God gave the children of Israel two reasons why they were to observe the Sabbath:
- Honor the Sabbath, because you are not God.
- Honor the Sabbath, because you are not a slave.
Exodus 20:8-11,
““Remember the Sabbath day, to keep 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, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” (Exodus 20:8–11, ESV)
Deuteronomy 5:12-15
“‘Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. 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, you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant, or your ox or your donkey or any of your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.” (Deuteronomy 5:12–15, ESV)
Every person I know who has a hard time disengaging and resting suffers from these two ailments:
- They think the world will fall apart without them, or
- They think their only value is in the labor they produce, like a slave, which is translated in our mind as “no work equals no worth.”
The Sabbath is a gift from God to stem the tide of these two destructive forces.
The Internet has created a whole new world that needs to be fenced off by the Sabbath. The human soul withers away under the twenty-four hour a day bombardment of demands, intrusions, and those awful Facebook pokes.
Debbie tells me I am addicted to technology. I tell her I am just trying to stay on top of my work. Am I in denial? Just to be safe, I add technology to the list of incursions the Sabbath protects me from.
It is scary: The average American consumes more than 13 hours of media each day.
Here is a great article on how to take a technology Sabbath: On the Seventh Day, We Unplug: How and Why to Take a Tech Sabbath.
“The meaning of the Sabbath is to celebrate time rather than space. Six days a week we live under the tyranny of things of space; on the Sabbath we try to become attuned to holiness in time. It is a day on which we are called upon to share in what is eternal in time, to turn from the results of creation to the mystery of creation; from the world of creation to the creation of the world.” [Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath, pg. 10]
Six days a week I celebrate doing: being productive, accomplishing goals, and subduing creation.
One day a week is set aside to celebrate Being.
It is here that we so often fail; we forget we are human beings, not human doings. Our value is greater than the sum of our labor. Our worth is as the Image Bearer of God. This is our Being.
In Mark 6 The disciples had gone through a period of intense ministry and deep loss. Jesus tells his disciples,
“Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” (Mark 6:31)
Life and ministry places strenuous demands on you. You need to hear Jesus inviting to “come away” because if you do not learn to “come away,” you will learn what it means to “come apart.” The choice is yours.
So go be productive. Get the job done. Learn to be the best you can be. And then, at the end of it all take a day off to remember:
- You are not a slave.
- You are not God.
Take time off to just Be.
Just Be. Silent.
Just Be. Still.
Just Be. At peace.
Just Be. You.
In Being: Silent, Still, and at Peace, You will hear His affirmation, “You are my beloved, in you I am well pleased.”
Don’t forget to connect with me on Facebook and Twitter.
If you enjoy my posts, enter your email address in the “Let’s Stay Connected” box and then click “Sign Me Up Today” to have updates delivered straight to your inbox.
Thank you so much for your prayers and support. Our ministry happens because of your partnership in the Gospel.
Debbie and I serve as the FMI Global Associate Director for MENACA and Europe. We focus on cultivating disciples, leaders, and church planting movements.
