“Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the LORD your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. For in six days the LORD made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy. [Exodus 20.8-11]
Building upon the idea from yesterday that Jesus is the Sabbath (Manna And The Sabbath), we have the 4th Commandment today to further confirm that.
The exclusivity of the Sabbath from any work goes right hand in hand with the exclusivity Jesus placed upon Himself:
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. [John 14.6]
To place our faith in Jesus is to cease from our own labor to earn or deserve heaven. To believe in Jesus is to have no faith at all in ourselves - none. In this way, it is not surprising that the Sabbath is holy and is to be kept holy. In other words, in Christ, we are never to rely on our own efforts because any effort of our own taints the work of Christ on our behalf.
The fact that Jesus drew the ire of His antagonists regarding His 'work' on the Sabbath is proof positive that Jesus is the Sabbath.
Ready for this? If we are "in Christ" then we are the Sabbath as well. We cease from our own labors in order that the exclusive holiness of God might be seen in us as we are in Christ. The difference between our works being the works that won't save us and being the works of God is our position in Christ.
Hmm.
In Christ a believer works to save others - not himself. The difference is seen as working to save others versus working to save oneself. Consider what Jesus said when confronted once about the Sabbath:
And he answered, “If you had a sheep that fell into a well on the Sabbath, wouldn’t you work to pull it out? Of course you would. And how much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Yes, the law permits a person to do good on the Sabbath.” [Matthew 12.11-12]
As we are in Christ and Christ is the Sabbath, it is His work on our behalf that allows us rest. However, as we are in Him, He is always working to save the world:
So the Jewish leaders began harassing Jesus for breaking the Sabbath rules. But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, and so am I.” [John 5.16-17]
The Sabbath is indeed holy and should be treated as such. But the Sabbath is eternally more than a day for doing nothing! The Sabbath is resting in - being in Christ!
So let us do our best to enter that rest. But if we disobey God, as the people of Israel did, we will fall. [Hebrews 4.11]
We should avoid getting caught up in the Sabbath as a 'holy day' and focus instead on the Sabbath as a 'holy life' in Christ Jesus!
Father, may we see Jesus as our Sabbath rest. And, may we see that Jesus did good on the Sabbath rescuing people from the curses of sin and death. May we see that, as we are in Christ, the Sabbath rest is a life reflecting Jesus. So be it.
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