Scripture Introduction
For those listening to a recording, it might help to know that our service this morning focused on the fourth commandment. Much debate about this law centers on the definition of the “work” in Exodus 20.10: “the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work.” The ancient Jewish commentary on Old Testament law, The Mishnah, forbids thirty-nine acts of labor, things like: sowing, ploughing, reaping, threshing, grinding, kneading, and baking; shearing wool, spinning thread; tying or untying a knot; sewing; hunting, slaughtering, skinning, salting; writing two letters, erasing in order to write two letters; kindling fire, and extinguishing fire.
We might suppose the Jewish “Shabbat” easy for us to obey since we do not live in an agrarian society like the one to which these interpretations are obviously intended. However, rabbis also apply these rules to our day, so that, for example, Rabbi Eli Pick, Guide to Sabbath Observance (1975, 6:114), explains that using a stapler falls under the prohibition of sewing, as it joins two objects together. Gluing and taping similarly are violations of God’s law.
“Taping” – what about the tape that holds diapers together? Rabbi Gersion Appel, The Concise Code of Jewish Law: [Hilkhot Shabat], p. 178: “Disposable diapers that are made to be secured with adhesive tape may be used on the Sabbath…. The protective covering on the tape should be removed before the Sabbath.”
You will also be interested to know that “Vaseline or other ointment may be applied… on a baby to relieve or prevent diaper rash. This should be done without rubbing or smearing it on. The Vaseline or ointment can be applied to gauze before the Sabbath and then placed on the affected part on the Sabbath. Baby oil may be applied, but not with cotton or a cloth” (368). Since a baby’s bottom is not the only thing which can dry out, Appel adds, it is also “permitted if necessary to apply oil or some other liquid lotion, but not Chapstick and the like, to dry, cracked lips or hands if the condition causes some pain.”
Our first reaction may be to snicker at such strictures. But many Christians also lament the disregarding of Sabbath day as evidenced by the demise of the “Blue Laws.”
Nor are the Jews the only ones to supplement the commands of the Bible with specific applications. Our church does not allow fried chicken to be purchased on Sundays. You may buy and refrigerate it on Saturday for transporting to church and reheating and serving on Sunday, but you may not purchase it on Sabbath. Some Christians say you must not get gasoline on Sunday, or fly in an airplane, or read the paper, or watch NFL games. Some prohibit team sports, but allow personal and non-competitive games. I have a friend who, when he has an out of town meeting on Monday morning, travels on Saturday to avoid flying on Sunday. Of course, that means he must sometimes stay in a hotel on Sunday, so he packs sack meals for the whole day so that he does eat at the restaurant.
Some believe the way through the confusion is to avoid activities which make others work on Sunday. But in our 24-7 global economy, the meal you eat at a restaurant on Monday was prepped by workers on Sunday. The groceries we buy on Tuesday were shipped by truck on Sunday. The books you order Wednesday were stocked at Amazon by workers on Sunday. And, of course, people work today so that we can debate the meaning of rest.
So difficult is a solution, that (in my experience) most pastors avoid the topic, especially since parishioners typically allotted little grace when they expect their view to be vindicated from the pulpit. As a result, the sermons that are preached usually denounce those “sinners” who skip church altogether.
As hopeless as I may imagine the chances of surviving today, our study of beginnings demands that we consider the beginning of rest. We have two texts: Genesis 1 to introduce God’s day of rest, and Hebrews 4 to apply the principle to the spiritual rest available to all through (and only through) trusting in the work of Christ.
[Read Genesis 1.26-2.3; Hebrews 4.9-10. Pray.]
Introduction
One man challenged another to a wood chopping contest. The challenger worked very hard, stopping only for a brief lunch break. The other man had a leisurely lunch and took several breaks during the day. At the end of the day, the challenger was annoyed that the other fellow chopped more wood than he had.
“I don’t get it,” he said. “Every time I checked, you were taking a rest, yet you chopped more wood than I did.”
The winning woodsman said: “You noticed correctly that I took several breaks. But you failed to notice that whenever I sat down to rest, I sharpened my ax.”
On Sundays, God sharpens our axes.
God concludes creation by celebrating the goodness and perfection of his work. He also invites mankind to rest with him. It is called the Sabbath, in Hebrew, (Hebrew Word) (sh¹bbat), because the Hebrew for “cease” is (Hebrew Word)(sh¹bat). It is literally the “the ceasing-day.” Of course, Adam and Eve reject the gift of a sharp ax, casting themselves and their descendents into the restlessness which characterizes sin.
One of the most Biblical theologians and pastors of all time surely must be Augustine. His Confessions (written around AD 400) make excellent reading for any Christian for he well understood the restless heart. The book opens with these words: “GREAT are you, O Lord, and greatly to be praised; great is your power, and of your wisdom there is no end. And man, being a part of your creation, desires to praise you—man, who carries about with him his mortality, the witness of his sin, even the witness that you “resist the proud,” —yet man, this part of your creation, desires to praise you. You move us to delight in praising you; for you have formed us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find rest in you.”
Restless hearts – an apt critique of us. In our age of busyness, of crisis multiplied by crisis, of information overload, and scrambling to survive, I think the hope of rest resonates in our souls. So how do we experience this promised rest? First…
1. We Must Understand God’s Sabbath
And it includes three parts. First…
1.1. God’s Sabbath is a Rest of Completion
Our English Bibles begin chapter 2 after day six. Moses, on the other hand, ends his first chapter with what we call chapter 2, verse 3. We know this because God marks each new section in Genesis with a unique word. It first occurs in Genesis 2.4: “These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.”
“Generations” translates the Hebrew word tdol.AT (toledoth), and that same word marks each of the ten “sections” after the opening account of creation (Genesis 2.4; 5.1; 6.9; 10.1; 11.10, 27; 25.12, 19; 36.1; 37.2). Besides a quasi-interesting Hebrew grammar lesson, so what?
Day seven is integral to creation. Creation is completed by a day of blessing and sanctifying and enjoying the first six days. Sabbath cannot be simply inactivity; it cannot consist primarily of sleep or entertainment. This is why Jesus, when asked why he did these things on the Sabbath, responds: “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” Just as God’s work of providence upheld the universe on the “ceasing-day,” so Jesus continues to uphold the universe by the word of his power this very day.
When a pregnant woman enters the delivery room, she is a mother. When labor starts, she is a mother. When the baby is born, she is a mother. The work of mothering transcends the task of labor. Yet, because she is a mother, labor is a work she must do. And when that is complete, a mother wants to cuddle with baby – to comfort, to enjoy, to nurse, to do a different work which results from the work of labor.
God rests from creating with the work of enjoying, upholding, celebrating, nursing. The rest of completion begins the work of sustaining.
1.2. God’s Sabbath is a Rest of Blessing
“God blessed the seventh day.” Two other appearances of the word, “bless” help us get at the heart of its meaning. First, note God’s blessing on mankind in Genesis 1.28: “And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’”
God has commanded Adam to rule the world as his regent. Where will he find the armies of people to accomplish this work? From God, via his blessing, through Adam’s and Eve’s own bodies. The first key idea to understand “bless” is multiplication.
Second, in Numbers 6, God commands the priests to bless his people: “You shall say to them, ‘The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.’ So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them” (Numbers 6.22-27).
The blessing promised here is God’s name, in other words, his presence. This is essentially a sacrament – what is said in words, when accepted by faith, becomes the very thing promised. The people of Israel truly experienced God’s presence and power when the benediction was given.
These two aspects of the divine blessing God now applies to the Sabbath. First, multiplication: those who delight in a day of worshiping God and ceasing from their own pursuits, find their lives filled with more joy, more fruit of the Holy Spirit, more grace, more peace, more life than can be humanly accounted for. We cannot measure or quantify this multiplication of good things to us, but they are real. Additionally, we find the work of the other six days multiplied. The ax is sharpened so that what we do, we are able to do better. We are more efficient, able to accomplish more, better employees, and more useful in our professions.
In addition to multiplication, there is also the blessing of God’s presence. When we passionately rest in God’s grace one day out of seven, we find his presence in our lives in a more profound and palpable way. I cannot explain how it works, though countless Christians will testify to its truth. The supernatural blessing of God comes on those who cease striving for God’s favor and trust in his provision.
1.3. God’s Sabbath Was a Rest of Sanctification
To sanctify is to “set apart or make special.” God makes the seventh day unique in our week. The others are common; this one is holy to the Lord. We receive its blessing by elevating this day above the confusion and busyness and humdrum of regular life.
God did something similar when he sanctified Aaron to the priesthood. Aaron was still an ordinary man, but he now had the extraordinary work of saving and blessing God’s people.
Similarly, the seventh is simply another day until God gives it supernatural and extraordinary grace. Now those who believe God enough to live one day in seven differently, dedicated and devoted to God, find his favor and blessing on their lives.
Thus the second point:
2. We Must Respond Correctly to the Sabbath
Unfortunately, we often react badly to the Sabbath.
2.1. We Reject Improper Responses
2.1.1. Explain Away
Eliminating the relevance and applicability of the Sabbath to today is neither faithful to Scripture nor helpful to mankind. Jesus did not abolish the fourth commandment. It does not belong to the dispensation of Israel. It is not part of the law from which we are freed in the new covenant.
Someone has said that the Sabbath is “like a bouquet of flowers when there is no anniversary.” Another calls it “an oasis in the desert of our days.” The Christian who dismisses the Sabbath so that she can work an extra day and get ahead in this world is like Scrooge explaining away Christmas so that he never receives any gifts – Bah! Humbug! I don’t want God’s gift of blessing and multiplication! If we believe the rewards of a Sabbath rest we will not want to miss it!
2.1.2. Conform and Complain (or Gloat)
The Pharisees had a relatively easy life six days of the week, so they had no problem making the Sabbath hard to obey. They conformed their lives to the commandment (at least externally), and they made sure everyone knew how hard they worked to do so. This offended Jesus deeply. The Sabbath reward depends on enjoying God, not on conformity to the command.
2.1.3. Ignore and Break (or Be Broken)
“Work six, rest one” is a creation principle; thus it transcends the church. This is a promise of common grace to all people. Like the law of gravity, however, it hurts all who refuse to submit. Nervous breakdowns, broken marriages, and stressed out lives result from refusing rest.
Spurgeon: “Repose is as needful to the mind as sleep to the body…. If we do not rest, we shall break down. Even the earth must lie fallow and have her Sabbaths, and so must we.”
Of course, one cannot please God apart from faith, even if he keeps the Sabbath. But the non-believer does benefit from the common grace blessing of resting one in seven.
2.1.4. Conform and Compensate
Some of us run so fast for six days that we cannot stop in time on Sunday. We are too frantic, having foolishly fallen into the error of measuring worth by activity and value by busyness. When “church” becomes another tiring activity in an overly busy schedule, you are not resting in the Lord. The Sabbath blessing is God’s working for you while you rest, not your working hard enough to take a day off without missing a step. Collapsing on Sunday is not a Sabbath rest.
With that sensitivity to improper responses, here are three faithful responses from this text.
2.2. We Respond Faithfully to the Promises
2.2.1. We Complete Our Work
The one-in-seven pattern invites us to organize our lives around a Monday to Saturday schedule, to end each week with clean desks, finished tasks, and the list thrown away. Of course, none can perfectly close off work on Saturday. Some projects last for months and some never end. God did not stop all work on Sabbath. But, he did complete creation. Mother transcends labor, but the labor does end.
We can do the same. That may require some of us to attempt less, to lay down our hopes at self-deification through work. Others of us need to be more efficient and diligent so that we have a true work week to rest from. Everyone of us, however, for our spiritual, emotional and physical health, must learn how to come to worship with some “to-do list” complete for this week.
2.2.2. We Are To Be Blessed
Spiritual maturity does not come from how hard you work to be like Christ; it comes from how well you rest in the blessing of Christ.
On day 6, God created mankind and commanded that Adam and Eve rule the whole world. What a job! It makes me wonder how God will protect Adam and Eve from being overwhelmed by the vastness of the assignment. How will God keep them from giving up? How will he empower such a monumental work?
He asks them to rest. Ceasing-day was the end of God’s work week, but it was the beginning of Adam’s and Eve’s! The first act of obedience is resting in God’s blessing! That is marvelous grace!
2.2.3. We Are To Sanctify the Day
The rubber meets the road here. Most Christians want to know how to sanctify the day. As I tried to show you in the introduction, that is not an easy question. My experience is that simplistic answers make self-righteous Christians, while serious and sober answers elude many godly men and women who sincerely love the Lord.
My answer is to memorize Isaiah 58 and seek God passionately and persistently for how to apply it into your life. Here are a few verses from that chapter: “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard…. If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly; then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
3. Conclusion
Once when Dwight L. Moody was visiting England he met and eager preacher named Henry Moorhouse. Without expecting anything to come of it, Moody invited the young man to visit him in Chicago sometime: “Come, preach in my church,” he said, though he had no intention of allowing the Brit in his pulpit.
A month after returning from England, Moody was embarrassed and shocked to receive a telegram from Moorhouse: “Arrived New York. In Chicago on Sunday.” To further frustrate Moody, he was scheduled to be out of town that Sunday and had no one to fill the pulpit. Moorhouse was invited to preach.
A week later Moody returned from his trip and asked his wife how Moorhouse had done.
“He was wonderful,” she replied. “Even better than you. He told sinners that God loves them!”
“But that’s wrong,” Moody complained. “God does not love sinners!”
“Then you had better go tell him,” she said, “For he is convinced that God does!”
“You mean he is still here?”
“Yes, and he has preached every night since you left.”
That evening Moody heard Moorhouse preach on “The Unconditional Love of God,” his sixth sermon in a row on the same text: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Moody was spellbound, and for the first time he realized the enormity of grace and the greatness of God’s love. Moody’s life and ministry were forever changed.
Churches are filled today with people working hard to enter God’s rest. Such Sabbath observances damn them, for they are not resting in Christ’s work, but in their work of resting. There remains a rest for the people of God. It is received by faith, when you cease from all your doings. This rest began with creation, was cursed in the fall, is fulfilled in Christ, and will be forever completed at the consummation. It can be yours today. Will you rest in the completed work of Jesus?
