Two ditches and Sabbath rest

Legalism vs License

Work and rest were apart apart of the beginning of creation rhythms.

God built rest into creation (Gen. 2:1–3), and then commanded it for His people. The Sabbath was never about just stopping work; it was about remembering who God is and what He has done.

Israel just rescued: God’s people had been slaves in Egypt for 400 years. They worked without rest, under harsh taskmasters. Now, God had saved them through the Exodus—crossing the Red Sea, bringing them to Mount Sinai.

Exodus 20:8–11 ESV

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 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, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 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.

Deuteronomy 5:15 (ESV)

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.

We are going to look at two Ditches

What is Legalism?

Believing that one must earn or maintain God's favor through strict, rigid observance of religious rules and laws. Characteristics: - Focus on a set of external, man-made rules. - Overly strict adherence to the letter of the law, often without considering specific circumstances. - A critical and condemning attitude toward others who don't follow the same strict standards. - A sense of earning God's approval through good conduct, making God's favor dependent on one's actions.

Mark 3:1–6 ESV

Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.

If the son of God ask you “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good” A great answer to that would be yes Sir. but instead they chose to be silent. what did the Legalist do, after seeing a man be restored?

It says that The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.

Its not about relationship its about get the details right so that i can go to heaven

Thats a ditch- i have personal fell into that one.

The ditch that has more people it is ditch two (License)

Definition: Misusing the freedom found in God's grace as a justification for self-indulgence and sinful behavior. Characteristics: An "I'm free because Jesus will forgive me" mentality. Using faith in Christ as an excuse to engage in the same activities as the world or to indulge the desires of the flesh. A rejection of moral responsibility or accountability for one's actions. Drifting from legalism into an extreme where anything is permissible.

Romans 6:14 ESV

For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

"Under law": The system of trying to achieve righteousness through rule-keeping. The law is good, but it has no power to save or change the human heart. Instead, it exposes sin and, without grace, condemns a person for breaking it.

"Under grace": The new covenant established through Jesus Christ, which frees believers from the penalty and power of the law. Righteousness is now a gift received through faith, not something that must be earned.

However: We act as if we made one God’s commands on those stone tablets disappear out of thin air.

In the New Testament, Jesus confronts two “ditches”:

Legalism: Pharisees turned Sabbath into a list of rules (e.g., how far you could walk, what you could carry). They made it about law-keeping rather than life-giving.

License: Others treat Sabbath as optional—“I can just work whenever I want, I don’t need God’s rhythms.”

Jesus says, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). He is the Lord of the Sabbath (Matt. 12:8). True rest is found in Him (Matt. 11:28–30)

Matthew 11:28–30 (ESV)

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Illustration: Think of traffic laws.

If you’re legalistic, you obsess about every little rule to the point you miss the point of driving.

If you’re lawless, you ignore stoplights and speed limits—and crash.

God’s law is like good traffic laws: it directs us to life, freedom, and safety.

Deep Rem Rest

Primarily for physical restoration, tissue repair, muscle growth, immune function, and hormone regulation. Characteristics: Brain waves are slowest (delta waves), heart rate and breathing are at their lowest, and the body is most relaxed. It is the hardest stage to wake from.

How do we get deep rem rest for the soul? look at verse 6. How does God Rest?

Dose God have needs nor dose he get exhausted?

In Gen 1 He creates the whole universe in 6 days and he the looks at what he has done and he takes delight in it and he says that it is very good.

you might hear that and say i don’t feel rested because i don’t have this finished work to look at. more school work, more HW, More Practices, More debate team, More choirs. If you look at your unfinished work you will never rest

So what do we look at

15 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.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Dt 5:15.

1 John 1:9 (ESV)

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. This verse is a cornerstone for the assurance of pardon, affirming God's promise of forgiveness for those who confess their sins

The NT says that we are in slaved to sin, worldlyness, to our self. When God saves someone he brings life into that person and brings them to him self and Jesus accomplish that for us.

We need to stop and say that if were honest we cant put our work down is because we want people to like us and approve of us and these are verses of being juatified. The gospel is you are already justified in christ

Ryder cup