Rest and Joy found in the Sabbath

Rest.  Joy.  Trust.  Faith.

Beautiful words that should mark the life of each of us as believers in Jesus.  Unfortunately, most of us are still working on these character traits.  Notice I said working!

Yesterday we looked at why we need to take a Sabbath rest each week as presented in Exodus 20.  In this passage, God declared that He created everything in six days and then rested.  Thus, we should labor six days and rest on the seventh.

I think this concept is hard for all people, in all time periods, to understand and believe.  Thankfully, God gave us another rationale when the Ten Commandments were restated in Deuteronomy.  As God's Word states,

Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you.
Six days you shall labor and do all your work,
but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.
On it you shall not do any work, ...
You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt,
and the Lord your God brought you out from there
with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm.
Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

Deuteronomy 5: 12-15

Why would a different rationale be given here?  I think it is the same point, but it comes from a different perspective.  It could be argued that God can create in six days, but I am not God.  I need to labor to complete all my work constantly because I am so weak and human.

I have heard this perspective many times.  I would say from the context of the bible, such talk is false humility.  It reveals our lack of faith in God to provide and complete our work.

Why?

In Deuteronomy, Moses gives us the rationale of God's incredible provision for Israel in rescuing them from slavery.  These people had nothing.  They were slaves who were forced to work everyday.  They had no military and no power.  They were under the thumb of the greatest military power in the world.  In other words, they could not bring rescue, they could not provide for themselves, and they could not finish their tasks.

So what happened?

God miraculously rescued them, provided for them, and finished the call of bringing them back to the promised land.  Against all odds, God worked and brought His people rest, freedom, joy, and the blessings of the promised land.

If He can do that with such helpless people, could He provide for you?  Could He take care of the details?  Could He provide abundantly beyond all you could ask or imagine?  By the power of His Holy Spirit, He can do all of this and more.

Again, I encourage each of us to give this a try.  This week, take a full day to seek the living God and to repent of your fears, doubts, and control.  Repent of your hard-heartedness which denies that God can and will work without you.  Learn to enjoy Him and rest in His strength.

He will honor such faith with the gift of His presence

and the power of His Holy Spirit to bless your labors.