It is obviously a scheme of Satan to keep us running in circles until we’re exhausted and totally uninterested in discipleship. This scheme is nothing new to God, who created everything with a precaution in mind--or perhaps an antidote--to exhaustion: Sabbath Rest. God has never stopped desiring for all of us to keep the Sabbath. Wouldn’t you like to emerge from a Sabbath day refreshed and ready to tackle the most important things of life?
Exhaustion: Finding Rest in Taking the Sabbath Seriously
Intro:
When we talked in Home Team about how we were most often defeated in our spiritual lives, there was one common thought: everyone is exhausted.
Our spiritual lives are weak because we are physically exhausted. The more we do, the less we are likely to spend time with the Lord, be mindful of loving others having anything extra to give.
It is a scheme of Satan to keep up running in circles.
And this is nothing new. God created us with rest in mind. When he created the world, He was purposeful about resting on the seventh day. And we are to follow His method of working six days and resting one.
You may think, “What if I work on Sunday?”
How are you at following this model. If you are like most of us, you are pushed to the limits. The problem is that by not resting you are exhausted and you are not going to be the effective believer you could be.
1. How to take the Sabbath Seriously.
A.) Set time apart
The Fourth Commandment is to Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. (Ex. 20:8)
“Keeping it holy” means that you sanctify your time…you set some time apart as special. You purposefully make some of the time special. You don’t do the same things on this one day. It is special.
Why? Firstly, Because it is a commandment
This is in the same list where we receive such commandments as Thou Shalt not murder. It is of at least the same importance as the other commands. It is an import command! When you fail to obey this, you are disobeying one of the Ten Commandments. (even going as far as putting offenders to death)
Because it is a priority because it was set as a model
This takes us back to creation. God modeled that he worked 6 and then rested on the 7th. Again and again, whenever the Scripture explain the Sabbath Rest to us, it always points to how God rested.
The rest of the passage explains (Ex. 20:8-11)
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 male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
2. Some Misconception about Setting the Time Aside
A.) Sabbath is Going to Church
This isn’t about worshiping on the Sabbath as much as it is about sanctifying the day. This isn’t all about church services, this really a separate command about your work ethic. Notice that the commandment doesn’t talk about going to worship, but rather is commanding us to cease from work.
Sabbath is a transliteration of the word which means “to cease.” Sometimes church is a great source of stress.
It is not that God is against work, but that He wants it in proper perspective. This is about sanctifying your time.
Of course there is plenty of commands for us to know that it is also right to worship. However we worship on “The Lord’s Day” ever since the resurrection. And each Sunday should be a celebration.
B.) I can’t rest
An objection may be that you can’t set aside the time; that it is impossible for you to do so. Too much to do and not enough time to do it in. “God wouldn’t expect me to stop during our busiest times.”
Even when we are busy: But God has that covered... In Ex. 34:21 it tells us that even during our busy times we are to honor the Sabbath rest.
21 “Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest.
No matter if you are the slave or the boss, the foreigner or the household, the child or the donkey, all are commanded to rest.
D.) You Can’t do anything on the Sabbath
There is a lot of misconception when it comes to the sabbath...and they all seem to be about what the rules are. Is it saturday or sunday; can you work or not work? My Grandmother’s rules.
You see, God’s Word simply tells us to “not work.” And down the line people tried to clarify what constituted as work and what didn’t. So they said if you sew two stiches it’s work, or if you sew two pieces of thread; or if you carry a bundle of wood; or if you start a fire. It became ridiculous and by the time that Jesus was alive, the value was lost.
What you need to remember is that God gave us the command to rest on the sabbath that we may be refreshed, not strapped with more rules. Jesus expressed fully that the Sabbath was made for you, and not the other way around.
Jesus said "The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath. “
3.) What should taking a Sabbath Rest give you? What can you do?
A.) You can be free & refreshed
Rest
The Sabbath is symbolic of the Hebrews being released from Egyptian slavery, so this is about liberty—not rules.
Deuteronomy 5 explains what Sabbath symbolizes:
12 “Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. 13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 14 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 male or female servant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns, so that your male and female servants may rest, as you do. 15 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.
Sabbath reflects release from work, freedom, liberty. It brings everyone to the same level: all are free to rest and do what they normally can’t do.
Some of you just want to take a nap today. For others, like a ten year old, a nap sounds more like enslavement.
Refreshed
The Spirit of Sabbath is to refresh God’s people.
Ex. 23:12 “Six days do your work, but on the seventh day do not work, so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and so that the slave born in your household and the foreigner living among you may be refreshed.
Every person should feel refreshed by not being forced to do work, but they should do what is refreshing with thanksgiving in their hearts.
Not with arrogance, but with humility. God means to remind us that we are clay, that we must be refreshed in His strength, and that He is the one who sets us free.
Bottom line is that you have permission to do things that are good for rest and refreshment.
And you should cease from working and doing things that are normal activities for you.
Conclusion
I don’t know if that feels like “permission” for you, or if this is one of your hardest challenges. Maybe you’ve been struggling with the notion that you don’t truly take a Sabbath in your life.
Rest is often a struggle for us. Rest is where we are sometimes more tempted. When Jesus took 40 days of sabbatical in the wilderness, he faced grave temptations. When you purposefully rest before God, suddenly you will be tempted too.
But you must remember the sabbath day and keep it holy.
God made the Sabbath for you to rest and be delighted by this gift.
You can choose not to rest, but that is a bad choice like choosing to become a heroin addict.
God takes the Sabbath so seriously that he gave the order to kill those who would impede the freedom for people to rest on the Sabbath. He knows the dangers that we face when we refuse to rest. He wants to protect his people from this sin.
God rested and He is asking you to do the same so He can refresh you. He stopped working so we would get how much we need to rest like a parent laying down with a child so the child will take a nap.
Invitation:
Some here today are notorious for breaking the Sabbath, or perhaps they honor it will a few actions, but they don’t have a Sabbath heart—that is a heart that understands When it comes to the ultimate issue of life, being fully forgiven and accepted by God, our only hope is to cease from our work and trust in His work for us in Jesus. We are not saved by our efforts; we cannot earn our acceptance before God.
Are you leading a life of distraction, exhaustion and stress? You don’t have to. You were not created for that. Jesus died on a cross so that your heart would be transformed totally into his nature. And he is waiting on you to rest in Him today.
If it is long overdue for you to rest in Him, speak to Him now in the quiet and stillness of the moment.
Confess that you haven’t had honored Him. That you are a sinner because of this. He will accept your confession. He will cleanse you of unrighteousness.
Ask Him to help you celebrate the freedom of Christ over you.
