Why Sabbath matters

Exodus 20:3-11

            If we were to take a poll, asking, “If you could remove one commandment from the Ten Commandments, which would it be?” and I absolutely forced you to remove one, I bet the answer would be the third: Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.

            You see, when we break most of the commandments we feel genuinely bad about it. Maybe next time we’ll even try harder not to take the Lord’s name in vain; we may carry guilt about stealing or coveting. But the Sabbath? That one we might feel guilty about, but we’re not even sure it’s that bad.

            Some of this can be ascribed to poor definitions of what Sabbath is. So, what is this Sabbath that we’re supposed to remember and keep holy? One easy answer is: “Go to church.” A good start, but not the whole picture. Sabbath is about so much more than church. It’s about rest; it’s about admitting we cannot go and go and go forever; it’s about admitting we are not God. All of these things might just be a little convenient. It’s telling, actually, that when you ask people about Sabbath, the first thing out of their mouths is typically a thing they feel obligated to do—in this case, go to church—when Sabbath is about exactly the opposite; it’s about not doing a thing.

            As most doctors and nurses will tell you, the hardest thing to get people to do is nothing! Honestly, people rarely listen. It’s been estimated that, largely because of smart phones, the average working American does work-related things 50-60 hours a week. Add in household chores, and parenting, and grandparenting duties, and clubs, and social events, and all the recreational things we fit in, and, well, rest is just something we do not have time for.

            The church has been slow on the uptake on this, but nowadays it goes far beyond the church. People do not have time anymore for anything, and when I say anything I mean it. Name an activity and you will find people less committed to it than they were twenty or thirty years ago. It’s not that people have become less reliable; it’s that they are absolutely overwhelmed with commitments. My family sits down around the table some nights—more often now that Kate works in town—but certainly not all the time. I know many families never sit down for a meal together. We prioritize, we commit to a thousand things; we are part of a million projects. Rest? That honestly feels selfish. How could we rest?

            It’s little wonder that the church is struggling to keep up when it’s trying to enter into this world of busy-ness in the same way as clubs or schools; by adding more events, better programming, trying to create a youth group, trying to have a young adult group; new parents small group; Mothers of Preschoolers group; groups for every demographic in the church—another program here or there. Now, don’t get me wrong; these can all be wonderful things, and the things that work feed the soul even as they strengthen the community, but at our heart we need to be a place of respite; not a body that simply recreates the busy-ness out there. I wonder: What does it look like to be a church of Sabbath?

            Sabbath was created by God, because God needed a break at the end of creation. Already, that should make our ears perk up. If God needed a break, who on earth are we to think we don’t? So, we established this rhythm we call a “week.” If you think about it, a week is a weird concept. A year makes sense: we go around the sun one time, or, if you’re a flat earther, the sun goes to bed for a while or something. A month also makes sense, what with moon phases and whatnot. But a week? There is no cosmological reason for a week. In fact, at various times in history people have argued, and continue to argue, for a different length of a week. And, yet, weeks hardly matter anymore anyway, since nowadays you might work on Saturday or Sunday; you might have a “busy” day on Sunday; you might be off Wednesday.

            The thing about God’s Sabbath is that it doesn’t have a particular day. Yes, it has been associated with Saturday, because that is the end of the traditional week; and yes, after Jesus, Christians picked up Sunday as the day of worship, but, honestly, Sabbath could be Tuesday or Thursday. It doesn’t matter.

            Sabbath is about rest, but it’s not just about what’s best for our health. It is about acknowledging that God is in control and we are not. Sabbath is a reminder that none of us are Savior of the world. Frankly, that’s a reminder we all need, and it’s a thing worth working toward. 
            Ultimately, Sabbath doesn't save us, but it does give us a glimpse of the freedom we are given through Christ--freedom to rest, to acknowledge our limitations; freedom to be human.