I have, on multiple occasions, discussed with neighbors, friends, relations and even strangers, the true meaning of our day of rest that has been canonized in all religious texts, in history and deeply upheld in our Caribbean culture. Whether we worship on Saturday, Sunday or any other day of the week, we believe that one day shall be set aside for rest. It is a day of abstaining from work, not only for ourselves but everyone within our influence such as employees, friends and members of our families. One cannot rest and meditate on the word while everyone else around you is busy going about their business. In the case of a religious leader, doctor, police, nurse, caddy, cook or waiter working while some of us play various sports, or dine after a religious experience, it is presumed that his or her day of rest was or will be on a different day.
Six days shall you labour, and do all thy work and thou shall abstain from labour on the seventh day. (Exodus 20:9) Our day of rest is a day of prayer, meditation, singing, playing, sharing, feasting and even dancing as an expression of our joy. It should never be marred by worry, complaints, contentiousness, jealousy or grief. Rest even from the thought of work. For six days per week, our souls are disregarded and forsaken. Then comes our day of rest when anxiety, tension and preoccupation with making a living gives way to oneness of mind, body and spirit.
On this day: “Thou shall love the Lord, Thy God, with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” This is truly the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it. On our day of rest, the world is given a soul with the expectation that part of the day must be a pilgrimage to a house of worship so we can receive God’s message and be one with a community of like believers. This probably explains why people who regularly attend a place of worship live 14 years longer than people who do not take advantage of this gift from God---the gift of a day.
According to Herschel, our day of rest is holy and sanctified by God’s need for human love and thankfulness for his presence with us. Each time it arrives, welcome the day as if an honored and beloved queen had come to visit. Come, let us go out together to greet, welcome and receive her. When our day of rest has passed and we must resume our work, we are full of sweet sorrow that our guest is leaving. We honour our queen with the humble confession of our sins and petition the Almighty for forgiveness as we forgive those who trespass against us. We can then resume the various tasks at hand with new vigor and energy.
Our day of rest is a day when even gun men cease from troubling others and become angels of peace. The weary are at rest. It is a state in which there is no strife and no fighting, no fear and no distrust, epitomized by: The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters and restores my soul.
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Certainly setting aside a day for rest and drawing closer to God is a valuable principle and can be useful. But there is more to the biblical Sabbath than resting one day a week. God set aside the seventh day in particular as His Sabbath, what we would call Friday sunset to Saturday sunset, and there is a purpose to it that goes beyond rest.
ReplyDeleteAs I point out in a recent discussion about the Sabbath in my blog, there is a close connection between God's Sabbath and faith. Jesus said that faith is one of the weightier matters of the law (Matthew 23:23), and it takes faith for mankind to observe the Sabbath. Men and societies can often figure out even without the Bible that it is wrong to murder, to commit adultery, to steal, to bear false witness, etc. But man cannot know about the Sabbath apart from God's Word, and then only as we have faith in God and believe what He says.
Dr. Kong. So interesting that you would mention the day of rest. At our church, First Institutional Baptist Church, in Phoenix, Arizona, we are in a period of Selah. We went through 10 days of doing the Daniel Fast and then entered into our Selah. This is a wonderful experience and time for us. We are finding that rest, even for the church grounds, is a great thing. We love it. Our church office is now closed on every Monday and all the staff is encouraged to rest on Mondays and just spend time with the Lord. My faith is definitely being increased and my relationship with the Lord is growing. Thankfully, it's not a microwave relationship building time. I am thoroughly enjoying every minute of learning to trust Him completely for everything and growing in my love for Him.
ReplyDeleteDear Dr. Kong
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting blog and a little unexpected..not sure why really. But i have always thought it most unfortunate that many even those who consider themselves spiritual have not yet seen the value in such a day. Many have not given much thought to the concept of neither a sabbath or The Sabbath.
But the part that has always amazed me is that most who refute the need for one do so on the grounds that its a legalistic approach to a relationship with God and anti-faith. But as one commentator above it is anything but that.
I for one think if you believe that putting aside work and frivolity for 24 hours to meet with God and family and friends to renew and refresh is anything but a good recipe for a healthy relationship then what is...?
For me its a blessing but yes like all things a potential curse if not rightly understood and utilitzed. Thanks for the reminder...i have been losing grip of this truth lately and that is not only unfortunate but my loss.
Thanks much