Sabbath?

Agape Fall Retreat 09

Muskoka Woods

This question came up while we were doing devotions at retreat. Dan (our speaker) mentioned that we should always have a day of rest, and it is a commandment. Technically, if we were working, like doing our homework or studying, are we sinning against God? If one was not taking a rest because of work or school for the whole week, are we sinning?

Great question. This question is especially relevant if you live within an Asian household, which often emphasizes the value of hard work, sacrifice and determination.

To sabbath means to rest from one's work. Why should we do take a sabbath? For one, our bodies physically need a break. We are not machines that are built to work 24 hours, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. If we try to work like a machine, we'll burn out. Someone once told me that unless we take a sabbath, a sabbath will be imposed upon you. That means you can try to go without rest, but eventually the consequences will catch up with you. Either your body will break down, or the relationships around you. Even your career can be in jeopardy if you don't rest. Worst of all, your relationship with God will suffer because you have failed to rely upon Him.

Taking a sabbath break is an act of trusting in God. When we rest from our work (assuming we have worked hard on the last six days - no an excuse to be lazy!), we have to remember that God is still working while we are not. And we have to trust in that. Pastor Mark Driscoll wrote an article that I think you should read concerning this matter. It's found HERE. Here's an excerpt:

Legalistic attempts have been made to rob the Sabbath of its worship and joy by carefully mandating what can and cannot be done. However, Jesus seemed to have intentionally lived in public view to serve as a contrary model of the Sabbath than that given by other legalistic teachers. For example, Jesus healed on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:1–14, John 9:1–17), taught on the Sabbath (Mark 6:1–2), and promoted evangelism on the Sabbath (John 7:21–24). Jesus demonstrated that the Sabbath is not to be enforced legalistically, but that it exists for worshipful fun and rest. Furthermore, our true Sabbath is not in a day but ultimately in a saving relationship with Jesus where we can rest from trying to earn our salvation and rest in His finished work (Matthew 11:28–30; Romans 4:5; Colossians 2:16–17). Therefore, the Sabbath is not a law for believers to obey, but instead a grace to enjoy.

In conclusion, by setting aside a day, we are showing that we are a people who are set aside (holy) and who rest in Jesus. Worshiping is our primary objective and our weeks are purposefully ordered around worship. Then, our worshipful work can be rightly undertaken.

Summarily, what activities you do or don't do on the Sabbath is not the main issue. Remember, Jesus attended worship, taught and applied the Scriptures, performed acts of mercy and encouraged others to do the same, AND He rested from some of His usual labor. The issue if whether you trust in God, and devote the time we would have spent working on worshipping Him. If we don't trust in Him and devote time to worship Him, that is sin. So I'll end with a question for you: Have you taken a break from your work or school during this week to rest and trust in God?

[Answered by Pastor HM, who takes the sabbath on Monday, since he technically works on Sunday]