Article: What Kind of Sabbath is Important?

 

 

Empty table

I was thinking about this story earlier today and the implications it has for us as worshippers of Christ… I know, I know, I think about weird stuff a lot.

One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grain-fields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” 

He answered, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need?  In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.” 

Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.  So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” Mark 2:23-28

Jesus was walking through a field of grain with his disciples on the Sabbath day of rest. As they walked through this field some of them plucked a few heads of grain and most likely popped them in their mouths.

When the religious authorities saw this, they interpreted what they saw as “harvesting the crops.” (Clearly they weren’t.) None the less, the Pharisees accuse Jesus and his disciples of doing work on the Sabbath and therefore sinning.

How is this sinning? Let’s go back and see what the Law says…

Deuteronomy 5:12-14 says this about that commandment, “Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has 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, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor the alien within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest, as you do.”

The Sabbath day is a day of rest for everyone. There are clear instructions about what can be construed as work if you do enough of it and clearly Jesus wasn’t working.

Yet Jesus points out The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” Sabbath means a day of rest and a day of atonement. God gave us the Sabbath for our benefit. When we start adding rules about how that happens, we lose sight of the gift of rest and atonement.

This is a classic case of the confusing the means with the end. The ultimate goal of the Sabbath is not to work 7 days a week. Taking a day and resting is good. Even more than just resting, God says to make the Sabbath day holy. Set it apart as special. God wants us to remember Him on the Sabbath day too because God is holy.

The problem comes when we set all sorts of rules (privately or publicly) about what kind of Sabbath makes a real Sabbath.

We get so caught up on what makes up the Sabbath—we miss what God intends: A Day of Rest and a day of atonement.

Religion can get in the way of the kind of Sabbath God wants for us. God wants to have a relationship with us where we trust Him and His promises. The proof is in the gift of Jesus who came to earth to show us how much God loves and then gave his life as a sacrifice of atonement to remove all the barriers (sin) that would keep us from God. To help foster this relationship God would like to have with us, he designates a day to not work so that we can rest and think about Him.

Sounds good so far, right? The problem begins when we start adding rules (and sometimes they are personal rules) about how we connect with God on the Sabbath. Yes, I am talking about we say and do at worship on our Sabbath… Sunday mornings.

I probably could list 100 things I have heard people say about worship that begins with the following sentence: “It really isn’t worship if we don’t…”

  • Say a creed
  • Sing certain hymns
  • Have three Bible Readings
  • Have Communion every Sunday
  • Feel a little guilty
  • And the list goes on…

You all know what I am talking about. We all have our preferences and preferences are fine but when we impose them on everyone else, it becomes a burden. This is often played out in another sentence I hear almost every year at church this time of year: “It isn’t really Christmas until I…” Now someone’s Christmas is dependent upon me doing the thing they like/want. That is a lot of pressure!

I am sure God does not have a worship rule book in heaven. I am also fairly sure God doesn’t send the angels to make sure we are doing it right. Why? Because: The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.”

God will not grade us on the quality or quantity of worship we participate in. God looks at the intention of our hearts. God wants to connect with you without personal “rules of engagement” or be bound to the container of Sunday morning worship. Be open to the gift of the Spirit. Now and always.

Happy Advent,
Pr. Ben

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