their brothers and sisters in the Lord as if they are superior to them, or that they are better than other Christians. Jesus himself teaches us this truth in Luke 14:11.
Luke 14:11.
“For whosoever exalts HIMSELF shall be abased, and he that humbles himself shall be exalted.”
Now the disciples of Jesus were LEARNING from Jesus the true character that God desires us to have. The word “disciple” means LEARNER or one who is being TAUGHT.
Jesus continued to teach his disciple THROUGH the Holy Spirit even AFTER Jesus ascended into heaven. Brother Luke teaches us that Jesus had many disciples and that HE himself CHOSE twelve, who he ALSO called apostles.
Please read Luke 6:12-17.
“And it came to pass in those days, that he (Jesus) went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.
13. And when it was day, he called unto him his DISCIPLES: (Or LEARNERS, or his close followers who were being TAUGHT by Jesus) and OF THEM he CHOSE TWELVE, whom ALSO he named apostles;
14. Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,
15. Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes,
16. And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.
17. And he came down with them and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases;”
Now the TWELVE Apostles of Jesus began to reason among themselves as to who was the GREATEST and here is what Jesus taught them and then THEY taught us as well by or through the teachings that they wrote down in the New Testament of the Bible.
In other words, we would not know what Jesus taught his disciples and apostles without them RECORDING as a written record of what Jesus taught them, which are combined together in the one book called the NEW Testament that are the words of Jesus of the NEW covenant. Even what is written in the four gospels was not written by Jesus himself. But rather, those words of Jesus were written by his disciples. And not ALL of what Jesus taught is found only in the four gospels. More on this in a moment, but first, let us see if Jesus taught us that some are greater than others.
Please read Luke 22:23-26.
“And they began to inquire among themselves, which of them it was that should do this thing.
24. And there was also a STRIFE among them, which of them should be accounted the GREATEST.
25. And he (Jesus) said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors.
26. But you shall NOT be so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that does serve.”
So then, Jesus clearly taught his disciples, who then taught us, the church, through what they recorded as a written record of what Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, taught them, both while he was with them in person and AFTER he ascended into heaven, which was for us to NOT exercise lordship over one another.
Therefore, to ME, if so be, that Paul was exalting himself as those Christians that teach “Jesus Words Only” claim and, therefore, conclude that Paul is not a true disciple of Jesus, then the REST of the disciples, including the ELEVEN of the original twelve Apostles, failed miserably to obey the words of Jesus to warn Paul that he was not following the teachings of Jesus. And also, the disciples of Jesus failed to warn US as well that Paul was a false teacher because there is absolutely NO written record of them saying that Paul was a false teacher or a false apostle.
Now I say, “and THEN THEY taught us” because Jesus taught the disciples MANY things that were NOT recorded or written down in the four gospels of Jesus Christ, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, but were written in the rest of the New Testament.
So then, to make the claim that most of the New Testament is FALSE teaching by claiming that Paul, who is accredited for writing most of the New Testament, is not a TRUE apostle, is very dangerous ground. The only Christians who seem to be claiming that Paul is a false teacher are Saturday seventh day of the week Sabbath-keeping Christians. And the only reason why they need Paul to be a false teacher is that Paul's teachings contradict THEIR teachings, which they claim are Jesus Words ONLY.
So, let me say this again as a stronger warning, anyone claiming that Paul is a false apostle is being done for the sole reason of getting rid of Paul’s TEACHINGS. And to claim that Paul is a false teacher is extremely dangerous ground to be on. For you see, the Bible ITSELF clearly teaches us that what Paul was taught, was NOT taught to him by man, but was taught to him by Jesus by way of the Holy Spirit. We will cover this more in-depth further on in this study of God's word, but first let me prove to you that Jesus was yet teaching his disciples and apostles, THROUGH the Holy Spirit dwelling IN them, AFTER Jesus ascended into heaven and thus the apostles and disciples of Jesus were YET still LEARNING many years AFTER Jesus ascended into heaven.
Please read John 21:25.
“And there are also MANY OTHER THINGS which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.”
This teaches us two things, which are that there are MANY things that Jesus did that are NOT recorded in the gospels themselves, but again this does NOT rule out that at least some of the OTHER THINGS Jesus did are indeed recorded in other books of the New Testament. And HOW do we know this to be TRUE? Because Jesus HIMSELF told us so!
Please read John 16:12-15 which teaches us that Jesus was still yet TEACHING his disciples, MANY THINGS, even AFTER he ascended into heaven which they could NOT bear or understand while Jesus was with them before his ascension.
John 16:12-15.
“I have YET MANY THINGS to say unto you, BUT you CANNOT bear them NOW .
13. Howbeit WHEN HE, the Spirit of truth, is come, HE will guide you into ALL TRUTH: for HE shall NOT speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come.
14. He shall glorify ME: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.
15. All things that the Father has are mine: therefore said I, that HE (The Holy Spirit) shall take of MINE, and shall SHOW IT (Or the Holy Spirit shall show or TEACH you those MANY THINGS that I have YET to TEACH you that you CANNOT BEAR right NOW. The Holy Spirit will TEACH you those many things that I have YET still have to teach) unto you.”
Now some Christians argue that Jesus had plenty of TIME during the forty days after his resurrection to teach his apostles and disciple everything they needed to know. But you see dear child of God it was NOT the matter of how much TIME, but rather that they could NOT BEAR or UNDERSTAND what Jesus yet desired to teach them, BECAUSE they did NOT yet have the Holy Spirit DWELLING IN them to lead and guide them into all truth.
In other words, the church was still YET LEARNING things THROUGH the teaching of the Holy Spirit giving them dreams and visions which was prophesied in the book of Joel in the Old Testament. And the Holy Spirit gave them understanding that parts of the prophecies were being fulfilled. I say parts of prophecies were being fulfilled because many times BOTH the FIRST and the SECOND coming of Jesus is prophesied in the SAME prophecy and at the FIRST coming of Jesus, the only first the first PART of the prophecy. The Holy Spirit also gave them REVELATION knowledge of many things hidden in the scriptures by opening their eyes of understanding of the types and shadows pointing to Jesus. So then, at times the Holy Spirit taught them through dreams and visions and at other times they PERCEIVED what the Holy Spirit was teaching them while the READ the Scriptures.
Like us, when the light comes on in our minds and we wonder why we did not see that truth before, and at other time there is a perceiving in us that something is just not quite right. We do not know what it is just yet. We cannot quite place or put a finger on it. But we KNOW deep within us that the Holy Spirit is showing us something. We SEE something in God's word that causes us to QUESTION what we are being taught by our church denomination. There SEEMS to be a CONTRADICTION from what we have been taught and what we are NOW seeing by revelation from the Holy Spirit that we did not see before.
Please read Acts 2:14-18.
“But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, You men of Judah, and all you that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you and hearken to my words:
15. For these are not drunken, as you suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.
16. But this IS THAT which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
17. And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men (Saul or Paul was a young man. See Acts 7:58) shall see VISIONS, and your old men shall dream dreams:
18. And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit, and they shall prophesy:”
Now, when you take a concordance and look up the word “vision” you will find that the first place the word “vision occurs in the book of Acts, also called the Acts of the Apostles, is found in Acts chapter 9 verses 10 through 20.
Acts 9:10-20.
“And there was a certain DISCIPLE at Damascus, named Ananias; and to HIM said the Lord in a VISION, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord.
11. And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: FOR (Or BECAUSE), behold, he PRAYS, (Now the word behold means look and SEE, so Jesus may have opened the eyes of Ananias to see with his own eyes that Saul of Tarsus was PRAYING)
12. AND has seen in a VISION a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight. (So then, at the same time that Jesus is appearing to Ananias in a VISION to REVEAL something new to him that Ananias had not known before, the Lord Jesus was also REVEALING something to Saul of Tarsus so that he would know that his prayer was heard and that the Lord was going to send him a man named Ananias to lay hands on him that he might receive his sight back.)
13. Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem:
14. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on your name. (Here we see that Ananias doubted because of fear. Satan was lying to Ananias putting fear in him perhaps saying something like, “this vision is not of God, it is a trap, and if you go near Saul he will cast you in prison.”)
15. BUT the Lord (Jesus Christ HIMSELF) said unto him, Go your way: FOR (Or BECAUSE) HE is a CHOSEN VESSEL unto ME, to bear MY NAME before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:
16. For I (The Lord Jesus Christ) WILL SHOW him how great things he must suffer for MY NAME'S sake.
17. And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, EVEN JESUS, that appeared unto YOU in the way as you came, has sent me, that you might receive your sight, AND be FILLED with the Holy Ghost.
18. And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, AND was baptized.
19. And when he had received meat, he was strengthened. Then was Saul certain days WITH the DISCIPLES which were at Damascus.
20. And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.”
So then, here in Acts chapter 9, we have a record given to us by the disciple of Jesus named Luke, who is given the credit of writing the book of Acts and one of the four gospels of Jesus Christ named the gospel of Luke. This teaches us in clear, simple, easy to understand words, that it was the Lord EVEN JESUS Christ himself, who appeared to Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus.
But yet, some Christians who teach Jesus Words Only, are making the CLAIM that this was NOT Jesus who appeared to Saul. But rather, they claim that it was Satan himself who appeared to Saul of Tarsus. And the reason that they make this claim is that THEY sincerely believe that the teachings of Saul, now called Paul, contradict the words of Jesus in the gospels. And, therefore, to THEM, Paul could NOT be a TRUE Apostle of Jesus Christ. But in truth, those who claim that they believe and follow ONLY the words of Jesus are making a lie. For you see, they are actually following the words of Moses under the OLD covenant written in the Old Testament which CONTRADICT the teaching of Acts chapter 15.
Please read Acts 15:24.
“Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, You must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment:”
In other words, ALL Saturday seventh day of the week Sabbath keeping Christians, INCLUDING Sunday Sabbath keeping Christians, who teach that all Christians must, without fail, keep the DAY of the WEEK. So then, whether it be they teach that Christians must keep Saturday the SEVENTH DAY of the WEEK like the Jews under the OLD covenant lest they sin. Or, whether they teach that Christians must keep the FIRST DAY of WEEK, as the Roman Catholic Church, lest they commit a mortal sin, BOTH groups of Sabbath keeping Christians are trying to keep BOTH covenants of God at the SAME time.
Now while many SEVENTH day of the week Sabbath keeping Christians hate Paul's teachings with a passion they dearly love the teachings of Peter, but yet some have failed to see that it was PETER himself, who taught us that the Jews, including HIMSELF, who were under the Old covenant could NOT bear or keep the OLD covenant.
Please read Acts 15:10
“Now, therefore, (Always find the reason of why the word therefore and wherefore are there FOR. Read the context to learn the reason Peter said) WHY tempt you God, to put a YOKE upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers NOR WE we were ABLE to BEAR?”
Now if you are truly seeking the TRUTH of the WHOLE word of Almighty God the Father, then I implore you to read the WHOLE matter and not base your faith on verses taken OUT of CONTEXT that are then INTERPRETED apart from the REST of God's word, making an ASSUMPTION, that what Jesus taught in the four gospels was ALL that Jesus taught and then drawing a conclusion based on Paul's words not matching exactly with the words of Jesus in the four gospels.
You see dear children of God, what ALL Sabbath keeping Christians, that keep a DAY of the WEEK, have failed to see is that Jesus was YET TEACHING his disciples and apostles many years AFTER he ascended into heaven. In other words, After Jesus ascended into heaven, he CONTINUED to teach his disciples THROUGH the leading and teaching of the Holy Spirit dwelling IN them and NOW dwelling IN us. Yes, Jesus is still yet teaching US the same way that he taught his apostles and disciples in the first century and throughout the history of the church, which is TROUGH the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit. Why do you think that there was the reformation of the church?
Yes, there are those, who do indeed hear from the wrong spirit, the DECEIVER, and some of you sincerely believe that I am the one being deceived. And thus, to YOU, it is ME, who is not hearing from the Holy Spirit.
You cannot know the truth by simply listening to only ONE side of this controversy of whether or not Paul is a false teacher, based on the argument that Paul is NOT a TRUE Apostle of Jesus.
Can you not see dear children of God, that this argument is based on proving that ONLY the original ELEVEN Apostles of Jesus are teaching the TRUTH and therefore, ALL the OTHER apostles AND disciples of Jesus are liars or false teachers and therefore their teachings cannot be trusted. Even to claim that one apostle of Jesus is a FALSE teacher is to say that Luke is a LIAR as well because it was Luke, who called Paul and OTHER disciples of Jesus “APOSTLES”.
So, one cannot prove that Paul is a FALSE teacher by CLAIMING that he is NOT a TRUE Apostle of Jesus Christ. This would be like saying that ALL other DISCIPLES of Jesus are NOT TRUE disciples of Jesus just because they were NOT the original TWELVE disciples of Jesus. It would be like saying the YOU are not a true disciple of Jesus, because you personally did not hear the gospel preached to you by one of the TWELVE original apostles of Jesus, in PERSON, face to face, having the gospel CONFIRMED by God with many signs and wonders right before your very eyes.
You believe and are saved BECAUSE you heard the TRUE gospel of Jesus Christ through the teachings of Paul. There is no instruction on HOW to be saved written in the four gospels. NO, that teaching OF Jesus was taught to his apostles and disciples AFTER Jesus ascended into heaven, THROUGH the Holy Spirit.
It was Paul's teaching in Romans, who taught us that ALL have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God.
It was Paul's teaching again in Roman that the word of faith is nigh in our mouth and that it is our CONFESSION of that faith brings salvation.
It was Paul's teaching that we are saved by GRACE and not by works.
There is a DIFFERENCE between being saved and receiving eternal life. We are saved WITHOUT works and we receive eternal life based UPON our WORKS. Please read the study "IS ONCE SAVED ALWAYS SAVED BIBLICAL?".
Now it is true that ONLY TWELVE Apostles of Jesus are given twelve seats to judge the twelve tribes of Israel and this we will cover further on in this study of God's word.
But for now please read where brother Luke clearly teaches us that Paul and others are indeed called “APOSTLES”.
Acts 14:1-28.
“And it came to pass in Iconium, that THEY went BOTH TOGETHER into the synagogue of the Jews, and so spoke, that a great multitude BOTH of the Jews and ALSO of the Greeks BELIEVED. (Now we know that the “THEY” here is referring back to Paul and Barnabas in Acts 13:2-5 where we are clearly taught by brother Luke that the Holy Spirit HIMSELF called and SENT both Paul and Barnabas to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles, which is something NEW that Jesus did NOT teach any of his disciples nor his ELEVEN Apostles before his ascension into heaven, but IS teaching them NOW by the Holy Spirit, because NOW they are able to BEAR this teaching being FILLED with the Holy Spirit. “As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. Acts 13:3 And when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. Acts 13:4 So they (Paul and Barnabas), being sent forth BY the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus. Acts 13:5 And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had ALSO John to their minister.” Also please notice that not only did the Holy Spirit HIMSELF call them but ALSO John, one of the ELEVEN disciples of Jesus, was WITH Paul and Barnabas as their minister. The Greek word translated here as their minister is Strong's # 5257 which means that the Apostle John was their subordinate. Now, this does NOT mean that John was under the apostles Paul and Barnabas, but rather John was their subservient, who was there to ASSIST them. So then, seeing that the apostle John himself was right there WITH Paul and Barnabas ASSISTING them, then surely if Paul was a false teacher as some claim, then apostle John failed miserably by NOT correcting what Paul taught. Even if this was another John who was not of the eleven he was still yet a true born again disciples of Jesus that was with Paul and Barnabas. Brother Luke as well, traveled with Paul as we will see shortly.)
2. But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles (Much like the Sabbath-keeping Christians are stirring up the Gentile Christians in the church today and throughout the history of the church), and made their minds evil affected against the brethren.
3. Long time, therefore, abode they speaking boldly in the Lord, which gave testimony unto the word of his grace, and granted signs and wonders to be done by their hands.
4. But the multitude of the city was divided: and part held with the Jews, and part with the APOSTLES. (Here we see that both Jews and Gentiles believed the Gospel of GRACE, but then the UNBELIEVING Jews stirred up the believing Jews and Gentiles so that it was needful for Paul and Barnabas to boldly speak the word of GRACE in the Lord for a long time. Then we see how the Lord HIMSELF gave testimony to the preaching of Paul and Barnabas by granting SIGNS and WONDERS that ONLY men OF God could do. And we ALSO see that Luke himself called Paul and Barnabas APOSTLES here in verse 4.)
5. And when there was an assault made both of the Gentiles, and also of the Jews with their rulers, to use them despitefully, and to stone them,
6. They were aware of it, and fled unto Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and unto the region that lies round about:
7. And there they preached the GOSPEL. (Luke does NOT call Paul a false teacher but rather affirms to us that Paul is a teacher of the GOSPEL, the Gospel or the good news of GRACE, which ALL the disciples and apostles of Jesus taught in order to be saved by GRACE. See Acts 15:11. I mean, think this through for YOURSELF dear children of God, if so be that the church, as in, ALL the disciples and apostles of Jesus, including Paul, taught what the JEWS taught, then there would be NO controversy between what the church taught and what the Jews taught. The TRUTH of the matter is that Jesus himself came to establish a NEW COVENANT in his shed blood. Please read the study “SABBATH KEEPERS ARE RIGHT!” for a deeper understanding of the WHOLE word of God INCLUDING both the OLD Testament AND the NEW Testament on the subject of the Sabbaths.)
8. And there sat a certain man at Lystra, impotent in his feet, being a cripple from his mother's womb, who never had walked:
9. The same heard Paul speak (Or this lame man heard the preaching of the Gospel being preached by the apostle Paul): who steadfastly beholding him, and perceiving that he had faith to be healed,
10. Said with a loud voice, Stand upright on your feet. And he leaped and walked. (Paul had true FAITH in the TRUE gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul did not whisper in the man's ear just in case or what IF God did not heal the man. But rather Paul said in a LOUD voice for the man to be healed. Paul was not drawing attention to himself, but to Yahweh and to his Son Jesus.)
11. And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.
12. And they called Barnabas, Jupiter; and Paul, Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker.
13. Then the priest of Jupiter, which was before their city, brought oxen and garlands unto the gates and would have done sacrifice with the people.
14. Which when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard of, they rent their clothes, and ran in among the people, crying out,
15. And saying, Sirs, WHY do you these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that you should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein: (God did not heal this man so you would follow us. This man was healed by God so you would turn away from your false gods and follow the TRUE God by obeying the teachings of his Son Jesus. We preach this gospel of good news for you to be saved by turning to the living God)
16. Who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways.
17. Nevertheless, he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.
18. And with these sayings scarce restrained they the people, that they had not done sacrifice unto them. (So the Gentiles wanted to exalt Paul and Barnabas to be the gods Jupiter, their main God and Mercury who was their messenger god, but the apostle said NO, do not do this for we are men like you preaching the Gospel or GOOD NEWS of how much the TRUE God loves you and wants to save you. Paul never boasted of himself. Some INTERPRET some verse that way, but if Paul was boasting in those verses as some CLAIM, we see here that Paul is doing everything he can so they do not start offering sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas.)
19. And there came thither certain Jews from Antioch and Iconium, who persuaded the people, and, having stoned Paul, drew him out of the city, supposing he had been dead. (Here come the JEWS again. So again we see the JEWS stirred up the people against the apostles of Jesus.)20. Howbeit (Or even though the JEWS left Paul for DEAD) as the disciples stood round about him, he rose up and came into the city: and the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe. (In other words, the disciples all gather around Paul, probably praying, but as they surrounded Paul he stood up and the NEXT day he traveled with Barnabas to Derbe after being left for DEAD the day before. Some say it was 30 miles from Lystra to Derbe, which is a long walk on foot for a man left for dead the day before. Or maybe Paul drove himself in a Honda Accord. You know, the apostles were all in ONE Accord. Just a little humor, a play on words. What I am teaching you here is that God was WITH Paul confirming his word being preached, so how anyone could accuse Paul of being a false teacher, I personally can not see. But then again, I was NOT taught only ONE SIDE. Yes, I have read the arguments to try and prove that Paul is a false teacher and I do indeed cover those arguments in another study called. “DO THE TEACHINGS OF PAUL CONTRADICT JESUS?”, but for now in this study, I am showing you the evidence from the Bible ITSELF that Paul and others were indeed called apostles. And I STRONGLY WARN you to NOT CALIN that the miracles Paul did he did by the power of SATAN. That would be BLASPHEMHING the Holy Spirit. And since Paul did indeed heal people in the NAME of Jesus BY the power of Almighty God CONFIRMING his word with signs following then Paul was a TRUE Apostle of Jesus Christ)
21. And when they had preached the gospel to that city and had taught many, they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and Antioch,
22. Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
23. And when they had ordained them elders in every church and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed.
24. And after they had passed throughout Pisidia, they came to Pamphylia.
25. And when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down into Attalia: (Now if so be that brother Luke saw Paul as a false teacher, as the Jesus Words Only and other Sabbath-keeping Christians CLAIM, then Luke failed miserably to warn us that Paul was a false teacher, because Luke HIMSELF clearly teaches us that Paul was teaching the GOSPEL, the WORDS of grace, upon which many believed and many were healed and that God himself gave TESTIMONY to the preaching and teaching of the apostles Paul and Barnabas by granting MANY SIGNS and WONDERS to be done by their hands.)
26. And thence sailed to Antioch, from whence they had been recommended to the grace of God for the work which they fulfilled. (In other words, it was IN Antioch that the apostles Paul and Barnabas were ENTRUSTED to the grace of God for or into the WORK that God called them to do and which they fulfilled not only in Antioch by everywhere that the Holy Spirit sent them.)27. And when they were come and had gathered the CHURCH together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he (Almighty God himself) had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles. (So it was confirmed in them by God their calling to preach the GOSPEL of GRACE the GENTILES in Antioch.)
28. And there they abode a long time with the disciples.”
So then, brother Luke affirms to us that BOTH Paul AND Barnabas are without fail APOSTLES of Jesus Christ in Acts 14:4 and in Acts 14:14.
But some Jesus Word Only Christians, as well as some other Sabbath-keeping Christians, CLAIM that the Greek word translated as an apostle, in these two verses, means minister and should not have been translated as an apostle. In other words, they demand that the translator made a mistake by translating this Greek word as an apostle and dogmatically demand that it should have been translated as a minister.
They thus conclude that Paul and Barnabas were only ministers and not true apostles of Jesus Christ. And therefore conclude that since Paul is NOT a TRUE apostle of Jesus Christ and only a minister, then Paul is subject to being wrong like every minister of Jesus Christ CAN be in error. This opens the door for them to now dogmatically demand that Paul is a FALSE teacher based on their saying that they have proved Paul to be a false apostle and not a TRUE apostle like the TWELVE.
Clearly, their line of reasoning is NOT sound reasoning, because one of the original twelve apostles betrayed Jesus. Keep in mind that ONLY seventh day of the week Sabbath keeping Christians make the CLAIM that the Bible translators made an error by supposedly incorrectly translating the Greek word apostoloi as APOSTLE when they should have translated it as a minister.
However, if you look these words up in a concordance for yourself, then you will find that the Greek word translated as apostle in Acts 14:4 is apostolois, with Strong's # 652 and you will find that the Greek word translated in Acts 14:14 as apostles is apostoloi, with the SAME Strong's #652. Now they argue that these are NOT the SAME Greek words because they are not spelled EXACTLY the same ways.
Now, this would be like arguing that words apostle, apostles, apostle's and apostles' are NOT the SAME word because they are not spelled exactly the same way. The FACT is that they are the same word having the same meaning as being one who is SENT, but having different applications where one is singular, one is plural, one is singular possessive and one is plural possessive. The FACT is that they ALL have the exact same Strong's #652 giving the SAME meaning for this ONE Greek with different endings and this fact clearly teaches us that the translators correctly translated ALL the Greek words having Strong's #652 as apostle and apostles.
In other words, apostolois having Strong's #652 in Acts 14:4 translated as apostles referring to Paul and Barnabas is the SAME Greek word apostoloi having exact SAME Strong's #652 in Acts 14:14 also translated as apostles again referring to Paul and Barnabas, which is the SAME Greek word apostolon having the exact SAME Strong's #652 translated as Apostle in Hebrews 3:1 referring to Jesus himself, which is the SAME Greek word apostolous having the exact SAME Strong's #652 translated as apostles referring to the TWELVE apostles of Jesus in Luke 6:13, which is the SAME Greek word apostolOn having exact SAME Strong's #652 translated as apostles again referring to the TWELVE apostles of Jesus in Matthew 10:2.
Some Sabbath-keepers may still yet argue that these SAME Greek words are NOT the same Greek words, because they are not spelled exactly the same way. So for those Sabbath-keeping Christians desperate to make any claim they can in order to make the apostle Paul SEEM to NOT be a TRUE apostle of Jesus Christ please consider the EXACT SAME SPELLING apostoloi having the exact SAME Strong's #652, referring to both Paul and Barnabas as being apostles in Acts 14:14, and Mark 6:30 using this SAME Greek word apostoloi having the exact SAME Strong's #652 translated as apostles referring to the TWELVE apostles of Jesus Christ.
So then, dear children of God, the CLAIM made by some Sabbath-keeping Christians that Paul is NOT a TRUE apostle of Jesus Christ by dogmatically demanding that the TRANSLATORS translated the Greek word apostoloi, having Strong's #652 in Acts 13:14 incorrectly as apostles, when it referred to Paul and Barnabas as apostles of Jesus Christ, are simply making a LIE. For you see, the EXACT SAME Greek word apostoloi having Strong's #652 is spelled the exact same way in Mark 6:30. And it is translated as apostles in Mark 6:30 referring to the TWELVE apostles of Jesus.
The translators have it correctly translated in both Mark 6:30 and in Acts 14:14 as being apostles of Jesus Christ, but Sabbath-keepers MUST deny this TRUTH because it proves that their teaching of the Sabbath is in ERROR. See also Luke 9:10, using the Greek word apostoloi, the same as Acts 14:14. And Luke 17:5, again using the same Greek word apostoloi, the same as Acts 14:4, also see Luke 22:14 using the same Greek word apostoloi found in Acts 14:14 translated as apostles referring to both Paul and Barnabas as being apostles of Jesus Christ. Acts 4:33 apostoloi, Acts 5:29 apostoloi, Acts 8:14 apostoloi, Acts 11:1 apostoloi, Acts 15:6 apostoloi, Acts 15:23 apostoloi, 1 Corinthians 9:5 apostoloi, 1 Corinthians 12:29 apostoloi, 1 Thessalonians 2:6 apostoloi, Revelation 18:20 apostoloi.
Now let us read 1 Corinthians 12:25-31 where Paul teaches that Almighty God himself set some in the church to be apostles translated from the Greek word apostolos, then Paul asks the question in the same passage of scripture in the very next verse saying, SOME are set by God in the church as apostolos, but are ALL apostles or are ALL apostoloi?
Regardless of how one interprets this verse that FACT remains those two different SPELLINGS of Strong's #652 are both translated as APOSTLES. In other words, Paul is not saying, God set in the church some as apostles, are ALL ministers? That makes no sense because both spellings of this SAME Greek word mean APOSTLE and APOSTLES meaning one who is SENT.
Let us all speak the same things dear children of God so that there should be no schism or division or factions in the body, but that the members should have the same care one for another.
1 Corinthians 12:25-31.
“That there should be no schism (Or that there should be NO division or factions) in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.
26. And whether one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.
27. Now you are the body of Christ and members in particular.
28 And God has set SOME in the church, first apostles (apostolOn), secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healing, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.
29. Are ALL apostles (apostoloi)? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles?
30. Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret?
31. But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.”
The CONTEXT here 1 Corinthians 12:28,29 teaches us that ALL apostoloi are also apostolOn, but not ALL believers are apostles or not ALL believers are apostoloi. In other words, as we have already seen by comparing Mark 6:30 and Acts 14:14 that just because the Greek word for apostle is not spelled exactly the same every time it is used does not mean that apostoloi when referring to Paul and Barnabas are NOT true apostles. So now we have two witnesses and here is a third witness.
In 1 Corinthians 9:1-6 Paul is still battling with DIVISION. That division was where some Christians want to follow Paul and Barnabas ONLY while others want to follow Cephas or Peter only. Some were saying I am of Paul. Others were saying I am of Cephas or Peter. And others were saying I am of Apollos. And Paul said brothers, this ought not to be so. Is Christ divided? Paul hates division and wants us all to speak the same things. Paul did not care WHO brought who to Jesus Christ. Let us read these verses and you will see that the OTHER apostles referring to the eleven are being called apostoloi.
1 Corinthians 9:1-6.
“Am I not an apostle? am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord?
2. If I be not an apostle unto others, yet doubtless I am (An apostle) to YOU: for the seal of mine apostleship are you in the Lord. (Paul is saying here that those Christians he is speaking to here specifically are Christians because they heard the gospel from him and became believers on Jesus Christ, because of what Paul preached to them. So it was NOT Paul's disciples whom he begets by the gospel who were examining the apostleship of Paul. Remember that the word disciple means learner or one who is being taught. People follow who they TRUST are teaching them the TRUTH. And SOME Jewish believers did not trust Paul the same way that SOME of the seventh day of the week Sabbath-keepers do not trust the teachings of Paul.)
3. Mine answer to them that do examine me is this, (Now it was NOT his own disciples that he led to the Lord that were examining him)
4. Have WE (Myself Paul and Barnabas called and separated by the Holy Spirit to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles. Have WE) not power to eat and to drink? (Paul is EITHER being questioned by JEWISH Christians for his liberty to eat meat sacrificed to idols, OR he is being questioned about receiving rations or living expenses from his disciples, as if, he has NO right to do so, but YET the OTHER Apostles DO have that right.)
5. Have WE (Paul and Barnabas) not power to lead about a sister, a wife, AS WELL AS the OTHER apostles (Or as well as the OTHER apostoloi), and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas (Or Peter)?
6. OR (Is it) I ONLY and Barnabas (Paul is EITHER saying here that ALL the apostles share in the work of the gospel. Paul hates DIVISION and he wants us ALL to speak the SAME things. Paul is saying to them who are following HIM and Barnabas that the OTHER apostles have the power to lead them AS WELL and calls them BROTHERS and even names as being of Peter. But for those among them that do not fully trust Paul he adds again), have not we power to forbear working?”
Because of the OLD English of the word “forbear”, I believe that Paul is saying for us to bear or endure with patiently those who a teaching a false gospel. BUT if so be that Paul is speaking on living by the gospel ONLY, as in, he and Barnabas ALSO have the SAME right as the REST of the apostles to live by the gospel. It depends on which context, the context above verse 6 or the context below verse 6 as to how one interprets verse 6. To me, it can go either way. I have no preference because we are to be patient with those who are false teachers and Paul did have the right to live by the gospel that same as the rest of the apostles.
But to me, Paul made every effort to NOT build on ANOTHER man's foundation or another apostle's WORK. Also, Paul made every effort to NOT be a burden to his congregation. This means that Paul worked a job on the side to support himself as much as possible. And this means that Paul did not go around stealing Christians from other churches to build his own church following. Paul also was a tent maker and he tried never to be a burden on any of the churches he founded. Paul did NOT care WHO brought who to Jesus. Paul never sought the glory of MEN. Paul was indeed a TRUE apostle of Jesus Christ, but this does not prove that Paul was chosen by Jesus to replace Judas to be numbered with the ELEVEN to become the TWELFTH apostle.
Now let us read 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 where we see that there are MORE than just the twelve apostles, who are ALSO the apostles of Jesus Christ as well. This brings us to section two of this study called “IS PAUL A TRUE APOSTLE Part 2?”
Thanks for reading and may God bless you richly as you continue to read ALL the studies that I gave links to throughout this study concerning this subject on Sabbath TRUTH. I will post them again below along with all the studies that I have on this subject. Also, below are some quotes from early church writers that prove beyond any shadow of a doubt that the early church did not keep the seventh day of the week as the Jews.
Your brother in our Lord Jesus Christ,
Brother Mark.
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Some Christians CLAIM that the early church kept the Sabbath as the Jews, but I assure you that the early first-century church was accustomed to gathering together BEFORE the light of daybreak on the FIRST day of the week that THEY called the Lord's day.
Please read all the studies linked within this study and all the studies linked below. This study was just the TIP of the iceberg of exposing the ERRORS of interpretation made by the Saturday seventh day of the week Sabbath-keeping churches, and the Sunday first day of the week Sabbath-keeping Christians. All of the studies listed below can be sent to a brother or sister caught up in the Hebrew Roots Movement or a Sabbath-keeping church by sending them this one link “>>>WHAT IS THE TRUE SABBATH?<<<”
Or you can pick and choose any of the links below to send to them or read for yourself. Be sure to read the HISTORICAL evidence if you have not already done so. I post the SAME historical evidence at the end of almost every study on this subject of the Sabbath day. But if you want to read it again you may see something that did not stand out before.
“YES CHRISTIANS MUST KEEP THE SABBATH!”
“JESUS IS LORD OF THE SABBATH!”
“MATTHEW 5:17-19 SABBATH TRUTH!”
“MATTHEW 24:20 FUTURE SABBATH KEEPING!”
“SABBATH TRUTH REMEMBER THE SABBATH!”
“REALLY ONLY NINE OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS?”
“MUST CHRISTIANS KEEP THE 4th COMMANDMENT?”
“SABBATH KEEPING VERSUS SUNDAY WORSHIP?”
“60 ARGUMENTS FOR THE SABBATH!”
“THE SABBATH, SUNDAY, OR NEITHER DAY?”
“HAS GOD'S LAW BEEN ABOLISHED? (Matthew 5:17-19)”
“WAS JESUS RESURRECTED ON SUNDAY?”
“JESUS WORDS ONLY! SABBATH TRUTH!”
“IS PAUL A TRUE APOSTLE OF JESUS?”
“IS THE APOSTLE PAUL A FALSE TEACHER?”
“DO PAUL'S TEACHINGS CONTRADICT JESUS?”
“MUST CHRISTIANS KEEP THE DIETARY LAWS?”
“ACTS 10 PETER'S VISION OF CLEANSED MEATS?”
“IS THE HEBREWS ROOT MOVEMENT BIBLICAL?”
“119 MINISTRIES ERRORS PART 1”
“119 MINISTRIES ERRORS PART 2”
“ARE BLACK AFRICANS THE TRUE HEBREWS?”
“WHAT IS THE ONE TRUE CHURCH?”
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Again, some Christians make the CLAIM that the early church kept the Sabbath as the Jews, but I assure you that the early first-century church was accustomed to gathering together BEFORE the light of daybreak on the FIRST day of the week that THEY called the Lord's Day.
Here is a NON BIAS historical account found in a letter from Pliny the Younger to Trojan concerning the Christians.
Pliny was a Roman who persecuted and killed Christians, so again this is a historical NON BIAS account of WHEN Christians gathered together.
Here is what Pliny says in his letter to Trojan. The EMPHASIS and comments in parenthesis are my own:
“That they were WONT (Or as they were ACCUSTOMED and USED to do, or in the HABIT of doing), on a STATED day (Or on a CERTAIN preset day), to meet together BEFORE IT WAS LIGHT, and to sing a hymn to Christ, as to a god, alternately; and to oblige themselves by a sacrament [or oath], not to do anything that was ill: but that they would commit no theft, or pilfering, or adultery; that they would not break their promises, or deny what was deposited with them, when it was required back again; after which it was their CUSTOM to depart, AND to meet AGAIN at a common but innocent meal,(So after they had worship service early morning beginning before day light, they would depart and they come back together later that same day to share a common simple meal together and most likely break bread together as other early church writers give more detail) which they had left off upon that edict which I published at your command, and wherein I had forbidden any such conventicles (Or religious meetings).”
Below are some quotes of early church writers that clearly teach us that the early church did NOT keep the Sabbath day, as in, on SATURDAY, the 7th day of the week, but rather the early church throughout history from it's beginning worshiped God on SUNDAY the FIRST day of the week, which is sometimes referred to as the EIGHTH day of the week or the day AFTER the Sabbath day, or the LORD'S DAY. (The emphasis is mine in these quotes given below):
The year AD or date is given first and then the source is given at the end followed by the quote from that historical source. The Apostle John was still alive until 100 AD.
#1. 90 AD DIDACHE:
"Christian Assembly on the Lord's Day:
1. But every Lord's day do ye gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving after having confessed your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure.
2. But let no one that is at variance with his fellow come together with you, until they be reconciled, that your sacrifice may not be profaned.
3. For this is that which was spoken by the Lord: In every place and time offer to me a pure sacrifice; for I am a great King, saith the Lord, and my name is wonderful among the nations." (Didache: The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, Chapter XIV)
#2. 100 AD BARNABAS:
"We keep the eighth day [Sunday] with joyfulness, the day also on which Jesus rose again from the dead" (The Epistle of Barnabas, 100 AD 15:6-8).
#3. 100 AD BARNABAS:
Moreover, God says to the Jews, 'Your new moons and Sabbaths I cannot endure.' You see how he says, 'The present Sabbaths are not acceptable to me, but the Sabbath which I have made in which, when I have rested [heaven: Heb 4] from all things, I will make the beginning of the eighth day which is the beginning of another world.' Wherefore we Christians keep the eighth day for joy, on which also Jesus arose from the dead and when he appeared ascended into heaven. (15:8f, The Epistle of Barnabas, 100 AD, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1, pg. 147)
#4. 110 AD Pliny:
They were in the habit of meeting on a certain fixed day before it was light, when they sang in alternate verses a hymn to Christ, as to a god, and bound themselves by a solemn oath not to (do) any wicked deeds, never to commit any fraud, theft, or adultery, never to falsify their word, nor deny a trust when they should be called upon to deliver it up; after which it was their custom to separate, and then reassemble to partake of good food—but food of an ordinary and innocent kind. (About three years after the death of Ignatius in 250, an important official communication was sent from one Pliny to Trojan the Roman emperor. Pliny, the Roman governor of Bithynia, wrote of the Christians who had been congregating there probably from at least A.D. 62 onwards. In this remark, it is explicitly stated that these early Christians observed the substance of most of the Ten Commandments, and it is implied that they observed all ten as far as they were able to do so. As far as they were able, for as most of the early Christians were of slave stock or from other lower classes'-, and those who had heathen masters or employers—the vast majority—would be forced to work on THEIR day of rest, which was unfortunately an official working day throughout the empires' until Constantine's "Sabbath" Edict in 321 A.D. gave them some measure of public protection. Hence one reads that after meeting "on a certain FIXED day before it was light", the first century Bithynian Christians had "to separate"—many of them having to labor for their masters and/or employers from dawn to dusk—"and then reassemble to partake of . . . food". The "certain fixed day" [stato die"'] on which the Christians met, is regarded by Seventh-day Adventists as Saturday'-. Certainly, the expression would seem to indicate a regular day of meeting, probably each week. But Sunday is FAR more likely to have been the "certain fixed day" than Saturday. For if Pliny had been referring to the old Saturday Sabbath, as a Roman he would doubtless have referred to the "later" meeting first and only then to the morning meeting on the day after the "certain fixed day", seeing that the old Saturday Sabbath was demarcated from the evening of one day to the evening of the following day. But Pliny makes no such reference. Instead, he mentions that the pre-dawn meeting took place first—and only afterward, the later meeting; and that both meetings took place on the SAME "certain fixed day". This rather points to the Roman (and—more importantly!—New Testament) midnight to midnight demarcation of modern Sunday-keepers than to the evening to evening demarcation of the Jews and the Seventh-day Adventists.) (The Covenantal Sabbath, Francis Nigel Lee, Pg 242)
Also, I myself will further add to the comment of the writer above that mere common sense plainly teaches us that Pliny was clearly speaking of SUNDAY because the LAW that Constantine passed was not to mandate work on SUNDAY, so that these Christians could worship God on SUNDAY. So the CLAIM by the Seventh Day Advent church that the fixed day of worship for Christians was a Saturday is FALSE. Otherwise, Constantine would have made it a law that employers allow Christians off for work on a Saturday rather than on a Sunday.
This PROVES beyond any shadow of a doubt that the Christians were ALREADY worshiping God on SUNDAY, the FIRST DAY of the week from the very beginning of the church on the day of Pentecost. The truth of the matter is that Constantine only made it easier for Christians to worship God on Sunday without being persecuted by their employers or owners by passing the EDICT making it a LAW to force heathen employers to let their employees have at least some time off from work so that they could worship God on SUNDAY.
Every Sabbath keeper will AGREE that Constantine's “SABBATH” is referring to SUNDAY as the day of the week and NOT as Saturday being the REST for Christians. Again, all that Constantine did was to pass a law making it EASIER for Christians to worship on the DAY that they had ALREADY been worshiping on since the very beginning, at the DAY of PENTECOST, which is on SUNDAY the FIRST day of the week that Christian called the LORD'S day, the day our Lord rose from the grave.
Open your EYES dear child of God and read what these early church writings are teaching us about the EARLIEST believers as to which day the early church worshiped God. SUNDAY has ALWAYS been the Sabbath or the day of REST of the early church and the church throughout its entire history.
#5. 150 AD EPISTLE OF THE APOSTLES:
-I [Christ] have come into being on the eighth day which is the day of the Lord. (18)
#6. 150 AD JUSTIN.
"He then speaks of those Gentiles, namely us, who in every place offer sacrifices to Him, i.e., the bread of the Eucharist, and also the cup of the Eucharist, affirming both that we glorify His name, and that you profane [it]. The command of circumcision, again, bidding [them] always circumcise the children on the eighth day, was a type of the true circumcision, by which we are circumcised from deceit and iniquity through Him who rose from the dead on the first day AFTER the Sabbath, [namely through] our Lord Jesus Christ. For the first day after the Sabbath, remaining the first of all the days, is called, however, the eighth, according to the number of all the days of the cycle, and [yet] remains the first." (Justin, Dialogue 41:4)
#7. 150 AD JUSTIN:
...those who have persecuted and do persecute Christ, if they do not repent, shall not inherit anything on the holy mountain. But the Gentiles, who have believed on Him, and have repented of the sins which they have committed, they shall receive the inheritance along with the patriarchs and the prophets, and the just men who are descended from Jacob, even although they neither keep the Sabbath, nor are circumcised, nor observe the feasts. Assuredly they shall receive the holy inheritance of God. (Dialogue With Trypho the Jew, 150-165 AD, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1, page 207)
#8. 150 AD JUSTIN:
But if we do not admit this, we shall be liable to fall into foolish opinion, as if it were not the same God who existed in the times of Enoch and all the rest, who neither were circumcised after the flesh, nor observed Sabbaths, nor any other rites, seeing that Moses enjoined such observances... For if there was no need of circumcision before Abraham, or of the observance of Sabbaths, of feasts and sacrifices, before Moses; no more need is there of them now, after that, according to the will of God, Jesus Christ the Son of God has been born without sin, of a virgin sprung from the stock of Abraham. (Dialogue With Trypho the Jew, 150-165 AD, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1, page 206)
#9. 150 AD JUSTIN:
Moreover, all those righteous men already mentioned [after mentioning Adam. Abel, Enoch, Lot, Noah, Melchizedek, and Abraham], though they kept no Sabbaths, were pleasing to God; and after them Abraham with all his descendants until Moses... And you [fleshly Jews] were commanded to keep Sabbaths, that you might retain the memorial of God. For His word makes this announcement, saying, "That you may know that I am God who redeemed you." (Dialogue With Trypho the Jew, 150-165 AD, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1, page 204)
#10. 150 AD JUSTIN.
There is no other thing for which you blame us, my friends, is there than this? That we do not live according to the Law, nor, are we circumcised in the flesh as your forefathers, nor do we observe the Sabbath as you do. (Dialogue with Trypho 10:1. In verse 3 the Jew Trypho acknowledges that Christians 'do not keep the Sabbath.')
#11. 155 AD Justin Martyr:
"[W]e too would observe the fleshly circumcision, and the Sabbaths, and in short all the feasts, if we did not know for what REASON they were enjoined [on] you--namely, on account of your transgressions and the hardness of your heart. . . . [H]ow is it, Trypho, that we would not observe those rites which do not harm us--I speak of fleshly circumcision AND Sabbaths AND feasts? . . . God enjoined you [Jews] to keep the Sabbath and impose on you other precepts for a sign, as I have already said, on account of your unrighteousness and that of your fathers" (Dialogue with Trypho the Jew 18, 21).
#12. 180 AD ACTS OF PETER:
Paul had often contended with the Jewish teachers and had confuted them (Or refuted them completely), saying 'it is Christ on whom your fathers laid hands. He abolished their Sabbath and fasts and festivals and circumcision.' (1: I)-2
#13. 180 AD GOSPEL OF PETER:
Early in the morning when (the Sabbath dawned, a multitude from Jerusalem and the surrounding country came to see the scaled sepulcher. In the night in which the Lord's day dawned, while the soldiers in pairs for each watch were keeping guard, a great voice came from heaven. [There follows an account of the resurrection. Early in the morning of the Lord's day Mary Magdalene, a disciple of the Lord .... came to the sepulcher. (9:34f.; 12:50f.)
#14. 190 AD CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA:
(in commenting on each of the Ten Commandments and their Christian meaning:) The seventh day is proclaimed a day of rest, PREPARING by abstention from evil FOR the Primal day, our TRUE rest. (Ibid. VII. xvi. 138.1)
I will add that the meaning of the word “Primal” means an “ARCHETYPAL” which means an original TYPE pointing to the TRUE. So this early church writer is saying what Paul teaches us in scripture that the things in the OLD Testament are TYPES and SHADOWS or the TRUE which was to come. Jesus became our SABBATH, and we have entered into our REST being in Jesus Christ. The SABBATH was an ARCHETYPAL pointing toward our TRUE REST which was to come being FULFILLED in the ATONEMENT of Jesus.
#15. 190 AD CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA:
He does the commandment according to the Gospel and keeps the Lord's day, whenever he puts away an evil mind . . . glorifying the Lord's resurrection in himself. (Ibid. Vii.xii.76.4)
#16. 190 AD CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA:
Plato prophetically speaks of the Lord's day in the tenth book of the Republic, in these words: 'And when seven days have passed to each of them in the meadow, on the eighth they must go on." (Miscellanies V.xiv.106.2)
#17. 200 AD BARDESANES:
Wherever we are, we are all called after the one name of Christ Christians. On one day, the first of the week, we assemble ourselves together (On Fate)
#18. 200 AD TERTULLIAN:
"We solemnize the day AFTER Saturday in contradistinction to those who call this day their Sabbath" (Tertullian's Apology, Ch 16)
In other words, Tertullian is saying that we Christians DISTINGUISH us from the JEWS who hold Saturday as THEIR Sabbath by solemnizing or referencing the day AFTER Saturday as our day of worship and rest.
#19. 200 AD TERTULLIAN:
It follows, accordingly, that, in so far as the abolition of carnal circumcision and of the old law is demonstrated as having been consummated at its specific times, so also the observance of the Sabbath is demonstrated to have been temporary. (An Answer to the Jews 4:1, Ante-Nicene Fathers Vol. 3, page 155)
#20. 200 AD TERTULLIAN:
Let him who contends that the Sabbath is still to be observed a balm of salvation, and circumcision on the eighth day because of the threat of death, teach us that in earliest times righteous men kept Sabbath or practiced circumcision, and so were made friends of God. .. ...Therefore, since God originated Adam uncircumcised, and inobservant of the Sabbath, consequently his offspring also, Abel, offering Him sacrifices, uncircumcised and inobservant of the Sabbath, was by Him commended... Noah also, uncircumcised - yes, and inobservant of the Sabbath - God freed from the deluge. For Enoch, too, most righteous man, uncircumcised and inobservant of the Sabbath, He translated from this world... Melchizedek also, "the priest of most high God," uncircumcised and inobservant of the Sabbath, was chosen to the priesthood of God. (An Answer to the Jews 2:10; 4:1, Ante-Nicene Fathers Vol. 3, page 153)
#21. 200 AD TERTULLIAN:
Others . . . suppose that the sun is the god of the Christians because it is well-known that we regard Sunday as a day of joy. (To the Nations 1: 133)
Keep in mind that this was well BEFORE Constantine SUPPOSEDLY CHANGED the day of rest and worship to Sunday as the Seventh Day Adventist church CLAIMS. But in TRUTH, Christians had ALREADY been worshiping God on Sunday, the FIRST day of the week that they also called the Lord’s Day, the day that our Lord and Savior Jesus rose from the dead.
So, as early as Tertullian in 200 AD there were groups of JEWS and Christian JEWS who ASSUMED or who SUPPOSED, or who FALSELY ACCUSED Christians of worshiping God on SUNDAY that they were worshiping a sun god and not the true God.
#22. 200 AD TERTULLIAN:
To us Sabbaths are foreign. (On Idolatry, 14:6)4
#23. 220 AD ORIGEN:
"On Sunday none of the actions of the world should be done. If then, you abstain from all the works of this world and keep yourselves free for spiritual things, go to church, listen to the readings and divine homilies, meditate on heavenly things. (Homil. 23 in Numeros 4, PG 12:749)
#24. 220 AD Origen:
"Hence it is not possible that the [day of] rest after the Sabbath should have come into existence from the seventh [day] of our God. On the contrary, it is our Savior who, after the pattern of his own rest, caused us to be made in the likeness of his death, and hence also of his resurrection" (Commentary on John 2:28).
#25. 225 AD The Didascalia:
"The apostles further appointed: On the first day of the week let there be service, and the reading of the Holy Scriptures, and the oblation, because on the first day of the week our Lord rose from the place of the dead, and on the first day of the week he arose upon the world, and on the first day of the week he ascended up to heaven, and on the first day of the week he will appear at last with the angels of heaven" (Didascalia 2).
And I add further that the church BEGAN on the day of Pentecost, on a SUNDAY, the FIRST day of the week. The early church evidence and the word of TRUTH, the Holy Bible, make it quite clear that the early church worshiped God on SUNDAY the FIRST day of the week, called the LORD'S day and that they did NOT KEEP the Sabbath day as the JEWS.
#26. 250 AD CYPRIAN:
The eight day, that is, the first day after the Sabbath, and the Lord's Day." (Epistle 58, Sec 4)
#27. 250 AD IGNATIUS:
"If, therefore, those who were brought up in the ancient order of things have come to the possession of a new hope, no longer observing the Sabbath, but living in the observance of the Lord's Day, on which also our life has sprung up again by Him and by His death-whom some deny, by which mystery we have obtained faith, and therefore endure, that we may be found the disciples of Jesus Christ, our only Master-how shall we be able to live apart from Him, whose disciples the prophets themselves in the Spirit did wait for Him as their Teacher? And therefore He whom they rightly waited for, being come, raised them from the dead. If, then, those who were conversant with the ancient Scriptures came to newness of hope, expecting the coming of Christ, as the Lord teaches us when He says, "If ye had believed Moses, ye would have believed Me, for he wrote of Me; " and again, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad; for before Abraham was, I am; " how shall we be able to live without Him? The prophets were His servants, and foresaw Him by the Spirit, and waited for Him as their Teacher, and expected Him as their Lord and Saviour, saying, "He will come and save us." Let us therefore NO longer keep the Sabbath after the Jewish manner, and rejoice in days of idleness; for "he that does not work, let him not eat." For say the [holy] oracles, "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat thy bread." But let every one of you keep the Sabbath after a spiritual manner, rejoicing in meditation on the law, NOT in relaxation of the body, admiring the workmanship of God, and not eating things prepared the day before, nor using lukewarm drinks, and walking within a prescribed space, nor finding delight in dancing and plaudits which have no sense in them. And after the observance of the Sabbath, let every friend of Christ keep the Lord's Day as a festival, the resurrection-day, the queen and chief of all the days [of the week]. Looking forward to this, the prophet declared, "To the end, for the eighth day," on which our life both sprang up again, and the victory over death was obtained in Christ, whom the children of perdition, the enemies of the Saviour, deny, "whose god is their belly, who mind earthly things," who are "lovers of pleasure, and not lovers of God, having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof." These make merchandise of Christ, corrupting His word, and giving up Jesus to sale: they are corrupters of women, and covetous of other men's possessions, swallowing up wealth insatiably; from whom may ye be delivered by the mercy of God through our Lord Jesus Christ! (Epistle of Ignatius to the Magnesians, Chapter IX)
#28. 250 AD IGNATIUS:
"On the day of the preparation, then, at the third hour, He received the sentence from Pilate, the Father permitting that to happen; at the sixth hour He was crucified; at the ninth hour He gave up the ghost; and before sunset He was buried. During the Sabbath He continued under the earth in the tomb in which Joseph of Arimathaea had laid Him. At the dawning of the Lord's day He arose from the dead, according to what was spoken by Himself, "As Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale's belly, so shall the Son of man also be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. "The day of the preparation, then, comprises the passion; the Sabbath embraces the burial; the Lord's Day contains the resurrection." (The Epistle of Ignatius to the Trallians, chapter 9)
#29. 250 AD IGNATIUS:
If anyone fasts on the Lord's Day or on the Sabbath, except on the paschal Sabbath only, he is a murderer of Christ. (The Epistle of Ignatius to the Philippians, chapter 8)
#30. 250 AD IGNATIUS:
"This [custom], of not bending the knee upon Sunday, is a symbol of the resurrection, through which we have been set free, by the grace of Christ, from sins, and from death, which has been put to death under Him. Now this custom took its rise from apostolic times, as the blessed Irenaeus, the martyr and bishop of Lyons, declares in his treatise On Easter, in which he makes mention of Pentecost also; upon which [feast] we do not bend the knee, because it is of equal significance with the Lord's day, for the reason already alleged concerning it." (Ignatius, Fragments)
#31. 300 AD Victorinus:
"The sixth day [Friday] is called parasceve, that is to say, the preparation of the kingdom. . . . On this day also, on account of the passion of the Lord Jesus Christ, we make either a station to God or a fast. On the seventh day, he rested from all his works, and blessed it, and sanctified it. On the former day, we are accustomed to fast rigorously, that on the Lord's day we may go forth to our bread with giving of thanks. And let the parasceve become a rigorous fast, lest we should APPEAR to observe ANY Sabbath with the Jews . . . which Sabbath he [Christ] in his body ABOLISHED" (The Creation of the World).
#32. 300 AD EUSEBIUS:
"They did not, therefore, regard circumcision, NOR observe the Sabbath NEITHER do we; ... because such things as these do NOT belong to Christians" (Ecc. Hist., Book 1, Ch. 4)
#33. 300 AD EUSEBIUS:
[The Ebionites] were accustomed to observe the Sabbath and other Jewish customs but on the Lord's days to celebrate the same practices as we in remembrance of the resurrection of the Savior. (Church History Ill.xxvii.5)
I will also add that the Ebionites were Christians who were seduced by the Jews to keep the Jewish customs. In other words, the Ebionites were Judaized Christians. The Ebionites also taught the need to be circumcised in the flesh in order to be saved. Some today would not even consider Ebionites as being true Christians since they went back to trusting the Law of Moses to be saved.
#34. 300 AD Eusebius of Caesarea:
"They [the pre- Mosaic saints of the Old Testament] did not care about circumcision of the body, neither do we [Christians]. They did not care about observing Sabbaths, nor do we. They did not avoid certain kinds of food, neither did they regard the other distinctions which Moses first delivered to their posterity to be observed as symbols; nor do Christians of the present day do such things" (Church History 1:4:8).
#35. 300 AD Eusebius of Caesarea:
"The day of his [Christ's] light . . . was the day of his resurrection from the dead, which they say, as being the one and only truly holy day and the Lord's day, is better than any number of days as we ordinarily understand them, and better than the days set apart by the Mosaic Law for feasts, new moons, and Sabbaths, which the Apostle [Paul] teaches are the shadow of days and not days in reality" (Proof of the Gospel 4:16:186).
#36. 345 AD Athanasius:
"The Sabbath was the end of the first creation, the Lord's day was the beginning of the second, in which he renewed and restored the old in the same way as he prescribed that they should formerly observe the Sabbath as a memorial of the end of the first things, so we honor the Lord's day as being the memorial of the new creation" (On Sabbath and Circumcision 3).
#37. 350 AD APOSTOLIC CONSTITUTIONS:
Be not careless of yourselves, neither deprive your Saviour of His own members, neither divide His body nor disperse His members, neither prefer the occasions of this life to the word of God; but assemble yourselves together every day, morning and evening, singing psalms and praying in the Lord's house: in the morning saying the sixty-second Psalm, and in the evening the hundred and fortieth, but principally on the Sabbath-day. And on the day of our Lord's resurrection, which is the Lord's day, meet more diligently, sending praise to God that made the universe by Jesus, and sent Him to us, and condescended to let Him suffer, and raised Him from the dead. Otherwise what apology will he make to God who does not assemble on that day to hear the saving word concerning the resurrection, on which we pray thrice standing in memory of Him who arose in three days, in which is performed the reading of the prophets, the preaching of the Gospel, the oblation of the sacrifice, the gift of the holy food? (Constitutions of the Holy Apostles, book 2)
#38. 350 AD APOSTOLIC CONSTITUTIONS:
"How We Ought to Assemble Together and to Celebrate the Festival Day of Our Saviour's Resurrection. On the day of the resurrection of the Lord, that is, the Lord's day, assemble yourselves together, without fail, giving thanks to God, and praising Him for those mercies God has bestowed upon you through Christ and has delivered you from ignorance, error, and bondage, that your sacrifice may be unspotted, and acceptable to God,..." (Constitutions of the Holy Apostles, book 7)
#39. 350 AD Cyril of Jerusalem:
"Fall NOT AWAY either into the sect of the Samaritans or into Judaism, for Jesus Christ has henceforth ransomed you. Stand aloof from ALL observance of Sabbaths and from calling any indifferent meats common or unclean" (Catechetical Lectures 4:37).
#40. 360 AD Council of Laodicea:
"Christians should NOT Judaize and should NOT be idle on the Sabbath, but should work on that day; they should, however, particularly reverence the Lord's day and, if possible, not work on it, because they were Christians" (canon 29).
#41. 387 AD John Chrysostom:
"You have put on Christ, you have become a member of the Lord and been enrolled in the heavenly city, and you still grovel in the Law [of Moses]? How is it possible for you to obtain the kingdom? Listen to Paul's words, that the observance of the Law overthrows the gospel, and learn, if you will, how this comes to pass, and tremble, and shun this pitfall. Why do you keep the Sabbath and fast with the Jews?" (Homilies on Galatians 2:17).
#42. 412 AD Augustine:
"Well, now, I should like to be told what there is in these Ten Commandments, except the observance of the Sabbath, which ought NOT to be kept by a Christian . . . Which of these commandments would anyone say that the Christian ought not to keep? It is possible to contend that it is not the Law which was written on those two tables that the apostle [Paul] describes as 'the letter that kills' [2 Cor. 3:6], but the law of circumcision and the other sacred rites which are now abolished" (The Spirit and the Letter 24).
#43. 597 AD Gregory I:
"But after that, the grace of Almighty God, our Lord Jesus Christ, has appeared, the commandments of the Law which were spoken figuratively cannot be kept according to the letter. For if anyone says that this about the Sabbath is to be kept, he must need to say that carnal sacrifices are to be offered. He must say too that the commandment about the circumcision of the body is still to be retained. But let him hear the apostle Paul saying in opposition to him: 'If you be circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing' (Gal. 5:2)" (Letters 13:1).
Thanks for reading and may God bless you richly as you continue to read ALL the studies I gave links to at the beginning of this study concerning this subject on Sabbath TRUTH.
This study was just the TIP of the iceberg of exposing the ERRORS of interpretation made by the Saturday seventh day of the week Sabbath-keeping churches, and the Sunday first day of the week Sabbath-keeping Christians.
All of the studies listed below can be sent to a brother or sister caught up in the Hebrew Roots Movement or a Sabbath-keeping church by sending them this one link **Dd-0. What Is the TRUE SABBATH?**
Also read Dd-20. Did the EARLY Church KEEP the WEEKLY Sabbath DAY?
Thanks for reading, and may God bless you richly as you continue to seek the TRUTH of the WHOLE word of Almighty God.
And to me, the truth concerning who Jesus TRULY is, according to the Bible ITSELF, is the Biblical Unitarian view of Jesus.
Once Christians, Jews, Muslims, and even atheists understand the REASON that Yahweh CREATED the Son of MAN, Jesus, was to have DOMINION over the work of Yahweh’s hands.
And after you understand that the REASON that Yahweh did that is to STILL His ENEMIES, Satan and the fallen angels.
Then you can understand that God made His human Son to become “a” Lord, “a” King, and “a” God, under and subject to his God and Father in order to JUDGE Satan and the fallen angels.
For a deeper understanding of this WAR that Lucifer and one third of the angels waged against the throne of Almighty God, please read the studies under the subject category called ** Q-0 Why Are We Here? Is God at WAR? **.
More studies are coming in this SHORTER Biblical Unitarian view of who Jesus is according to the WHOLE word of God.
If you have a PARTICULAR verse of Scripture that you would like to know the sound Biblical Unitarian meaning, then please email me at MarkatAMatterOfTruth@Gmail.com and let me know.
For further and more in-depth studies on this subject of Jesus being created to STILL the enemies of Yahweh, please read the studies called D-25. A NEW LOOK at JOHN 1:1-In the BEGINNING, and D-28. The PRE-ADAMIC LUCIFERIAN FLOOD!
At the top of my homepage, there are subjects or categories which contain compiled lists of ** ALL Studies ** I have written on that particular subject. So, if a link within a study is broken, then click on ** ALL Studies ** to find the suggested study.
Or you can scroll down to the MORE dropdown menu list to find those studies as well.
Thanks again for reading, and may God bless you richly as you continue to seek the TRUTH of the WHOLE word of Almighty God.
And to me, the truth concerning who Jesus TRULY is, according to the Bible ITSELF, is the Biblical Unitarian view of Jesus.
And again, for ALL of the studies on the Biblical Unitarian view of Jesus, please click on the subject heading ** D-0 The BIBLICAL UNITARIAN VIEW of Jesus! **
And for the SUBJECT on the true foundation of the church, please click on the subject heading ** C-0 The TRUE FOUNDATION of the Church! **
This way you can just send ONE link to those who you want to share the TRUE sound Biblical FOUNDATIONAL teachings of the church that Jesus and his Apostles taught in the first century church.
Your brother in our Lord Jesus Christ,
Brother Mark.
My heartfelt prayer is that all Christians RETURN to the TRUE FOUNDATION of the church that is taught by the very Apostles of Jesus in the first century.
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