The more I read and study the Old Testament the more I realize the fundamental necessity of taking a Sabbath. It is not a nice, polite suggestion given to us, it is an authoritative command from the creator of the universe. I think out of all the Ten Commandments this is nearing the top of the list for most ignored. And I can understand why… I have been guilty of this for the majority of my life. But through discussions I have had over the last few years, and through studying Exodus as of late I have realized that this is far more than a ‘if you do this, you will be okay’… this is a YOU HAVE TO DO THIS.
I’m going to go through a couple of passages in the Bible that talk about a Sabbath… The logical spot to start is where we first see this idea of Sabbath.
So when and where is the first time we a Sabbath?
We see the God of all creation taking a Sabbath break after creating the world. Light stuff right? HAH, get real.
What I love about the first Sabbath, when God took a Sabbath is that it COMPLETELY dismantles one of the main arguments I have heard for people to not take a Sabbath is “I don’t need a Sabbath this week, I am feeling good, I’m not tired, I’m not burn-out, I can just keep on truckin’ along.” Wrong… you can’t!
The reason this text dismantles that argument is that do you really think GOD needed a break? I’m pretty sure He didn’t need to take a Sabbath, He is more than capable to keep on ‘truckin’ along’.
Yet, we see that He took a Sabbath. Why? To model for us that it is pivotal in a life that brings Him glory. To show that we NEED this far more than we will ever understand. He took a Sabbath to bless this day so that as we enjoy the Sabbath we will be rested, rejuvenated, renewed, and restored so that we can function at a higher capacity throughout the week.
Through God’s taking a Sabbath He forever blessed a day of rest for us, His followers/worshipers (Gen. 2:2). God specially blesses the Sabbath day for you and I to enjoy and to rest.
Rhetorical question time…
Do you think it is wrong to kill? Does the Bible teach that it is wrong?
Do you think it is wrong to sleep around? Does the Bible teach this clearly?
Do you think it is wrong to steal? Does the Bible ‘sort of’ cover this subject?
Do you think it is wrong to worship someone/thing other than the Lord?
Where does the Bible stand on creating and worshipping idols? Is it clear teaching?
What are we taught regarding being jealous for other’s possessions? Black and white, right?
Should you treat your parents well?
Is it okay to treat the Lord with mediocre respect, kind of like you do a nice pen… or are we taught to revere Him, respect Him, and treat His name with total respect?
What about lying? Is it appropriate or inappropriate biblically speaking?
… Maybe you get where I am going with this.
Those are the nine of the Ten Commandments paraphrased (see Exodus 20 for the full list). The tenth commandment, I’m guessing you can figure it out based on the previous 564 words on the Sabbath.
The commandment not listed is this
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”
Exodus 20:8-11 (NIV)
When you continue on in Exodus we read the following about the Sabbath
“Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. Anyone who descreates it must be put to death…”
Exodus 31:14
And my final passage I am using about the Sabbath is this…
“Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest.”
Exodus 34:21
It becomes obvious, quickly that the Sabbath is not optional. It is entirely mandatory. We have to observe it. Not just when it is convenient, or when we are exhausted. One of my professors always says that the Sabbath isn’t just for when you need it, if you feel like you need a break it is already too late! The Sabbath is designed to prevent us from ever feeling burnt out.
Maybe you’re thinking… “Okay, I get it… I have to take time off, I have to break, it’s important. BUT, the thing is, I have this really important assignment/paper/test due soon…” Well, the third verse I used puts that to rest fairly quickly. For the Israelites (and you agricultural-savvy people, you’ll understand this very well) plowing and harvesting your field was absolutely necessary. No ‘ifs, ands, or buts’ it was their livelihood, it was their existence, it was how they lived, it was the means for EVERYTHING they had to sustain themselves. Far more important than homework, sporting events, anything like that nonsense. It was life itself for them. If they didn’t harvest in time (before the rains came or snow or anything like that) they would have no food to bring income to them and no food for the winter. And if they didn’t plow the fields they wouldn’t have a field prepared well enough for them to every plant any food. It was necessary, get the picture?
With all of that in mind God still told them “Take a break.” God knows everything, He is sovereign and is infinite in His wisdom. And with that all-knowing wisdom told us to take a break. I’m sure we can trust Him enough to take a break.
So the argument that we have something very important to do or we are too busy has been dismantled by Exodus 34:21.
But it isn’t just dismantling arguments, I think if we adopt in our lives a regular Sabbath we gain a lot.
We learn about responsibility and proper planning. If we know that we have that designated time of rest (whether that be Sunday, or Thursday night or whatever it may be) we have to plan around that.
It teaches us responsibility.
It teaches us to plan our time lives with maturity.
It teaches good life skills.
It sets in place a pace of life that is sustainable.
It enables us to engage better throughout the week with the tasks we do have to do. If we work all day long everyday, we will eventually burn out. That is simply NOT sustainable. If we take a period of time every week as a break, I can PROMISE you that you will be much, much better off.
And I don’t promise you on any authority I have, I don’t promise you on my experience. I promise you based on the reality that the word of God says so…
It’s a gift from God, don’t deny that gift… It is good, because the giver is good.
There’s a lot more power there than anything I could ever begin to muster.
Blessings my friends, rest well.
-kAt
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