Family Values - Week 4 Series

Never before, in the history of the world, have people been so stressed out.

People are on the go 24/7.

We race through our day with little time to breathe.

We’re overloaded and overwhelmed. We feel like we have to over-commit and multi-task to get everything done.

What’s so amazing is the fact that we have never had more efficiency tools and time saving devices available to us.

We stay so busy that we don’t have time for the things that matter most.

Today we're going to look at what God says about taking a day off.

We're in this series focusing on the ten values that build strong families.

I think all of us can agree that overworked people, with overloaded schedules, is a bad combination for families

Commandment #4 is the longest of the Ten Commandments.

In this context, God said more to say about taking a day off than He did about committing murder or adultery.

It seems like this is something He wants us to take seriously.

God commands us to take a day off every week.

This is a commandment, not a suggestion.

Exodus 20:8-10 (NIV)

8 "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.

9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work,

10 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.

The Sabbath Formula is really very simple:

Work 6 – Rest 1.

The word Sabbath means "Day of rest".

God says every seventh day we are to take time off.

In Mark 2:27, Jesus said that the Sabbath was made to benefit man.

It is important to note that Sabbath keeping is for our benefit.

It is for our own good.

The purpose of Sabbath is to preserve health and to prevent burnout.

Every seven days we need time to recharge physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

We need to set aside time for rest, re-creation, restoration, renewal, and worship.

We all need these things. It is the way God made us.

God expects us to make Sabbath keeping a priority.

I know some of you are thinking, I can’t do that.

I have said the same thing.

But we need to be careful about trying to justify sinful behavior. You heard me right.

When God gives us a clear command, and we choose to purposefully, willfully, and continually violate that command, it is sinful.

Sin is defined as a willful violation of God’s known law.

And God’s law, on this topic, is quite clear.

In the past I have admitted that I spent a good portion of our ministry as a Sabbath Breaker.

I have confessed that sin publicly.

Nobody really seemed to be upset.

For some reason, we treat Sabbath breaking as an acceptable sin.

Can you imagine how you would view the confession differently if I was admitting to being an adulterer, a liar, or a thief, rather than a Sabbath breaker?

For some reason, we diminish this commandment.

We tend to overlook it and ignore it.

My hope and prayer is that will change today.

QUESTION: Do you think having a regular day off is a good idea?

Do you think that regular time off would be good for you, your health, your marriage, your family?

God has said…

Exodus 20:8 (NIV)

8 "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.

How do I do that?

How do I keep a day holy, anyway?

Holy means "set apart".

The Sabbath is a day that is to be set apart.

It is to be different.

God says, I want you to set aside one day a week to do something different than you do the other six days of the week.

On the seventh day, you're to have a change of pace.

The Sabbath is to be unique, reserved, and special.

The way to keep the day holy is by using it the way God intended is to use it.

There are at least three Biblical Objectives for The Sabbath.

1. God wants me to REST MY BODY.

Psalm 127:2 (TLB)

2 It is senseless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, fearing you will starve to death; for God wants his loved ones to get their proper rest.

How many of you would say your body needs some rest?

I hear it all the time.

We all know we need it.

We just don’t get it.

It is not a priority.

But this principle is so important, God gave us an example.

When God created the world, He took six days to create the world and on the seventh day He rested.