Sabbath

This morning I read the following words in our book: "Jesus' teachings are inherently appealing." I couldn't help but think about Sabbath. Most ministers take Friday or Monday as "sabbath" because Saturday and Sunday are work days. 

Yesterday (Sunday) someone said to me: "well, you have three strikes against you today preacher: the time change, the cold, and the rain."  I find that grievous and yet I understand. I think it is part of a larger trend in which we find Jesus' teaching on sabbath inherently appealing but we have become accustomed to denying or side-stepping sabbath in its truest sense.

Old Testament scholar Walter Bruegemann says that the most important and most difficult of the Ten Commandments to obey is “Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy."

We are commanded in our faith tradition to rest from work by keeping the sabbath. Some of us remember when stores were closed on Sundays. There is good reason why certain disciplines were practiced around the sabbath. Honoring the sabbath requires setting limits, putting on the brakes, and saying no to constant busyness. 

Why is it so hard for us to live within limits, to say no to more activity? Partly it is the pleasure of saying yes. Saying yes acknowledges that someone wants you—wants to be with you, wants you to do something that you do well, wants to keep company with you. We also live in a can-do country, where the ability to do many things at high speed is not only an adaption to our fast-paced culture but the mark of a successful human being. Even though many of us complain about having too much to do, we harbor some pride that we are in such demand. 

The spiritual practice of saying no is difficult to do. “No, I want to stay home tonight.” “No, I have enough work for now.” “No, I have all the possessions I want to take care of.”

These can sound like selfish statements. As Barbara Brown Taylor says, if you are going to say no to perfectly good opportunities for adding more to your life then what is the point? 

The ancient wisdom of the sabbath commandment—and also of the Christian gospel—is that we cannot say yes to God without saying no to God’s rivals. No, I will not earn my way today. No, I will not make anyone else work either. No, I will not worry about my life, what I will eat or what I will drink, or about my body, what I will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?

The scriptural basis for sabbath-keeping is that our ancestors in Egypt went for 400 years without a vacation (Deuteronomy 5:15). Never a day off. The consequence was that they were no longer considered persons but slaves. As Eugene Peterson notes, they were not people created in the image of God but equipment for making bricks and building pyramids. Humanity was defaced.

The sabbath restores us to our true selves, valued as human beings made in God’s image and not just for our usefulness, our productivity. The blessing of the sabbath is that it helps us remember that our lives have a focus and meaning larger than day-to-day activity. The sabbath is a time to regain perspective and recognize that God’s goodness permeates all of creation and life.

Jesus taught, “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, 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.” Doesn’t that sound good to those who are so weary? 

Jesus' call is not an altar call. It is a call to an alternative existence, away from deeds of power, away from quotas, away from control and domination and success. 

May we find Jesus' teachings more than just appealing; may we find them necessary for our very survival as disciples and children of the one true God. I will take this day of sabbath rest to just be, to invite God into all the busy spaces of my mind and heart and invite rest and renewal, clearing and clarity.