A 2012 article in The New York Times struck a nerve with many readers. It received more than 800 comments and was quoted and tweeted repeatedly. Titled “The Busy Trap,” the heart of the article is summed up by author, Tim Kreider:
If you live in America in the 21st century, you've probably had to listen to a lot of people tell you how busy they are. It's become the default response when you ask anyone how they're doing: "Busy!" "So busy." "Crazy busy." It has become a boast disguised as a complaint. And the stock response is a kind of congratulation: "That's a good problem to have," or "Better than the opposite."
Kreider goes on to explain that,
[b]usyness serves as a kind of hedge against emptiness; Obviously your life cannot possibly be silly or trivial or meaningless if you are so busy, completely booked, in demand every hour of the day. We're busy because of [our] own ambition or drive or anxiety, because [we're] addicted to busyness and dread what [we] might have to face in its absence.
This is a disposition we’ve accepted but not a design God ever intended. We were created to be human beings, not human doings, but that hasn’t stopped most people from being just plain busy.
The Fourth Commandment is an antidote to our booked and busy lives: “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God” (Exodus 20:8-10). Most people have heard this command, but very few actually heed it.
We “remember the Sabbath” by “keeping it holy.” A holy thing is something that is special, set apart, not similar to other things. We keep the Sabbath as “holy” by treating it special, unlike the other six days of the week. The Jews worked for six days (no two-day weekends!) and, therefore, the Sabbath (“rest”) would be proved special by resting, not working. This was God’s command.
Often, when people read this command, they protest, “I have very high capacity. I enjoy being busy. Work makes me a better person. Relaxation makes me feel lazy!” Yet, Jesus taught that “the Sabbath was made for man” (Mark 2:27). In other words, no matter what we may feel, there is something God intends to do in us when we practice a sabbath.
THE REST OF THE STORY
Before considering the benefits of a sabbath, we should note several distinctions. First, although nine of the Ten Commandments are repeated in the New Testament, this 4th Commandment is noticeably absent. Some might argue that the reference to the other nine assumes that all of the commandments still apply. Others would point out that even some of the other commandments are referenced somewhat obscurely. Still others would hold that the Sabbath command is unique in its fulfillment in Christ. More on this later.
It also should be noted that the Jews celebrated the Sabbath on Saturday. After the resurrection, Christians began to worship on “The Lord’s Day”—Sunday. So, the Sabbath and the Lord’s Day are not the same. Still, for those who find the following Sabbath principles compelling, Sunday becomes the most likely day to observe them.
So, why were the Jews commanded to observe the Sabbath and why might Christians today embrace a day of rest in their week?
First, the Sabbath is an exercise in OBEDIENCE. Sabbath observance wasn’t a suggestion; it was a direct command of God. God’s people were instructed “On it you shall do not work” (Exodus 20:10, 23:11) and “Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day must be put to death” (Exodus 31:15). It was a severe penalty because rejection of God’s command is simply…sin. Too often, we read God’s commands as either so impossible that we can’t keep them, or so insignificant that we don’t need to keep them. But disobedience is disobedience no matter how we justify it. To keep the Sabbath, even when we don’t understand it, disagree with it, or don’t feel that we need it is an exercise in obedience.
Now, even if the reader doesn’t think the Old Testament command is a New Testament requirement, one should remember the various related commands. Jesus urged His disciples to “Come away” and “get some rest” (Mark 6:31). Jesus said, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28) and later said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27). Jesus doesn’t make rest, peace, contentment possible, but necessary as we trust in Him.
Second, the Sabbath is an exercise in FAITH. Exodus 20:11 notes, “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.” Of course, the Lord didn’t need to rest; He didn’t expend one calorie creating the world. But, when God stopped, creating stopped, proving that when God is not at work, nothing happens. To say it differently: Everything depends on God.
We know this, but we don’t necessarily believe it. We think everything depends on us. This is why we can’t stop working. If we don’t weed the flowerbed, clean the garage, finish the proposal, go to Costco, repair the grill, or any number of tasks, they will never get done. Louie Giglio described this tendency:
When we tirelessly toil, as though that’s what it takes to keep our ship afloat, we steal God’s glory, elevating ourselves as sole providers and sustainers of all we have and are. By refusing to slow down and bring things to a halt we are telling God that He is not enough for us. Oh sure, we may sing the songs of praise and tip our hats in His direction, but our failure to remember the Sabbath is nothing more than foolish pride, arrogance gone wild, and mistrust unfurled – the very opposite of what worship is all about. In other words, Sabbath is not about God and me operating as a dynamic duo. Sabbath rest is about me realizing that He is the only one capable of doing anything eternal in and through me.
To rest is to trust. It’s to believe that God will keep our world together when we take a break.
And God is pleased with and blesses such faith.
Third, the Sabbath is an exercise in HUMILITY. The command is repeated in Exodus 23:12, “Six days do your work, but on the seventh day do not work, so that your ox and your donkey may rest and the slave born in your household, and the alien as well, may be refreshed.” God knew that, unlike Him, people need rest. We don’t like to admit it, but it’s fundamental to being human.
Pastor John Piper reflects, “Sleep is a daily reminder from God that we are not God. Once a day God sends us to bed like patients with a sickness. The sickness is a chronic tendency to think we are in control and that our work is indispensable. To cure us of this disease God turns us into helpless sacks of sand once a day.” Our bodies, our minds, our families, our community, our fields, our world…everything needs rest.
According to a Greek legend, in ancient Athens a man noticed the great storyteller Aesop playing childish games with some little boys. He laughed and jeered at Aesop, asking him why he wasted his time in such frivolous activity. Aesop responded by picking up a bow, loosening its string, and placing it on the ground. Then he said to the critical Athenian, “Now, answer the riddle, if you can. Tell us what the unstrung bow implies.”
The man looked at it for several moments but had no idea what point Aesop was trying to make. Aesop explained, “If you keep a bow always bent, it will break eventually; but if you let it go slack, it will be more fit for use when you want it.” People are also like that. That’s why we all need to take time to refresh. To be at our best, we need to rest. It’s a humbling, but necessary reality.
Finally, the Sabbath is an exercise in HOPE. The previous three reasons for the Sabbath command are important and personal. But the heart of the Sabbath is in its hope. God commanded, “The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from work and rested” (Exodus 31:16-17).
We notice that the Sabbath is called “a covenant” and “a sign.” The Sabbath itself was not a covenant but was connected to the Mosaic Covenant in which God promised to make His people a kingdom and bring them out of Egyptian hardship and into the land of rest. In this way, the Sabbath became a sign.
The Noahic Covenant was marked by the sign of the rainbow. The Abrahamic Covenant was marked by the sign of circumcision. The Mosaic Covenant was marked by the sign of the Sabbath. So, when God’s people observed the Sabbath each week, it wasn’t ultimately about taking a nap or not shopping. They were living a sign—a reminder that there was a greater rest to come in Canaan. And, as Christians, we live in anticipation of an even greater rest than Canaan. It is rest in the eternal presence of God. So, when we Sabbath, we are practicing for eternity. We are living in hope.
It shouldn’t be lost on the student of Scripture that just before Jesus’ most extensive treatment of the Sabbath (brief as it was), He taught, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30). Jesus made the connection so that people could see that ultimate rest is found in Him. When we obey His way, trust Him alone, humble ourselves under His Lordship, and put all of our hope in Him, Jesus becomes all the rest we need.
I’m writing these words several weeks ahead of my ministry sabbatical—a six-week time away from my pastoral responsibilities. Our Executive Director of Finance and Operations says, tongue-in-cheek, “If we don’t need you for six weeks, we don’t need you.” It’s a humorous warning not to rest too much lest I prove myself useless.
None of us want to be useless. We want to be productive, useful, human doings. But God has a better plan. He has commanded a Sabbath for our own benefit. So, don’t miss this exercise in obedience, faith, humility, and hope. Kick your feet up. Do nothing for your own good and discover God’s best in your rest.
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See also the sermon “Give It a Rest.”