How did Michelangelo know that he was finished painting the ceiling of the Sistine chapel? Or Da Vinci when he painted the Last Supper? How do we know when we have completed the great and small projects of our lives? What do we do when we are through?
God knew he was finished creating after he made people in his image. On the seventh day, our Saturday, he took a Sabbath and rested. He called that day, “Holy.” So rest was designed into the order of the universe. Later, when God gave the ten commandments to his people, he commanded them to remember to keep the sabbath as a holy day. By the time Jesus came to the earth, the religious leaders had made a good commandment into a cudgel to harm people.
Do we keep the Sabbath as a holy day? Is the law about the Sabbath binding on people today? In what way should Christians practice Sabbath? These are good questions. On the one hand, we must learn what Jesus said to his detractors: the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27). We do not want to get caught up in the casuistry and legalism of the Pharisees. But the Sabbath is built into the fabric of the universe. Humans, created in God’s image, need to rest.
When her pastor set aside a day to rest, one of the church members said, “The devil never takes a day off.” The pastor responded honestly, “I know and if I don’t take a day off, I will become just like the devil.” At its best, a day away from work can become a time of holy reflection, holy rest, and holy re-creation. Just as our bodies need sleep to be healthy, so God designed our souls to need rest.
Here is the balance I seek: I want to keep the Sabbath, but I am not legalistic about which day it is. Today, Monday, is a day of Sabbath for me. I rest, reflect and find God’s grace to be sufficient for me. I listen for the voice of Jesus saying, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest . . .” (Matthew 11:28-30). I accept the invitation. You, too?
