The Practice of the Sabbath

Transformed - Incorporating the Practices of Jesus: The Practice of Sabbath Mark 2:23-28 | August 11, 2024 Sleep. How many of you think that you actually get the recommended amount of sleep per day? Maybe this will help answer the question. According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, experts recommend that adults sleep between 7 and 9 hours a night. They say that children 6 to 12 years old should sleep 9 to 12 hours per day, and teens 13 to 18 years old should sleep 8 to 10 hours per day. Harvard Health, WebMD and many other resources tend to agree. So, I'll ask again, how many of you get the recommended amount of sleep per day? I think it's likely that most of us do not get the recommended amount of sleep that they need. Gallup suggests that stress is a large contributor to the lack of sleep. That stress is usually contributed to work, social, or family obligations. Of course, there are many physical health benefits to getting the right amount of sleep. Sleep too, is also the best form of rest that we can participate in. There are, however, other factors and other ways that we can get the rest that is needed, and I would argue that God desires this for us too. This morning, as you may have guessed, we're talking about rest. More specifically, the practice of the Sabbath. There are several examples of this in Jesus' life, but we'll just take a look at one of those accounts from Mark 2:23-28 to see what we can learn about this practice. Let's read: 23 ONE SABBATH HE WAS GOING THROUGH THE GRAINFIELDS, AND AS THEY MADE THEIR WAY, HIS DISCIPLES BEGAN TO PLUCK HEADS OF GRAIN. 24 AND THE PHARISEES WERE SAYING TO HIM, "LOOK, WHY ARE THEY DOING WHAT IS NOT LAWFUL ON THE SABBATH?" 25 AND HE SAID TO THEM, "HAVE YOU NEVER READ WHAT DAVID DID, WHEN HE WAS IN NEED AND WAS HUNGRY, HE AND THOSE WHO WERE WITH HIM: 26 HOW HE ENTERED THE HOUSE OF GOD, IN THE TIME OF ABIATHAR THE HIGH PRIEST, AND ATE THE BREAD OF THE PRESENCE, WHICH IT IS NOT LAWFUL FOR ANY BUT THE PRIESTS TO EAT, AND ALSO GAVE IT TO THOSE WHO WERE WITH HIM?" 27 AND HE SAID TO THEM, "THE SABBATH WAS MADE FOR MAN, NOT MAN FOR THE SABBATH. 28 SO THE SON OF MAN IS LORD EVEN OF THE SABBATH." There are two companion passages to this, each of which adds a little more detail that Mark leaves out. Notably, Matthew mentions that they were hungry, and Luke describes the disciple's action of rubbing the ears of grain between their hands before they eat them. Apparently, since they could not cook or prepare the grains, this action mashed it up, so it was easier to eat. While it is hard to specifically tell how long the disciples and Jesus were walking while Jesus ministered to others, the writers here want to be sure we understand that they were hungry, and they were getting something to satisfy their hunger. Deuteronomy 23:25 says that one could pick grain from someone else's field, as long as they weren't taking more than they needed in that moment, so that's not what the Pharisees were upset about. They were upset because the disciples did "work" on the Sabbath. Now, let's pause for a moment, and define Sabbath. When the New Testament speaks of Sabbath, they are borrowing the word from the Hebrew. Literally, it means to stop working. There is also another form of the word used in the Old Testament, which means to dwell, or to settle. The very first usage of the term is found all the way back in Genesis 2. Here's what we read in 2:2-3: 2 AND ON THE SEVENTH DAY GOD FINISHED HIS WORK THAT HE HAD DONE, AND HE RESTED ON THE SEVENTH DAY FROM ALL HIS WORK THAT HE HAD DONE. 3 SO GOD BLESSED THE SEVENTH DAY AND MADE IT HOLY, BECAUSE ON IT GOD RESTED FROM ALL HIS WORK THAT HE HAD DONE IN CREATION. This means that the purpose of Sabbath was, first to show that His work was complete, in six days the work of Creation was complete, and second, God rested as an example for you and me to follow. This is confirmed in Exodus 20:11 when we are told the reason for the fourth commandment, namely: FOR IN SIX DAYS THE LORD MADE HEAVEN AND EARTH, THE SEA, AND ALL THAT IS IN THEM, AND RESTED ON THE SEVENTH DAY. THEREFORE THE LORD BLESSED THE SABBATH DAY AND MADE IT HOLY. But did you know that God used this term even before the Commandments? We see it in Exodus 16:22-23, where we read: 22 ON THE SIXTH DAY THEY GATHERED TWICE AS MUCH BREAD, TWO OMERS EACH. AND WHEN ALL THE LEADERS OF THE CONGREGATION CAME AND TOLD MOSES, 23 HE SAID TO THEM, "THIS IS WHAT THE LORD HAS COMMANDED: 'TOMORROW IS A DAY OF SOLEMN REST, A HOLY SABBATH TO THE LORD; BAKE WHAT YOU WILL BAKE AND BOIL WHAT YOU WILL BOIL, AND ALL THAT IS LEFT OVER LAY ASIDE TO BE KEPT TILL THE MORNING. This reveals a third reason to observe the Sabbath - the trust in the Lord for His provision. Effectively asking the question: Do you trust Me enough to provide for you that seventh day? In summary, there are THREE REASONS FOR THE SABBATH: * An order for work * An example of rest for us to follow * Affirm our dependance on God With this background, and understanding, here's the main idea I want to build upon this morning: I practice the Sabbath by giving God my focused attention for a whole day. Let's return to the Mark passage, as Jesus will help us to see this more clearly in His application of the Sabbath. Here, Jesus comes along, as we see in the Mark passage, and His disciples seem to be working on the Sabbath. Now, it's important to note that the Pharisees made a lot of additional rules around the Sabbath, making it burdensome to those who practiced it. Contrary, of course, to God's intention. In classic Jesus form, He flips the script on the Pharisees. There was a collection of writings called the Mishnah, and this collection contained all the oral traditions of the Jewish people. In the contents of the Mishnah were 39 categories of work that were forbidden on the Sabbath. So, effectively, they were restricting the freedoms of individuals on the Sabbath. This is why Jesus responded the way that He did. He wanted to be sure that the proper application of the Sabbath was observed. Let's discuss this in more detail. JESUS' APPLICATION OF THE SABBATH * The Sabbath is a gift from God. o Jesus says that the Sabbath was made for man. o Returning to the example from Genesis 2, first we know that God did not need to rest, nor was He idle or inactive, as He is still Lord of all, and second just like the rest of the Creation account, we see that God is a God of order, and what He did there is show us the order in which He desires for us, namely, six days of work, followed by one day of rest. o In other words, when Jesus flips the script on the Sabbath, He is reminding us that the Sabbath is not a negative thing, rather it is positive. o God is telling us to stop, and rest. o Don't forget, Jesus, in His human form needed rest, and we see that through the Scriptures. Recall when He calmed the storm. What was He doing when His disciples were losing their minds? Resting. Sleeping. * So, if God - the Creator of the universe rested, and * Jesus - the Messiah, a healer, a teacher, a Master, rested, then there is no doubt, that we should not participate in this practice. o Next, * The Sabbath frees us. o Obviously, this contrasts with how the Pharisees were treating the Sabbath Day. o One of the major faults of the Pharisees was the practice of works as a means for salvation or earning favor with God, but Jesus puts that to bed here in our passage this morning. o Jesus uses the example of David to illustrate the basic principle, that it was okay to get something to eat if they were hungry. o To say it differently, human needs are more important than religious rituals. o In the very next section - which I considered using today as well - we see that the Pharisees were more interested in whether Jesus was going to heal on the Sabbath than a man being healed. o Let me give you an example. I'm a rule follower. Years ago, Elizabeth and I were at volleyball practice, and I got a call from Natalie that she had to call 9-1-1 because Gabrielle got something stuck in her throat. Without hesitation, I'm speeding through Oro Valley into Northwest Tucson - which we all know is risky - to get home to check on my daughter. To me, it was more important to get home than it was to follow the rules of the road. o Jesus - without sinning - illustrated the true meaning and purpose of the Sabbath. The Sabbath was to free us to love God and love others. o Finally, * The Sabbath belongs to the Lord. o Jesus said that He is the Lord of the Sabbath. o What does that mean? o First, this is a key statement to those who claim that Jesus never claimed to be God. o Since God instituted the Sabbath in Creation, and Philippians 2:16 affirms Jesus' role as Creator of all things, then Jesus is Lord over the Sabbath, and defines the true meaning and purpose of the Sabbath. o Did you catch that? Only the Lord - God - can be Lord over the Sabbath. o It's no different than the Lord telling Job in Job 38 if he was there when God created the universe and everything in it. o Or when Jesus told the sea to stop - only the One who created the sea, can command it to stop. o The Pharisees had no right to challenge the Lord of the Sabbath, and how it was practiced, just like Job had no right to question God. o So, that leads us to this: HOW TO PRACTICE THE SABBATH I'll give you five ways we can practice the Sabbath. First, * Relax. o As we've previously noted, a time to dedicate some physical and mental rest is necessary and essential for your physical, mental, and spiritual state of mind. o We all relax in different ways. Some of us like to read. Others like to watch movies or TV. While others like to hike or exercise - still trying to figure out how that's relaxing. o Others have a hard time relaxing ... so do something that isn't related to your normal day to day activities. o The idea is to almost disconnect from all the things that make you busy or distracted during your working days. o The purpose, of course, is to do or not to do something that will allow you to focus your attention on God. o Next, * Reflect. o I used to be very good at this. When I worked in an office setting, I used Friday afternoons before I packed up for the weekend, to look back at my calendar or assigned tasks to see what I accomplished during the week, and then I looked ahead to the following week to see what I needed to get ready for. I would check the calendar to see what meetings or deadlines were coming up and I tried to plan out the workweek. o Again, I used to be really good at this. o For Christians, we really should be looking back and examining ourselves. Ask yourself questions. * Have I read the Scriptures this week? * Have I prayed this week? * Have I served anyone this week? * Have I sinned this week? * Do I need to confess or repent for anything this week? o While these are things that we should consistently be reflecting on during the week, we should pay closer attention to this during the Sabbath day. o Because, many times, we're so busy with everything else, when we do not dedicate time to reflect, we may get to one or two those questions, but we're likely to get sidetracked with another task to follow up on. o Next, * Reconnect with God. o The general principle of the Sabbath is to set aside a day with God. o Hopefully, especially as we've been going through each of these practices, you are spending more time with God daily already. o This step allows you to take some extra time with God. Maybe instead of 15 minutes in the Word, maybe you take 30 or 60 minutes. Maybe it's simply reading a book on Christian living or Theology to help you connect with God. o I know some people who take a hike, so they can experience God's creation. o A day away of scheduled madness and taking the extra time to spend with God is essential to your spiritual health. o Related, * Reconnect with others. o This may be a great time to invite someone over for a meal. o This may be a great time to check in on someone who you've been praying for. o Because the closer and closer we get to God, the closer and closer we should get to His people. o That's really what Jesus was doing for His disciples in the field - caring for their needs. Frankly, when we look throughout the Gospels, Jesus did a lot of work on the Sabbath. Because He was going about the Father's business, He was practicing and honoring the Sabbath. o Next, * Rejoice. o It is no secret that modern Christians associate the Sabbath with Sunday, which is when most of us of us gather to worship the Lord. o As you likely know, the Jewish Sabbath was sunset Friday through sunset Saturday, and Christians adopted Sunday as their Sabbath because that is when Jesus resurrected. o For many of you, Sunday could be and maybe is your Sabbath. o For me, I work all day on Sundays. When I leave here, I continue to work until the latter part of the afternoon. So, I try to observe Saturday as my Sabbath. o I know what you're thinking ... yes, I work for more than an hour a week on Sundays. o So, if Sunday is your Sabbath, then use the time to worship, serve, pray, sing, and rejoice. o This means that because we are no longer under law, we can observe a Sabbath any day of the week, the principle is simply putting aside a day to observe. o Frankly, this is true too of Jesus' disciples in the example from Mark 2, and even more so of us as we are not subjected to the Old Testament law. o Yet, we see that Jesus, who is our rest according to Hebrews, still acknowledge the Sabbath. o I suppose rejoicing could be supplemental to reflection. As when we reflect on God, we should respond with joy and rejoicing in the Lord. Do you see why I earlier stated in our main idea: I practice the Sabbath by giving God my focused attention for a whole day. When we take the time to incorporate the practices of Jesus, like solitude, prayer, fasting, scripture and Sabbath, we draw closer and closer to God. Isn't that what Jesus did in His ministry? Even by taking time to rest, we can draw closer to God. Jesus said that the Sabbath is a gift to us from God. He desires that we use this time to reflect on His goodness. To worship Him. To reconnect with Him and His people, and to rejoice in His work. Frankly, we have a hard time slowing down and refocusing our attention to the One who started it all, and the One Who gave it all. Maybe you are like many Christians who do not practice and observe a Sabbath day, so I urge you to incorporate this practice in your life. Give your body, your mind, and your spirit the rest it needs, and while you are at it, reconnect and refocus on the Lord and His people, for that is what He desires for us. Will you join me? Let's pray. 2