Studying the Ten Commandments always brings a fresh understanding to my current ways of living.  It strongly reminds me that God's ways are best and are not only good for me, they are the ways I prefer when I do as He says.

Sometimes the most glaring examples of His better ways are in the commands that seem "old-fashioned" and "out-of-touch" with today.  Taking a Sabbath rest is one of the best of these.  I'll discuss it more thoroughly Sunday, but as I studied it again I came across so many thoughts that I decided to share a few here (usually from other authors and writers, filtered through my own experiences).

Have you ever wondered why God needed to rest?  Seems like a silly question.  God.  Rest.  The words seem like opposites to me.  Why does He need to - or should I say, want to (Genesis 1).  Surely there is more here than the author of the universe getting tired and needing a little shut-eye.  Does God wear out after awhile?  If not, then perhaps the "need" for a Sabbath is about more than just "being sure you get enough down time".

Have you considered that God's decision to "take a break" is pre-sin?  It happens before sin enters into the world.  That implies God is taking a good and making it best.  He is not merely telling us to do something by example that, if we don't, will make Him mad or lead us into evil habits. 

So, how can a person living in a fast-paced city with the pressures of daily existence afford to take a rest\Sabbath?  Apparently it's so good that it's one of the first things we need to know about God in the Bible.  If He needs or wants to do this, am I missing something by leaving it out?  There are so many things I can do with my time....!

These two ideas should help you set aside a couple of the silly ideas we have running around about "why rest?"/take a Sabbath.  God's command in Exodus 20:8 is not 1) Given because He knows we will wear out if we don't rest from time to time.  The Hebrew people (1st hearers of this) thought of night as preceding, not ending the day (as we do) - so, set aside your idea that "I don't need to rest, I can do without so much down time and get more done!"  If you do, you're missing something. 

The commandment is also not 2) Given to make sure you are acceptable to God.  Making sure you worship on Saturday (as some believe) is as futile as all the rest of the "laws of the Sabbath" Jesus rejected in His day (example: don't light a fire in your house fireplace, it's work!, etc.).  The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath, Jesus says.  Keeping the Sabbath doesn"t make you holy, it helps to make your life more like the one God himself enacts. ("to keep it (the day) holy")

No, I believe God is merely recognizing the completeness of His work and the joy in its existence.  Something in the pausing and reflecting increases the joy of the very purpose for which He does what He does in creation (that includes us!).

So, Sabbath enjoyment means living the way God intends for us to live.  Keeping it comes from a belief that if I live as He tells me to, I will have time enough to complete what I have been created to do.  I will get to say (as Jesus does, "I have done all you have given me to do").  Doing this regularly results in knowing the purpose for which I was created and enjoying it fully, including balancing every relationship God gives me to enjoy (the Bible calls that contentment and regularly tells us to seek it).

Simply put (by The Message in Luke 11:29, "Learn the unforced rhythms of grace."), God is interested in rest for our souls.  He alone knows how to do that.  Sounds like a goal worth working for (yes, work is commanded here!), but, more about that on Sunday!

What "rhythm" are you marching to?

Rest well - as He does - and don't miss a thing!

Kevin