Sabbath Run Amok ...

Perhaps the most challenged Commandment of the Ten, and most challenging to keep, is the fourth one that ordained in stone what Adam and Eve were long ago familiar with.  The Sabbath is more than just a Commandment God gave to Moses on Sinai.  It is an institution established at the very creation of our world.  It is something God setup to mark the conclusion of His creation of this world, and His intent to fellowship with us His new creations.  It was setup before sin.  As was marriage and family, institutions God setup with no expiration date, or need to change them.  Sin did not alter what God setup, at least from God’s perspective.  But sin caused us to pollute what God setup and what He intended.  Both marriage and family as well as the Sabbath fellowship with God have suffered and decayed over the 6000+ years since they began.  But all of God’s institutions will be restored when we are taken home, purified from the effects of sin and evil, and restored to the plans God created that were not intended to expire in the first place.  But if you look around you today, you see the entire concept of the Sabbath as one of great controversy (not unlike what is happening with the state of marriage and family as well).  What God setup, Satan is intent on tearing down.

Between Adam and Noah institutions like the Sabbath were handed down Father to Son orally.  While this period lasted 2000 years, the generations that lived before the flood had long average ages so there were not actually that many of them between creation and the Flood.  From Noah to Abraham the same tradition of Father to Son were present, but men had even less desire to keep to a fellowship with God.  By the time Abraham arrives on the scene he is forced to ponder who God is, and because he is nearly the only one looking, he is the only one who finds our God.  Once again Father to Son is established.  But many years later Egyptian slavery nearly wipes out the traditions and Moses must establish a written tradition to commemorate the Sabbath in stone written by the very finger of God. 

When the children of Israel wander through the desert, they are given a living example of the freedom of Sabbath when manna comes in double portion on Fridays that will last through Sabbath, but on no other day does it behave so.  As the years go by the prophet Isaiah writes of celebrating the Sabbath (note the concept of celebration) in heaven for eternity.  Isaiah is given a glimpse at what God had in mind for the Sabbath as it was God’s day off with us (not the other way around).  We did nothing to make the Sabbath Holy, God did that with His particularly special presence.  We were supposed to remember that, and honor His time with our time, insuring we do not impend on anyone else’s time with our same God.  Yet instead of a celebration, the Sabbath became an institution of rules; of can’s, and cannot’s.

By the time church leadership was done with it, the Sabbath became an onerous, nearly unkeepable, fully depressing period of time, people were guilted into following each week.  The idea of time off with God was replaced with what you cannot do, a list so long it was way too hard to remember at all.  In our day Sabbath observance for those who believe the day has been changed to Sunday (though there is not a single example of this in scripture, or in the behavior and example of what Jesus did or said) consists of “going to church”.  Once church is complete, the day returns to the worshipper to do with as he sees fit.  When you ask folks who believe Sabbath is on Sunday how they celebrate it, the most common answer is “going to church”.  When you ask them what they do after that, the celebration breaks down fairly quickly to whatever routine tasks they do any other day.  But don’t jump on the criticism bandwagon too quickly just yet. 

For those folks who believe Sabbath is on Saturday as God originally created and intends for eternity; the answer to how they celebrate Sabbath is exactly the same.  Number one answer: they go to church.  When asked what they do after that, there are a few other activities that come up.  Potluck feasts, sundown worship sessions, and maybe some nature related activities when weather and location permit.  Sounds better in principle, but not that much in reality.  Most of these folks in reality spend Sabbath afternoons sleeping (cause there is not much else they are allowed to do).  In either case, you will hear a million different excuses about why Sabbath observance is not really needed anymore anyway other than to pay it the nominal attention of “going to church”.  After that it is up to the worshipper what they do on it, no matter what day they believe Sabbath is on.  A degeneration based on a rules philosophy and enforced by the enemy of God that would see the celebration of Sabbath with our God descend into something else entirely.  Namely routine.

Routines are something we humans cling to very tightly.  We use them to keep from “breaking” the Sabbath.  The Pharisees has the same concept more than 2000 years ago in the time of Christ.  But what you and I think is on the list of do’s and don’ts is not even how God thinks at all.  For Jesus the Sabbath is awesome because for at least one day in seven, we turn our eyes to Him.  He is always with us, but we so rarely turn our eyes away from what we normally do, and give Him any attention at all.  He set aside His time to be with us.  Just in doing that Jesus made Sabbath Holy.  His presence makes something Holy.  When Moses approached the burning bush, God asked him to remove his sandals because the place were he was standing was “Holy” ground.  That patch of land was not normally holy.  It was holy because God was there.  The same is true of Sabbath, it is Holy because Jesus is with us.  And in the time of Christ, this was never more true.  Jesus was there.  And when Jesus was there, the fellowship with God was really ALL that mattered.  The Pharisees (and most of us unfortunately) don’t even come close to this way of thinking.  We are looking for lists of restrictions, while God is looking to spend focused time, without the distractions of the norms of our lives.

And so conflict between the position of church leadership and our God was sure to reveal itself.  Luke recounts this conflict in the sixth chapter of his gospel letter to his friend about our beliefs and why we hold them.  Keep in mind Luke wrote his gospel long after these events occurred.  If there had ever been a change in the day from Saturday to Sunday, Luke could have easily noted that in his gospel.  He did not.  No change had occurred, nor should man presume he is able to change what God setup, and still call it Holy.  More like disaster.  But the conflict back in the days of Christ was not about which day Sabbath was on, but about what is “allowed” to do on the Sabbath at all.  Luke picks up in verse 1 saying … “And it came to pass on the second sabbath after the first, that he went through the corn fields; and his disciples plucked the ears of corn, and did eat, rubbing them in their hands. [verse 2] And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do ye that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath days?”

A little irony for you, the church leaders telling the author and creator of the Sabbath, what He and His people can do on His day.  But the Pharisees had taken the example of the Israelites in the time of Moses where manna was given in double portion on Fridays and lasted without spoiling all the way through Saturday as a “law” that food preparation should be done the day before the Sabbath so that no cooking was ever done “on” Sabbath.  The idea of serving others on Sabbath never entered their minds.  The idea of loving others through service freely given never entered their minds.  The Pharisees had a very self-centric viewpoint of Sabbath.  The Sabbath is about me.  What I do.  What I cannot do.  Others are only incidental to my Sabbath.  I shall not employ them.  But other than that, they are irrelevant to “my” Sabbath.  The response of Jesus did not reprimand them for their desire to minimize food preparation to make the Sabbath even more free from distraction.  Instead Jesus points them to David (one of their heroes) and recalls an incident where David ate food prepared for priests alone, and gave it to his men as well.  It was not the act of David that was Ok.  It was the Lord over the rules who loved His servant and made an exception for David, as Jesus could make an exception for His disciples valuing fellowship and trust, more than strict rules that destroy fellowship altogether.

Luke continues in verse 3 saying … “And Jesus answering them said, Have ye not read so much as this, what David did, when himself was an hungred, and they which were with him; [verse 4] How he went into the house of God, and did take and eat the shewbread, and gave also to them that were with him; which it is not lawful to eat but for the priests alone? [verse 5] And he said unto them, That the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.”  Jesus identifies Himself as LORD of the Sabbath.  God created the Sabbath.  Therefore Jesus is also our Creator and God.  This example of the disciples feeding themselves (gleaning in a field) is not one to endorse theft, or eating out on Sabbath, or minimizing food preparation, or making your act of love serving others food on Sabbath.  This was about keeping your eye on the ball.  Being with Jesus is more important than ANY other distraction.  “How” you honor Jesus is not up for debate.  “That” you honor Jesus is the salient point.  If your idea of honoring time with Jesus is to force or hire others to serve you in order for you to be free (you forget that your love for those others should have left them free to honor our God as well).  Making the excuse that they would have working anyway whether you are there or not, is not making any statement about them, but it does make a statement about you, about how you think, and about how you value them, or love them.  Loving others drives a different way of thinking about the celebration of Sabbath.  Not about what you can and cannot do, but about how you can share the love of God, and thereby fellowship with Jesus even when Jesus cannot be seen today.

But the Pharisees had established routines far more extreme than this.  They had lost all value for others.  The care of the sick did not outweigh the obligation to do no work on the Sabbath.  Get that, people, less than rules.  The sharing of love was fully absent in that thinking.  But it was and is not absent in the thinking of our God.   Luke continues in verse 6 saying … “And it came to pass also on another sabbath, that he entered into the synagogue and taught: and there was a man whose right hand was withered. [verse 7] And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him. [verse 8] But he knew their thoughts, and said to the man which had the withered hand, Rise up, and stand forth in the midst. And he arose and stood forth. [verse 9] Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it? [verse 10] And looking round about upon them all, he said unto the man, Stretch forth thy hand. And he did so: and his hand was restored whole as the other. [verse 11] And they were filled with madness; and communed one with another what they might do to Jesus.”

And here is where popularity goes right out the window.  Jesus healed on Sabbath because our God does not take the concept of Him taking a day off as meaning He abandons everything He does to keep us alive and well.  If God just stopped turning planets, sending rain, reminding you to breath – we all die in an instant.  That is not His idea of making a day Holy.  It is about spending time with us.  When we see the suffering, how can we just leave them in that condition, just because it is Sabbath – then call ourselves Sabbath observers.  Love does not take a day off.  Love is constant ever present.  But then Love does not ask for anything in return either.  Jesus did not demand payment for services rendered.  So many purported Sabbath keepers pick medical careers in order to be able to “work” on Sabbath.  And so they do.  They “work” in the service of healing, but share no love because they feel no love.  They get paid for services rendered because why wouldn’t they?  They get overtime and shift differentials and actually prefer to work on Sabbaths because it pays better.  And hey it is all legal – because of this story in the gospels.  But legal is not the goal – loving is.

How Jesus healed, was why Jesus ate with His disciples.  Because He loved them and us, and wants to share with us in the joy of fellowship.  His joy is not blind to our needs, but ever trying to meet our needs.  It is a reflection of His love for us.  Love does not demand payment.  Nor does love look for distractions from a time with God.  For those who heal, or serve others in any capacity on Sabbath, because it is a reflection of their love for others – no man should judge.  Many work on Sabbath serving communities, or nations, or the sick, or in critical functions like utilities – where if they should stop working many others would suffer or die.  These professions are honorable.  And if they serve from love, they honor the Sabbath of their God.  But if they merely serve for careers, thinking not about who they serve or why, and focusing more on the money it takes to support them, their debts, their families, than they do about sharing love.  Perhaps they should find different professions, or seek the Lord, to find different hearts in the same professions.  The Sabbath is not about what we can and cannot do.  It is about who we love, how we love, and how we honor God’s time with our own.

Putting away distractions we can do any other of the six days in our week, allows us to focus on Jesus even more on His day.  I can shop anytime.  But on His day, I want to do something for Him.  I can entertain myself anytime.  But on His day, I want my entertainment to bring me closer to Him, to give me another insight into Him, and to motivate me to do something for Him.  I work because I need to,  But on His day, I want to free myself from the concerns of my career.  I want to keep as many others as I can free from theirs as well, avoiding putting them in positions where they are required to serve me.  But none of this matters, if I forget who I love, how I love, and why His love can live in me in the first place.  My Creator is also my re-Creator.  His gift of the Sabbath to me, is more precious to me than gold.  And I only hope He will continue to help me find better ways to explore the celebration of His day, in this world, and in the next one.