Should I do Schoolwork on Sunday?

Question: The commandment to keep the Sabbath day holy has more of a legal sound to it than the other commandments. Since Jesus abolished the law (in the sense that we don’t have to make x number of sacrifices in such and such a fashion, etc., anymore), do we still need to do absolutely no work on the Sabbath? If I do schoolwork, for example, on Sunday, is that wrong?

Answer: It is not wrong to do work on Sunday if your conscience is not condemning you for violating the Sabbath. Paul says in Romans 14:5-6, in regard to matters upon which Christians disagree that are individual concerns of conscience, “One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord.” He further argues, “Let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way. If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But the man who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith” (14:13,15,22).

The ten commandments are all repeated in the New Testament except for the Sabbath command. It is referred to, of course, but we are never told in the epistles to observe it. However, many in the church have chosen to observe the Sabbath on Sunday, the commemoration of Jesus’ resurrection and the day the church chose to meet. The Sabbath (Sabbath means ‘seventh’) day is Saturday, but the church has hallowed Sunday instead. Because we are not under the law of Moses, we are not obligated to keep Sunday as the Sabbath. However, as Paul says, if your conscience tells you that it is wrong to work on the Sabbath (Sunday) you must obey your conscience. If your conscience does not condemn you, you are still responsible for observing the Sabbath principle of trusting God to provide for you when you take time to care for yourself with rest. You may do this some every day, or you may take a day (any day) during the week to do this. There is no New Testament legislation that tells you how you must observe it.