Key Text: Exodus 20:8-11
We are continuing our series “Living God’s Way” looking at the 4th commandment which God gave Moses, telling him to ‘Keep the Sabbath Day Holy’. Both the principle and the practice of resting comes directly from God as part of His 10 Commandments, modelling to us how to live the best life. The Sabbath day is not something as a killjoy command here, but something commanded because God has our best interests at heart and wants to bless us in every way. Rest is at the heart of Christianity.
In a world where we are constantly busy and running from one task to the next, the Sabbath provides us with an opportunity to slow down, recharge, and refocus our hearts and minds on God. Perhaps we feel we are too busy or have too many needs to take a day off and rest. Yet as we do, we will see how we flourish spiritually and in every other way, and in turn can be a blessing to others too.
1. God Shows Us How To Rest (Genesis 2:2-3; Exodus 31:17; Genesis 1:27; Psalm 127:2; Mark 2:27-28)
2. God Wants Us To Rest In Him (Exodus 20:10; Exodus 33:14; Jeremiah 31:25; Matthew 11:28-29)
3. We Will Be Blessed And Bless Others As We Rest (Hebrews 10:24-25; 1 Samuel 2:30)
Apply
1) God Shows Us How To Rest
It’s quite something to think that the Lord God Almighty Himself took a day off (Genesis 2:2-3)! But that’s what the Bible teaches: God stopped and took a day to rest and enjoy all He had made (Exodus 31:17). Where we see that God worked then rested, we should too (Genesis 1:27). In our modern society of constant drivenness for further productivity, greater wealth, more efficiencies and maximising our time, it is important that we have one day a week where we change our normal routines to rest and refocus on God (Psalm 127:2). We need the Sabbath otherwise God would not have made it for us (Mark 2:27-28). Maybe for you the Sabbath is rest from paid employment. Or maybe if you’re working hard to maintain a home and look after the kids all week, it’s a day where you don’t do as many chores but prioritise family time together and with the Lord instead. Whatever your individual circumstances, the principle God sets for us is that first we work, then we rest.
2) God Wants Us To Rest In Him
Both Christians and non-Christians would agree that it’s important to rest. And as Christians, we see God commanded it and we should partake in it. The way Christians and non-Christians live most days of the week may not outwardly appear too different. But on the seventh day, there should be a noticeable difference (Exodus 20:10). The Sabbath isn’t a day to just fill with our leisure pursuits, but a day set apart as holy to the Lord so we can be fully refreshed in spirit as well as physically. Keeping the Sabbath holy is a way of demonstrating our love and obedience to God. It is a way of putting Him first and acknowledging that He is the source of all blessings we enjoy. Now we mustn’t fall into the trap that the Pharisees and religious Jewish leaders did of making this command to rest equate to a list of rules and regulations. Out of this one command, they made 1521 further rules of what you weren’t allowed to do on the Sabbath! But whilst our recreations can become distractions from the pressures and problems of life, they become like gods to us when we value them over time with the Lord. For some, like those in the emergency services, sometimes the Sabbath day cannot be a Sunday, but then it is important to take another day in the week to also set apart. But for those who can, and that is the majority of us, we should do all we can to enjoy the Sabbath as a holy day, a day set apart to worship God. In the Bible, God repeatedly told His people thatreal refreshing comes from Him (Exodus 33:14; Jeremiah 31:25; Matthew 11:28-29). So how important is it for you to experience refreshing, worship and fellowship in the presence of God as part of your Sabbath rest each week? Is there anything that stops you, or matters more to you than having the sabbath as a holy day set apart to God? It is in the presence of God where you can find real rest: body, soul and spirit. More than simply distracting us from our reality, there is nothing and no one else who can revitalise our whole being, minister to every need and permanently remove every burden like God can.
3) We Will Be Blessed And Bless Others As We Rest
When we follow God’s instructions through the Ten Commandments, we help bring the Kingdom of heaven on earth. Whether or not people choose to follow the Ten Commandments, they still exist, including this command to rest, because God wants to bring His Kingdom here on earth as we live God’s way (Hebrews 10:24-25). We come to church to worship God, to be renewed in our perspectives and helped to take the God-given view of ourselves and the world. It’s where we can be reminded that we are spiritual beings, made in the image of God the Creator, and be encouraged and stimulated in our faith. It’s an opportunity where, no matter your home and personal circumstances, on this one day a week we can come together across all the different generations, backgrounds and ethnicities to worship and fellowship with our church family. And as we fellowship with one another, we are refreshed and we in turn refresh others. As well as enjoying time as a church family, it’s so important to also take time to enjoy in your own families as well. When did you last have a leisurely meal together as a family at the table, no phones or devices, just enjoying one another’s company? Maybe today could be that day! Obeying the Lord’s command means we will set an example of enjoying a healthy work/life balance, of not being stressed and burned out but flourishing in life by living God’s way. Would you be a kinder, more generous individual if you had a little more rest in your life? You and your family, colleagues, neighbours and even complete strangers would all be blessed if you really encountered the Lord as part of your rest time each week! So what’s stopping you? Is there fear of missing out: in your finances by not working, of promotion in your sports team by choosing church over a match? Or maybe have you just not prioritised taking time out. Just as with Olympian Eric Liddell, so too the Lord will honour us when we keep to His principles (1 Samuel 2:30). So what adjustments do we need to make so we have one day which is different? Where we don’t go into business, but where we focus on fellowship with God, where we focus on restoration of our spirit and time with the family. Let’s make this a priority in our lives and we will find we have much more energy for the six other days. And God will give us His grace to do it. Let’s line up with Him to see His best.
