God wants to make sure we get the proper rest in our lives for a number of reasons. It is important for us to get rest so that we don’t wear out our bodies, that we can manage the grind called life. Rest is also important in showing God that we cannot do everything in our lives by ourselves – that we need to trust Him to provide for us, that not everything is on our own shoulders. Without proper rest, we will wear out at times when our struggles overwhelm us. God shares with us an early example in the Bible of how to rest.
Genesis 2:2-3 – By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.
Did God need the seventh day of creation for rest because he was exhausted from all the creation He achieved? No, that was not the case at all. However, God needed to provide an example for mankind that cycles of rest and renewal are equally important parts of the life cycle as is work. Just as we need to get rest every day through sleep, we are to ensure our rest on other schedules as well.
How many people remember when businesses were never open on Sunday? Those were, indeed, the good old days! However, the “blue laws” prohibiting stores from opening on Sunday started falling away in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Until that time in our history, very few stores were ever open on Sunday. The world has changed so much with the changes that led to open stores on Sunday throughout our country and world. What a great example Chic Fil A continues to set for our world by having all their stores closed every Sunday.
The Bible is clear on keeping the Sabbath holy:
Exodus 20:8-10 – “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 For six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God; on it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male slave or your female slave, or your cattle, or your resident who stays with you.
Yet, how many people do not do any work on Sunday? In today’s world, the time pressures to get all the shopping done, clean the house, spend quality time with the family and friends, get exercise, and keep up with email and texts is simply overwhelming…… oh, and did I mention going to church?
Hebrews 4:9-10 – Consequently, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. 10 For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His.
God is with us constantly to relieve us of the huge weight of expectations that we can be made to feel in the world today. We enter into true rest when we have welcomed God into our lives and obtain the “peace that surpasses understanding” (Philippians 4:7).
Matthew 11:28-30 – “Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is comfortable, and My burden is light.”
Take time each week to renew and refresh with God. On the Sabbath, turn off your email, turn off your social media, and take a break to spend quality time with family and friends and with your Best Friend who is with you always!