Exercitations concerning the name, original, nature, use, and continuance of a day of sacred…

§. 26 Here we have fixed the foundation of the observation of the Lords-Day, on the supposition of what hath been proved concerning our Duty in the Holy observance of one Day in seven, from the Law of our Creation, as renewed in the Decalogue. The remaining Arguments evincing the change of the Day from the seventh unto the first by Divine Authority, shall be but briefly touched on by me, because they have been lately copiously handled, and fully vindicated by others. Wherefore, (1) when the Lord Christ intended conspicuously to build his Church upon the foundation of his Works and Rest, by sending the Holy Ghost with his miraculous Gifts upon the Apostles, he did it on this Day, which was then among the Jews the Feast of Pentecost, or of Weeks. Then were the Disciples gathered together with one accord, in the observance of the Day signalized to them by his Resurrection, ⟨p. 388⟩Acts 2. 1. And by this doth their obedience receive a blessed confirmation, as well as their persons a glorious endowment with abilities for the work which they were immediately to apply themselves unto. And hereon did they set out unto the whole work of building the Church on that foundation, and promoting the worship of it, which on that Day was especially to be celebrated.

§. 27 The Practice of the Apostles, and the Apostolical Churches, owned the Authority of Christ in this change of the Day of sacred Rest. For hence forward, whatever apprehensions any of them might have of the continuance of the Judaical Sabbath, as some of them judged that the whole service of it was still to be continued, yet they observed this Day of the Lord, as the time of their Assemblies and solemn worship. One or two instances hereof may be called over, Acts 20. 6, 7. We came to Troas in five days, where we abode seven days. And upon the first day of the week, when the Disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow, and continued his speech until midnight. I doubt not but in the seven days that the Apostle abode there, he taught and preached as he had occasion in the houses of the Believers; but it was the first Day of the Week, when they used according to their duty, to assemble the whole body of them, for the celebration of the solemn Ordinances of the Church, synecdochically expressed by breaking of Bread. This they did, without any extraordinary warning or calling together; for in answer to their duty they were accustomed so to do. Such is the account that Justin Martyr gives of the