Remember the Sabbath

Lately I have been reading through Genesis and I have been extremely in awe of the creation story. I grew up going to church, so I have heard this story many, many times. So many times, I think that I have become somewhat immune to it. It wasn't until recently when I decided to read through Genesis that I have been able to rediscover it.

The first six days of creation are absolutely mind-boggling if you think about it. I like to consider myself pretty creative, but I highly doubt that I could come up with something as complicated as the earth that God created. Not only did He create numerous species of plants and animals and the different environments that they live in, but He also designed them so intricately that even the most advanced scientists still have not figured out everything there is to know about them. That just really amazes me.

For the longest time, I have heard this story and never really stopped to think about the 7th day of the story. Most of the time that day is passed over as not as important as the others. I mean, God just rested right? What’s so significant about that?

Actually, it is pretty significant. Genesis 2:2-3 says, “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.” God didn’t just create the world and say, “Yup, good job me. Now it’s time for a break.” After carefully putting together all of the pieces of the universe, God stopped to look at His creation and declare it good, perfect in every way. Then, God rested not because He was exhausted from all the work He had been doing, but because there was nothing left to do. God had created everything effectively and perfectly and there was no need to add anything thing or go back and revise. God obviously recognized this and took the opportunity to celebrate it by taking the time to let Himself rest. He even made a point to bless that day and make it holy.

To be “holy” basically means to be set apart. So If God declared the 7th day (later called the Sabbath in Exodus 20:11) as holy, it should be set apart from the other days right? Yes. Do we do it? No. In today’s society we have become so wrapped up in work, school, and our social lives (or lack thereof) that we can’t even remember what day it is sometimes, much less which one is supposed to be holy. Most people see the Sabbath as a day to catch up on yard work or homework, get ahead with office work, clean the house, or catch up on shopping (it is noted however that to some people shopping may be relaxing).

How can we rest if we are constantly trying to catch up? If God was able to create the earth in six days, shouldn’t we be able to get done what is required of us in the same amount of time? Granted God is much bigger and more powerful than us, but I think you get my point. We cannot continue to ignore what God made so clear to us not just once, but at least twice in Scripture. (Genesis 2:2 and Exodus 20:11) God did not just give us this command for the heck of it.

God wants us to strive to be like Him, so we should try to do everything we can to make this happen. Wouldn’t it be great if we could do everything we needed to the best of our ability and then be able to sit back on the Sabbath and look at all that we have accomplished and just rest? Yes, I think that would be amazing. I also, think that if we aren’t able to do this, then we have too much on our plate. If we are unable to follow this command because worldly things are getting in the way, then we need to rethink our priorities. We cannot continue to deliberately disobey God or our relationship with Him will suffer. God wants us to rest not only because of our physical health, but we also need time to rest and revamp our spiritual lives as well. The Sabbath is our day to do that.

So do you remember the Sabbath? Whatever you are doing, I encourage you to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy – keep it set apart from the rest of your days. We need God and we need to rest in His arms - we cannot truly live without it.