Was the First Day Gradually Sanctified During the Forty Days of Acts 1:3?
By John Nevins Andrews
[From Les Signes des Temps]
I.
Remarkable silence of the four Evangelists concerning the Sanctification of the First-day.
WHEN God had created the heavens and the earth, he set apart the seventh day in memory of his rest from the work of creation. "And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made." Gen 2:3. It is said that the sanctification of the seventh day has been superseded by the sanctification of the first day, in honor of the resurrection of Christ. If this were true we should read in the New Testament these words: "And God blessed the first day of the week and sanctified it, because that in it Christ arose from the dead."
But not one of the eight instances in which the first day of the week is mentioned in the New Testament speaks of the sanctification or setting apart of the day to a holy use by God; and only one of the eight instances asserts that Christ arose on that day. But if the first day of the week had been sanctified in honor of the resurrection of Christ, each of the four evangelists who record that resurrection would have announced that fact. Yet all of them are silent concerning that sanctification, and it is therefore certain that the day never was sanctified.
Though the resurrection of Christ is an event of the highest importance, the particular day of the week on which it occurred is of so little importance that only one of the four evangelists has even recorded it. Mark 16:9. Neither Matthew, Luke, nor John, thought it important to say that Christ rose on the first day of the week. We do not assert that Christ did not rise on that day, but we call attention to the remarkable fact that three of the four evangelists neglect to assert that his resurrection occurred on the first day, although John mentions the day twice, and Matthew and Luke once each. John 20:1, 19; Matt. 28:1; Luke 24:1.
So we have the important fact that no one of the four evangelists records the sanctification of the first day of the week in honor of the resurrection of Christ, and three of them do not even definitely assert that he arose that day. It is also worthy of notice that neither of the two instances in which the first day of the week is mentioned in the subsequent history of the New Testament church connects that day with the resurrection of Christ. Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2.
But why do we attach so much importance to the question whether the first day of the week was sanctified in honor of the resurrection of Christ? Our answer is direct and simple. The sanctification of a day by God is the act of setting that day apart to a holy use. If therefore God has set apart the first-day of the week in honor of the resurrection of Christ, the first-day Sabbath is a divine institution. But if he has not sanctified or set apart to holy use the first day of the week, then the festival on that day is only a human institution. It was of the highest importance that the four evangelists should mention the sanctification of the first day of the week in honor of the resurrection of Christ on that day, if that sanctification took place. They are, however, not only silent concerning the sanctification of the day, but three of the four even neglect to state that Christ arose on that day. It is certain, therefore, that the first day of the week is not a day which God claims as sacred to himself.
II.
The acts of Christ on the day of his resurrection were not designed to sanctify the day.
But many who well understand these facts assert that the first day of the week became a divine institution by a gradual process. They know that God did not sanctify this day in honor of the resurrection of Christ as he sanctified the seventh day in honor of the creation of the heavens and of the earth. Gen. 2:3; Ex. 20:11. But they think that various providential circumstances gradually sanctified the first day of the week. They acknowledge that the seventh day remained the Sabbath or sanctified day of the Lord, till the first day gradually acquired a sufficient degree of sacredness to take the place of the seventh.
The first act which is supposed to contribute to the gradual sanctification of the first day, was that of Christ in meeting with some of his disciples on that day. It is even asserted that he established the custom of holding religious assemblies on that day, but nothing of this kind appears in the testimony of the evangelists. Our Lord did not call together his disciples on that day and unite with them in worship, though he could have done this without the least difficulty. But we learn that the women who came to the sepulchre early in the morning, saw Christ and that he sent word by them to the disciples, not that he would meet with them on that day, but, that they should meet him on a distant mountain in Galilee, which meeting could not have occurred till after Christ met his disciples at the sea of Galilee. Ma.t. 28:9, 10; John 21:1-14.
The disciples saw no more of Christ on the day of his resurrection until the latter part of the afternoon, when two who were on their way to Emmaus were joined by him as they journeyed. When they arrived at that place, they invited him to enter and tarry with them because the day was far spent. While they were eating supper Christ made himself known to them. Luke 24:13-31; Mark 16:12, 13. Then the two arose and returned to Jerusalem, a distance of sixty furlongs. Luke 24:13. Each day of the week according to the Bible begins and ends at even or sunset. Gen. 1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31; Lev. 23:32; Deut. 16:6; Lev. 21:6, 7; Deut. 23:11; Mark 1:32. But the day was far spent when they arrived at Emmaus, and it was not till after they had taken supper that they set out on their return to Jerusalem. At that season of the year, the early part of April, the sun sets about six o'clock. It must therefore have been almost sunset when they set out to return to Jerusalem, and the journey must have required at least two hours. The first day of the week must therefore have expired before they reached Jerusalem.
When they arrived they found that Peter had also seen Christ. Luke 24:33, 34; 1 Cor. 15:6. He must therefore have appeared to Peter after he had left the two at Emmaus, for previous to their departure from Jerusalem he had only been seen by the women. Luke 24:22-24. If our Lord had chosen to call his disciples together on the day of his resurrection would have been easy for him to do it. But he did nothing of the kind. He manifested himself three times on that day as follows. First he appeared to a few women at the sepulchre early in the morning; then in the latter part of the day he appeared to two of his disciples on their way to Emmaus; after this he was seen of Simon Peter just as the day was closing. When he actually met them all together after the return of the two from Emmaus, it must have been after sunset and on the evening which follows the first day of the week. Luke 24:33-36; John 20:19. For the first day of the week at even is really the commencement of the second day, just as the ninth day of the seventh month at even, is actually the commencement of the tenth day. Lev. 23:27-32.
When Christ met with the ten disciples that evening they were eating supper, for they had one common abode, and he upbraided them with their unbelief concerning his resurrection. Mark 16:14; Acts 1:13. Christ had intended to teach his disciples by his example that the first day of the week was henceforward to be their day for religious assemblies, and if he had designed to make his conduct on the day of his resurrection a model to govern his ministers in conducting such religious assemblies, he must have acted in a very different manner from what he did. He would have sent a message by those women calling the disciples together early in the day and would not have waited until the day was wholly past before manifesting himself to the ten apostles. It is certain therefore that Christ did not on the day of his resurrection take the first step toward the gradual sanctification of the day.
III.
Manifestations of Christ to Thomas and the ten; to the disciples near the sea of Galilee; and on the mountain in Galilee.
Thomas was not with the disciples when Christ met with them in the evening at the close of the first day of the week. John 21:19, 24. But after eight days from that evening meeting Thomas was with the disciples and Christ manifested himself to them. John 20:26. If after eight days signifies exactly one week, this meeting did not occur on the first day of the week but in the evening at the beginning of the second day. On this occasion Christ contributed no more to the sanctification of the first day of the week, than he did on the day of his resurrection, for he said not one word concerning the day, and the evidence clearly shows that the meeting itself could not have been on the first day.
The third important occasion on which Christ was seen by his disciples was at the sea of Galilee where they were fishing, but the day of the week is not specified. John 21:1-14. If it was the first day of the week the circumstances show that Christ did not regard the day as one that had been set apart from ordinary business. If it was not the first day of the week it follows that Christ regarded any other day to be as suitable as the first day of the week for his manifestation to his disciples. The disciples had doubtless gone from Jerusalem to Galilee in obedience to the commandment of Christ that they should meet him in Galilee upon a certain mountain. Matt. 26:32; 28:7, 10; Mark 14:28; 16:7.
As the meeting at the sea of Galilee was the third important meeting with his disciples (Mark 16:14; Luke 24:33-36; John 20:19-26; 21:14), the meeting upon the mountain of Galilee must have been the fourth important occasion on which Christ met with his disciples, and the one in which he was seen by the above five hundred brethren at once. Matt. 28:16; 1 Cor. 15:6. If this meeting was on the first day of the week, the Holy Spirit did not think the fact of sufficient importance to record it. If it was not on the first day of the week, then the most important of all Christ's manifestations to his disciples was made on a day which has no claim to our observance. This fact furnishes the most conclusive proof that a day does not become sanctified simply by the act of Christ's meeting with his disciples on that day.
IV.
Manifestations of Christ to James; upon the Mount of Olives at the time of his ascension; and to Saul near Damascus.
Christ was next seen by James, but we do not know on what day it was, which shows that the Holy Spirit attaches no importance to the particular days on which Christ manifests himself to his apostles. 1 Cor. 15:7. The next time that Christ was seen was when he led them out to Bethany, on the Mount of Olives, and, in their presence, ascended into Heaven. But we know that this was on Thursday, for it was forty days after his resurrection. Acts 1:1-9. This was, in some respects, the most important of all his manifestations, but it did not take place in honor of the first day of the week. The fact that it did not, shows that it is presumption to assert that the first day of the week became a sacred day because that Christ, on the day of his resurrection, was seen by the women at the sepulchre, by the two disciples at Emmaus, and just before sunset by Peter, at Jerusalem.176
The last occasion on which Christ appeared for the purpose of making his apostles witnesses of his resurrection, was to Saul, in the vicinity of Damascus. Acts 9:3-5; 22:6-8; 26:12-15; 1 Cor. 15:8. This could not have been on the first day of the week, for Saul would not have set out from Jerusalem on a journey of some three days at such time in the week as would cause him to be out over the Sabbath. This manifestation of Christ, therefore, like nearly all the others, was on some other day beside the first day of the week.
V.
No gradual sanctification of the first day before the ascension of Christ.
What facts, then, have we found to justify the idea that the first day of the week was gradually sanctified by the several manifestations of Christ to his disciples, during the forty days between his resurrection and his ascension? There were six first days during this period, but we are not certain that Christ was seen by his disciples on any first day, except the one on which he arose from the dead. And though he might easily have called all his disciples together on that day, he was seen by only a few of them, until the evening after the day had closed.
If he had designed specially to honor the day of his resurrection, by manifesting himself to his disciples, he would have appeared to them, either uniformly or generally, on the first day of the week; and certainly his most important manifestations would have been made on that day. But such was not the case, and his disciples could not have received the idea that he sought to honor the day by these manifestations, inasmuch as the most important of them, and by far the greatest number of them, were on other days of the week; and inasmuch as our Lord on all these occasions remained silent with respect to the sacredness of the day.
As the result of our investigation thus far, we have found the evidence conclusive that there was no act whereby God set apart the first day to a holy use, as once he set apart the seventh day. We have also seen that if the first day was sanctified gradually during the forty days between his resurrection and his ascension, no trace of that gradual sanctification is on record in the four gospels.