Apostle Paul never kept the sabbath, certainly not 84 times as Adventists say!

Apostle Paul never kept the Sabbath, certainly not 84 times!

News Flash!!!
"Seventh-day Adventist pastor fired for "Sunday keeping" over 84 times!"

Text of story: A Christian church invites 7^th day Adventist Pastor to preach every Sunday afternoon and explain why Sunday is not the day Christians should worship. But after 84 Sundays in a row, the Adventist's fellow Pastors charged that he was breaking the Sabbath and keeping Sunday Holy by doing so. They said to him, "We argue that Paul did not keep Sunday because he was invited to preach in the Jewish synagogue by the Jews. If we as Adventists argue that Paul did not meet with Christians on Sunday because he was preaching Jesus to the Jews in their synagogues on the Sabbath, then it follows (being consistent) that you must be breaking the Sabbath day by preaching to apostate Christians on Sunday". The Adventist Pastor was immediately fired for being a bad example and destroying the force of their deceptive arguments. (fictitious)

Actual Seventh-day Adventist False Argument #1: "Sunday keepers say that the Sabbath was abolished when it was nailed to the cross. Here the Apostle Paul keeping the Sabbath "according to the commandment" after Christ died!" (Additional Sabbatarian proof texts that Paul kept the Sabbath as part of his Christian duty at least 84 times: Acts 13:14,44 16:13; 17:2; Acts 18:4,11.)


Actual Adventist calculation of Paul's Sabbath keeping:
Bible verse	Claimed number of Sabbaths Paul "kept"
Acts 13:14 "on the Sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down"	1
Acts 13:44 "And the next Sabbath nearly the whole city assembled to hear the word of God."	1
Acts 16:13 "And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to a riverside, where we were supposing that there would be a place of prayer; and we sat down and began speaking to the women who had assembled."	1
Acts 17:2 "And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures."	3
Acts 18:4,11 "And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath." ... "And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them."	78
Grand total of Sabbaths	84 Sabbaths

Proof Apostle Paul did not keep the Sabbath these 84 times:

A. The Bible no where says that Paul or ANY Christian kept the Sabbath according to the commandment after the resurrection.

What we do have are frequent examples of Paul preaching to non-Christian Jews in THEIR synagogue on THEIR Sabbath day, that they are lost without Jesus! Should this surprise us? Do Sabbatarians Pastors "keep Sunday" if they preach in a Christian church on the first day of the week?

B. These passages speak of Paul preaching to the non-Christian Jews in their synagogues.

None of these passages, or any other in the New Testament, ever speak of Christians worshipping on the Sabbath day.
If Paul preaching to Jews on the Sabbath day proves he kept the Sabbath, then it also proves Paul kept synagogue worship as well!

C. If Paul "kept the Sabbath" because he preached Christ to non-Christian Jews on THEIR Sabbath day in THEIR synagogue:

then Paul also kept all the other ceremonial laws that the non-Christian Jews practiced while he was there as well.

then a Seventh-day Adventist pastor "keeps Monday" just because he preaches to Muslims in their Mosque on Monday that they are lost without Christ!

then a Seventh-day Adventist pastor "keeps Sunday" just because he preaches to a church of "Sunday keeping" Christians on "Sunday" that they are breaking the Sabbath law!
What proves too much proves nothing at all!

D. When Paul removed himself from the Synagogue in Acts 19:8-10 did he then remove himself from Sabbath worship?

Adventist False Argument #2: "The fact that the Bible mentions Paul preaching on the Sabbath proves we must keep it"

False Argument #2 Refuted:

Just because the very first preaching of the Gospel occurred on the day of Pentecost, does not mean Christian must keep Pentecost! Acts 2:1-38
Paul also rushed to get back to Jerusalem on Pentecost: Acts 20:16
Pentecost always fell on a Sunday
Does this mean he was keeping Pentecost feast?
No! It provided him a great opportunity to teach.
No where after the resurrection "keeping the Sabbath according to the commandment"

Adventist False Argument #3: "In Acts 18:4, Paul's custom was to worship on the Sabbath with Greeks. This proves it was not a Jewish worship service but a Christ centered worship service separate from the Jewish synagogue worship. The Greeks were uncircumcised and did not keep the Sabbath or the Law of Moses.

False Argument #3 Refuted:

Notice the word "persuade". Paul's work here was 100% evangelism. There is no example of Paul ever meeting on the Sabbath day for worship.
Notice also that these were "unbelievers" in Christ before Paul preached to them. Yes they believed in the Jewish system, but the Bible says in Acts 14:1, that they BECAME believers proving Paul's work there was evangelism not worship.
The Greeks were Jewish converts to Judaism known as proselytes. They were not pagan Greeks but Greeks who practiced the law of Moses and kept the Sabbath. just as if he was a native Hebrew. The only Greeks that were in the synagogue would be these proselytes. These Greeks were certainly were not Christians.

Acts 13:43 "Now when the meeting of the synagogue had broken up, many of the Jews and of the God-fearing proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking to them, were urging them to continue in the grace of God."

Acts 14:1 "In Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews together, and spoke in such a manner that a large number of people believed, both of Jews and of Greeks."

Acts 17:4 "And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large number of the God-fearing Greeks and a number of the leading women.

Acts 18:4 "And he was reasoning in the synagogue every Sabbath and trying to persuade Jews and Greeks."

Adventist False Argument #4: "Paul kept "the Law", therefore the Sabbath is still binding!" (Additional Sabbatarian proof texts: Acts 21:20-28; Acts 24:14; Acts 26:22; Rom 3:31)

False Argument #4 Refuted:

A. Look closely at what Paul said:

Acts 21:20-28 "And when they heard it they began glorifying God; and they said to him, "You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed, and they are all zealous for the Law; and they have been told about you, that you are teaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs. "What, then, is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. "Therefore do this that we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; take them and purify yourself along with them, and pay their expenses in order that they may shave their heads; and all will know that there is nothing to the things which they have been told about you, but that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the Law.

Acts 21:20-28: forsake Moses & circumcise = keeping the Law

If Sabbatarians are right, then they better start also practicing circumcision

What proves too much proves nothing at all!

B. Paul understood that Moses had prophesied Jesus coming. To "give heed to Jesus" is to KEEP THE LAW of MOSES! Think of it as the law of Moses' own self destruct mechanism. Moses told the Jews to keep his law UNTIL Jesus came. Then they were to ignore the Law of Moses and listen only to Jesus. In that way, a Christian who exclusively obey Jesus could be said to be keeping the Law of Moses. This is what Paul means by the following verses:

Acts 3:22 "Moses said, 'The Lord God shall raise up for you a prophet like me from your brethren; to Him you shall give heed in everything He says to you. 'And it shall be that every soul that does not heed that prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.
Acts 24:14 "But this I admit to you, that according to the Way which they call a sect I do serve the God of our fathers, believing everything that is in accordance with the Law, and that is written in the Prophets; having a hope in God
Rom 3:31 "Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish the Law"
Acts 26:22 "And so, having obtained help from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place; that the Christ was to suffer, and that by reason of His resurrection from the dead He should be the first to proclaim light both to the Jewish people

When Paul says that he "kept the Law", he was referring to the fact that Moses and the prophets foretold of Christ. and that being a Christian was foretold in the law. In a very real sense it was the Jewish non-Christians who refused to heed Jesus who were in fact REJECTING WHAT MOSES SAID!

We Speak truth in LOVE
"you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth" Jn 8:40

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