Thou Shalt Not...Work

Go into some Chinese restaurants and you will easily discover the concept of "space equals waste." Every time you want to push your chair back an inch, you have to look behind you first to make sure you won't bump into someone else.

The whole physical creation of God, whether on the subatomic or astronomical scale, may be viewed as an extremely ingenious and creative use of space.

The same God who created the universe is also the one who gave the fourth commandment: "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. On it shall not do any work" (Exodus 20:8).

It has taken me more years than I am willing to admit to realize the meaning and importance of fourth commandment.

Like most people, I believed in work. Rest was a necessary evil. Work seemed to be so productive, so purposeful and so fulfilling. If work was so good and right, I thought more work must be better.

But the Lord commanded us to take a day of rest. Why?

REST IS NOT ONLY A CESSATION FROM WORK,
IT IS A CELEBRATION OF WORK -- Genesis 2:2-3

After creating the universe, "God saw all that He had made, and it was very good" (Genesis 1:31). And He rested, ceased His work, and "blessed the seventh day and made it holy" (Genesis 2:3).

The day of rest is obviously a day when we cease our work. But from the context of Genesis 1:31, we see that the day of rest is also a day when we can appreciate what we have accomplished and gain certain satisfaction from it.

God rested on the seventh day not because He was tired and needed a rest. The Bible says He "will not grow tired or weary" (Isaiah 40:28) and "He who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep" (Psalms 121:3-4).

His rest was an act of celebration, an appreciation for what He had done.

REST IS NOT ONLY A CESSATION FROM WORK,
IT REFLECTS OUR TRUST IN GOD---Exodus 16

Remember it was in the midst of the Israelites' complaints that God gave them manna.

The Lord wanted the Israelites to learn to trust in Him. He wanted them to know that He was the One who could provide them with their daily needs. By trusting in Him and following His instructions, they would have their needs met.

To help them learn the lesson of trust, the Lord provided them with a test. The test basically had two parts: the first part was in terms of quantity and the second part in terms of frequency.

In terms of quantity, they were to gather only as much as they needed and "No one is to keep any of it until morning" (Exodus 16:19). But some did not obey and they gathered more than they needed and saved it for the next day. On the following day, the Bible tells us that the portion which they saved was "full of maggots and began to smell" (Exodus 16:20). The lesson here is one of trust. They were to trust the Lord for their daily needs and not lean on their own effort.

The second test was one of frequency or timing, as recorded in Exodus 16:21-30. They were to gather twice as much on the sixth day and to save some for the Sabbath. They could bake it, boil it, or simply save it without doing anything to it.

They did as they were told and found that the portion of manna which was saved for the following day, the Sabbath, did not get spoiled. It was not infested with maggots. Neither did it smell.

The importance of rest is not just cessation from work. It also has to do with trust and obedience. Rest is associated with trusting in the Lord rather than one's own effort. Rest is associated with believing that God will provide our daily needs when we need it. To violate the day of rest is to violate our trust in God and choose to disobey Him.

CONCLUSION

The purposes of rest in general and the keeping of the Sabbath rest in particular can be summarized as follows:

1. To break off from the monotony of working every day so that a person will not be reduced to drudgery and be lacking in creativity.
2. To have a time of refreshment. To let the body have a rest. To let the body heal itself and recharge itself to its full potential. To have a time to forget your hair spray and your shaving crean; a time to be truly you without having to live up to an image or to impress others; a time when you don't have to prove anything to anybody, not even to yourself.
3. To have a time to worship the Lord and to get to know Him; a time to pray in the closet or the outdoors; a time for extended Bible reading and meditation.
4. To have a time to do some good deeds for others: writing letters, helping a friend or a stranger; a time to mow the lawn for your sick neighbor or a time to have lunch with a friend in need.
5. To have a time for play; a time for activities that are not related to your dailly work, activities that you enjoy like riding your bicycle, hiking, visiting places you have only heard of; also a time to visit with family and friends.
6. To have a time to exercise your faith and your trust in God by deliberately not working; a time to testify to yourself and to others that you do not trust yourself in providing for your own daily needs.

Allow me to leave you with this thought: set aside your day of rest and your work will take care of itself.

--This sharing is from CCM Pastor--Rev. Wally Yew