A 21ST CENTURY LOOK AT THE BIG TEN

3/17/01 AND 3/18/01

BRINGING LIFE INTO FOCUS

Exodus 20

8 "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.

 9 Six days you shall labour and do all your work,

 10 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 animals, nor the alien within your gates.

 11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

-When we look at the very important things God is saying to the Israelites in the commandments, it almost seems as if this one doesn’t fit.

-Why does God place such a prominence on a day?

1.   KEEP THE SABBATH AS A PRINCIPLE/NOT AS A LAW

Genesis 1

31 ¶ God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning--the sixth day.

Genesis 2

1 ¶ Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.

 2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.

 3 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

-God took 1 in seven days off – not because He was tired but as an example to us of how He and the planet is supposed to work.

-Later in Scripture Jesus said man was not made for the Sabbath but the Sabbath for man.

THE JEWS

-The Sabbath was given to the Jews and they wrote volumes about what to do and what not to do.

-In Israel the hotel we were staying in had a Sabbath elevator that stopped by itself so you wouldn’t have to work but pressing which floor you wanted to stop at.

-I don’t want to be critical of their perspective but it has definitely become a law.

JESUS AND THE SABBATH

Matthew 12

1 ¶ At that time Jesus went through the cornfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some ears of corn and eat them.

 2 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath."

 3 He answered, "Haven't you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry?

 4 He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread--which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests.

 5 Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and yet are innocent?

 6 I tell you that one greater than the temple is here.

 7 If you had known what these words mean, `I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent.

 8 For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."

 9 Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue,

 10 and a man with a shrivelled hand was there. Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"

 11 He said to them, "If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out?

 12 How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."

 13 Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other.

 14 ¶ But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.

-Jesus’ perspective on the Sabbath was not one of legalism.

-His message was basically that the Jews were missing the point.

-There are some great traditions with the Jewish Sabbath.

-There is a ceremony of lighting the candles and having a family meal and evening together.

-Mormons didn’t start family nights-the Jews did.

-The day beings with evening. It starts by rest then work.

-That principle is that God works first then we work.

NEW TESTAMENT

-There are whole denominations started over the Sabbath.

-People argue about when it is, what we should do on it and everything else you can imagine.

-In Acts 15 we see that the Jewish Christians didn’t include keeping the Sabbath as a rule for Gentile Christians.

-As a matter of fact we see Paul rebuking the Galatians for being legalistic.

Colossians 2

16 ¶ Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day.

 17 These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.

Romans 14

4 Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

 5 One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.

 6 He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.

-That is where we stand today…it isn’t a law.

EXAMPLE-Movie-Chocolat (Religious people wanted the shop to be closed on Sunday so they fought about it.)

2.KEEP THE SABBATH PRINCIPLE/TAKE A DAY OFF EVERY 7 DAYS

-The Sabbath principle is that every seventh day should be a day of rest and reflection.

-I heard this week about a study in communist countries where they tried working people with no rest and with rest every 10 days or whatever. They found that the best cycle for productivity was a day off every 7th day.

-I also heard that in the French Revolution they tried to work without a day off and after 2 months they had to adjust because people were not productive.

-A man was saying he got into a cab that had 250,000 miles on it and he asked how he had gotten so many miles. He said one word: MAINTENANCE.

-If you want the car to last, maintain it.

-Someone was commenting on how we have to sit at red lights and it really frustrates us. Then when we die we get to run all the red lights.

-Why did God make it such a big deal? We are like little kids that won’t go to bed. You have to make them stop playing so they won’t be tired and crabby the next day.

-Another thing about the Sabbath principle is that it cures greed and workaholism.

-It takes faith to stop for a day.

-It really is a matter of trust. Can God take care of me and my busy life if I just stop?

-The truth is, if you don’t take the Sabbath principle you will pay it back in sick days or hospital time.

-The same way you honor God with the first fruits of your money you are to do the same with time.

-Thank God for days off and vacations!!!!!

-We know the story of Martha and Mary.

Luke 10

38 ¶ As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him.

 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said.

 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!"

 41 "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things,

 42 but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."

3.   USE YOUR SABBATH TO REFOCUS

-Whatever day you choose, use it to PAUSE AND REFLECT.

SELAH

-God worked seven days then stopped to look back.

-His conclusion; its been a good week.

-Our purpose is to readjust.

-Airplanes set a course then they have to continually re-adjust to stay on course.

-How do we adjust and recalibrate?

WORSHIP

-The key is to place God back at the center of your life-by faith.

-It is finding TRUE NORTH and trusting God to take care of the rest of your life.

-All of the things that are screaming out for attention are placed back in perspective.

Psalm 23

1 ¶ [A psalm of David.] The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,

 3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

 6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

QUIET

-He leads me beside quiet waters and restores my soul.

Mt 11:28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

-You have to shut down the equipment every so often.

-Be still so you can know He is God.

-This is putting up the DO NOT DISTURB sign on your mind.

FAMILY TIME

-The Jews probably invented family nights.

-This is a time to enjoy your family.

“Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love…” Ecc. 9:9

“A relaxed attitude lengthens a man’s life.”

Proverbs 14:30 LB

-You need to be around your family sometimes with no agenda.

-I can be intense.

-Chill out or you will make everyone nervous.

CHURCH FAMILY

-You need the encouragement of other believers.

Hebrews 10

24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds.

 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

-You need other people to help you stay on track.

-You need relationships.

BOTTOM LINE:

PAUSE AND REFLECT WEEKLY

WORSHIP GOD AND PUT HIM AT THE CENTER OF YOUR LIFE

STOP TALKING AND LISTEN FOR HIS VOICE

BE WITH YOUR FAMILY

BE WITH YOUR CHURCH FAMILY

PRAY FOR REFRESHING FOR ALL PRESENT.