Remember the Sabbath Day
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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 heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it. (Exodus 20:9-11)
Imagine a day without work. You get up in the morning, put on your best clothes, go to church, have a nice meal, and then rest. No going to the office, no washing laundry, no shuttling kids - just rest. Perhaps you bundle up on the couch with your bible and a mug of hot cocoa. How refreshed would you be to face your hectic schedule the rest of the week?
God designed just such a day. He called it the Sabbath, and set it apart as sacred. He instructed His people to refrain from ordinary work on the Sabbath (Exodus 20:9-11, Deuteronomy 5:14) and to keep the Sabbath throughout their generations (Exodus 31:16). Remembering the Sabbath day to keep it holy is one of the Ten Commandments. Why? Because He knows how we are formed (Psalm 103:13-14); He knows that our bodies need rest.
The Pharisees made a religious dogma out of doing no work on the Sabbath, to the point that they refused to express compassion because compassion requires action, i.e., work (Matthew 12). In focusing on the letter of the law, they missed entirely the spirit of the law, and Jesus rebuked them for their hypocrisy. The Sabbath, He explained, was established for man's benefit; man wasn't created to be enslaved by the Sabbath (Mark 2:27).
Honoring the Sabbath requires a change of mindset. It was never intended to be just an ordinary day - a day to get chores done or to go fishing and ignore the Lord (see Luke 4:16, Luke 6:6).
Honoring the Sabbath requires planning. It may require preparing a meal the day before, or making other arrangements. For example, parents with young children may wish to establish a "co-op" of sorts with other trusted parents to take turns keeping the children on Sundays and allow a day of rest on the "off" week(s).
Lest you think this commandment is Old Testament and doesn't apply to us, remember that Jesus didn't come to do away with the law, but to complete it. In fact, He said that not even the tiniest detail of the law will disappear until its purpose is achieved (Mathew 5:17-18). How will you honor the Sabbath?
Father God, thank You for the Sabbath. Thank You for establishing a day of rest for Your people. I want to honor You by keeping Your commands. Lord, please help me to make the necessary adjustments to remember the Sabbath in a way that pleases You. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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