Keeping the Sabbath

Introduction:

What is a sabbath?

He is also using them to reveal Himself to those that live in proximity to Israel.

They are living in a way that is above the standards of the surrounding culture.

It caused people to take notice of God's people and draw them to Himself.

I would like to take a moment to let you know that it is my pleasure to inform you that today's message has been brought to you by Chick-Fil-a, home of the Lord's chicken.

We cannot talk about the Sabbath without mentioning Chick-Fil-a.

You have to admit that the reason they have that reputation is because of their observance of the Sabbath.

Don't you find it interesting that one of the reasons for keeping the Sabbath, to point others to God, is what is happening?

As we dig in today, I need to remind you again of how important it will be for you to put on your grace lenses.

We are going to be talking about working today, and if we aren't careful, we will find ourselves falling back into old habits and thoughts.

My goal today is not for all of us to leave here with a list of acceptable things and things that are not.

My goal is for us to understand why we are called to observe the Sabbath, and what it does for us, our relationship with God, and others.

Exodus 20:8–11 ESV

8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, 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, 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. 11 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.

due 5:14

· God is using these commandments to repair the broken relationship between Himself and His people. He is also using them to reveal Himself to those that live in proximity to Israel. They are living in a way that is above the standards of the surrounding culture. It caused people to take notice of God's people and draw them to Himself.

Why is it important?

Observing the Sabbath teaches us to trust God.

Exodus 34:21 ESV

21 “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest. In plowing time and in harvest you shall rest.

Ex

· David talked last week about the last six commandments and how they are all working in concert with one another to show us how we are to treat one another.

What does it accomplish?

Observing the Sabbath sets us apart from the rest of the world.

· God gives these commands to make us like Him and in doing so it shows the world around us the truth about God’s character.

You have to admit that the reason they have that reputation is because of their observance of the Sabbath.

· The way we live with and treat others is what makes us different.

Don't you find it interesting that one of the reasons for keeping the Sabbath, to point others to God, is what is happening?

This idea is two fold.

First, it sets us apart for the same reason everyone recognizes CFA.

It shows our commitment to be obedient to God no matter what we think it may cost.

Secondly, in order for us to be able to take that day of rest, we must work harder than those who don’t so that we can get done in six days what others do in seven.

Exodus 31:12–17 ESV

12 And the Lord said to Moses, 13 “You are to speak to the people of Israel and say, ‘Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you. 14 You shall keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death. Whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. 15 Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day shall be put to death. 16 Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations, as a covenant forever. 17 It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’ ”

Ex 31:

Deuteronomy 5:14–15 ESV

14 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 or your male servant or your female servant, or your ox or your donkey or any of your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. 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.

Due 5:14-15

Observing the Sabbath reminds us of what is to come.

· I want to take a moment to let you know that it is my pleasure to inform you that today's message has been brought to you by Chick-Fil-a, home of the Lord's chicken.

We were created in God’s likeness with the intent of being with him.

· We cannot talk about the Sabbath without mentioning Chick-Fil-a.

· You have to admit that the reason they have that reputation is because of their observance of the Sabbath and the way they treat their customers.

· Don't you find it interesting that one of the reasons for keeping the Sabbath, to point others to God, is what is happening?

Because of sin, we must toil, but God has set apart one day a week for us to rest from our work to remind us of how it is supposed to be.

Genesis 3:17–19 ESV

17 And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

· I have also noticed that their customer service is changing the fast-food industry.

Gen 3:

Genesis 3:23 ESV

23 therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken.

· I’m not saying that every fast-food place was a King Burger where Bon Qui Qui was taking your order, but they definitely weren’t saying “my pleasure” at McDonald's.

· The way CFA is treating its customers is getting people's attention.

· As we dig in today, I need to remind you again of how important it will be for you to put on your grace lenses.

· We are going to be talking about working today, and if we aren't careful, we will find ourselves falling back into old habits and thoughts.

· My goal today is not for all of us to leave here with a list of acceptable things and things that are not.

· My goal is for us to understand why we are called to observe the Sabbath, and what it does for us, our relationship with God, and others.

Exodus 20:8–11 ESV

8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, 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, 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. 11 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.

"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."

Today we are looking at several different passages that are speaking to the reasons for the Sabbath. There are a couple of various reasons listed, and I want us to take a closer look at them.

The bottom line is that all of them are designed to point both ourselves and others to God.

Keeping the Sabbath sets us apart from the rest of the world.

You have to admit that the reason CFA has that reputation is because of their observance of the Sabbath.

Don't you find it interesting that one of the reasons for keeping the Sabbath, to point others to God, is what is happening?

Do you think that there is anyone who doesn't associate CFA with God? No, they don't, because the decision to give up a ridiculous amount of business every week is noticeable and they have been very upfront about their reason for not being open.

Exodus 31:12–17 ESV

12 And the Lord said to Moses, 13 “You are to speak to the people of Israel and say, ‘Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you. 14 You shall keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death. Whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. 15 Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day shall be put to death. 16 Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations, as a covenant forever. 17 It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’ ”

"...And the Lord said to Moses, "You are to speak to the people of Israel and say, 'Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you. You shall keep the Sabbath because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death. Whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day shall be put to death. Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations, as a covenant forever. It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.'" And he gave to Moses, when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God."

God says that one of the reasons that He has made the Sabbath is for it to be a sign to others.

What is He showing? Two things:

First, He is revealing His character, through the work ethic of his people.

“The command to stop work on the Sabbath means all of their work for the week is also to be performed in six days rather than seven. Those who observe the Sabbath are not just responsible for resting on the seventh day, but for a diligent work ethic the remaining six days. In this way, the Sabbath is remembered continuously.” -FSB

How we work, as in our occupation, reveals God’s character to those around us, but it also is a continual reminder to us of the Sabbath.

The word that is used in this passage for labor means to work with intensity or to extend considerable energy.

It is a good thing to work hard and go to bed tired.

Genesis 2:15 ESV

15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.

“The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.”

We were created to work, along side God, but after the fall, the nature of that work changed.

We were created to work, but after the fall, the nature of that work changed. It went from working with God in care of the Garden and was broken, by sin, into hard, sweat-filled, labor that causes weariness.

It went from working with God in care of the Garden and was broken, by sin, into hard, sweat-filled, labor that causes weariness.

God created the Sabbath so that we could find rest for both the body and the soul so we would be refreshed and reminded of what is to come.

Tiredness is what makes rest so sweet. We cannot fully appreciate the day of rest if we have been slothful all week.

God’s intent for the day of rest is to be a physical reminder of what He has done in creating us, rescuing us, and redeeming us.

He has done this for the sake of our relationship with Him.

Second, He is showing that our sanctification comes from Him, not our works.

Ponder that for a moment.

What is the consistent message of religion and culture? Work hard so that you can prove your worth and earn what you need: Salvation, respect, wealth, wisdom, etc.

God is directly attacking that idea by making this statement in vs 13. “Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the LORD, sanctify you.”

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

We were created to work, and now because of sin we are required too, but it was never God’s intent or requirement that we work to earn something from Him.

Because we understand Grace, we know that God is pleased with us through Christ, not through our work.

People will know that we are His because we aren't trying to earn our sanctification.

We aren't working for our salvation. We aren't relying on our ability to work hard to provide for our needs.

That is not the norm in our culture!

I’m sure there are plenty of people in this room that can tell stories of interactions they have had with others when they realize that they are trying to earn their salvation anymore.

People have a hard time believing it’s true because we all grew up with an understanding that we had to work hard and be good people to please God so we could get to heaven.

That is the exact opposite of what God is saying. He is commanding that we take the day of rest and that by doing so it would show the world that He is the one sanctifying us.

When we try to earn our salvation we are spreading untruths about God.

When we choose to keep the Sabbath we are choosing, in faith, to trust God to take care of us.

We are trusting Him to provide for our needs by setting aside the entire day.

God’s intent is not that we would use that day for inactivity, but as a day to engage with Him.

Through the activity of that relationship we will come to know God and trust Him.

Keeping the Sabbath teaches us to trust God.

One of the things that we accel at is worrying. Right?

If we are honest, there is no lack of things in our lives to worry about. Kids, work, friends, health, and the list can go on and on.

It is very tempting because of the culture that we live in, to take Sunday as our own.

We fill it with things that are left undone from the week before, things that need to be done in preparation for the next week, or simply taking the day for ourselves.

Exodus 34:21 ESV

21 “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest. In plowing time and in harvest you shall rest.

ESV

21 “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day, you shall rest. In plowing time and in harvest you shall rest.

If you consider the culture and the people that this was written too, it is no surprise that an agricultural example is used in this passage.

They grew their food.

We live in a world that has enormous farms that produce the things we eat, and we simply buy them at the store.

Because of that, this example might not convey the context of what God is saying. Let me try to explain.

As most of you know, I grew up on a farm, and there are times when things just have to be done.

Planting and harvesting are some of those things.

One of the things we did on our farm growing up was bailing hay.

Once the hay is cut, it must be bailed and put up before it gets rained on or it could mold.

It also has to come out of the field on time, or it kills the grass underneath it and becomes too dry, and the sun leaches out the nutrients that you need the animals to get when they eat it.

In this passage in , God is telling Israel that even in times of planting and harvesting, both of which are time-critical, we are to keep the Sabbath.

God is saying that even the things that keep us alive are not more important than keeping the Sabbath.

In fact, the penalty for breaking this commandment was death.

The excuse of, if I don’t we won’t live, isn’t even valid.

So what is this telling us? Are we to ignore the need to do things in a timely manner?

No, of course not.

It means we work all week diligently, just as God commands, and we also trust God to take care of the things that we aren’t able to get done.

We all know that in the course of trying to get something done, it often takes longer than we expect.

Example: putting up the hay last night and breaking the jack on the hay trailer.

Stuff happens…

The trap that we can fall into at this point is trying to define what is permissible and what isn’t.

Luke 13:10–17 ESV

10 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11 And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.” 13 And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God. 14 But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, “There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” 15 Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it? 16 And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?” 17 As he said these things, all his adversaries were put to shame, and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him.

“Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.” And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God. But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, “There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?” As he said these things, all his adversaries were put to shame, and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him.”

The Pharisees fell right into the trap. They were focusing on what as allowed and what wasn’t rather than the intent of the commandment itself.

The intent is that we spend that day focused on God and allowing the time that we spend with Him to bring rest and renewal.

There are going to be days when something comes up, and we have to deal with it.

Jesus uses the example of an ox or a child falling in a ditch in . When those things happen, we must take care of it, and God is okay with that.

However, if that something has to be dealt with because we didn’t it when we were supposed to, it is breaking this commandment.

It is also worth mentioning that the day you keep the Sabbath is not important.

The day is another place where Satan tries to get us hung up on disputable matters. God wants you to have a day of rest.

If your work schedule mandates that it is going to be a Tuesday, that’s no problem.

However, you need to really treat that Tuesday, or whatever day it falls too, as a Sabbath.

Keeping the Sabbath reminds us of what matters.

We spend all week toiling at the endless list of responsibilities that we all have, but God uses the Sabbath to remind us that those things are not all that matter.

God made the Sabbath for us. He calls us to set it apart in our week to give us a day to focus on Him, which causes us to see what is important.

We always need that day to pause, reflect on what is going on in our lives, and re-prioritize things.

Have you ever gotten so wrapped up in something that it completely consumes all of your time and energy and then at some point you realize that it isn’t as big of a deal as you thought it was?

God has given us a whole day, every week, to be before Him, bring all those things to Him, and allow Him to provide us with direction.

We should be doing that every day, but once a week we get a whole day just for that.

I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty convinced that I have spent most of my life wasting my Sabbath because I didn’t fully understand it’s purpose. I thought it was just a day that was set aside for us to go to church (which wasn’t restful or refreshing).

In verse 17 of , it says, “In six days the Lord made the heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.”

If God can benefit from taking a day to rest and refresh, we can most certainly benefit from it as well.

We need to understand that we will gain far more from a day of being refreshed by God than we ever will by trying to add on more work.

Because of sin, we now have to toil, but God has set apart one day a week for us to rest from that work so that we can He can remind us of how He intended for things to be.

Genesis 3:17–19 ESV

17 And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

“And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Having to work “in pain” is not what we are created for, but it was the result of our rebellion.

When we try to make the Sabbath another workday, we are going right back into that rebellion by telling God that what we have to do is more important than what He has commanded us.

We are telling God that the things that we have determined to be important are better for us than the relationship He created us to have.

I had someone half-jokingly, and half-seriously tell me that wanted me to skip this commandment because they didn’t want me to mess up their Sundays.

Sunday is not a catch-all or catch-up day. It is a gift. It is God reminding us that we were created to be in His presence and giving us an entire day to enjoy Him, to rest, to be renewed, and to get a fresh perspective on what is really important in life.

And just for the sake of clarity, sometimes that means a nap.

Closing

As we have walked through these commandments, have you come to see them in a different light?

I hope that they have moved from feeling like a to-do list to feeling like an expression of love.

God gave us these commandments to draw us in, to show us how incredible it can be to be in His presence and to prepare us for that.

He gave these commandments to restore the relationship we ruined with sin.

Our call, in joining god to set people free, is to live out these commandments as we have come to understand them.

God gave them so that we would stand out from society, not as weirdos, but as people who really know God.

I loved that last week David brought out the conversation with Jesus and the Pharisees. When asked what the greatest commandment was, He responded with a summary of these ten commandments.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength. The second is like it, love your neighbor as yourself.

There is no better wrap up or summary of this mini-series on the ten commandments than that.

We were created to Love God and Love People. As God’s people, that is to be the top priority in all of our lives. If we make anything more important than these, we are choosing to listen to the lie from Satan and eat the forbidden fruit.