by Leigh Ann Dilley on May 12, 2025
Many people think something negative when they hear the word: Sabbath. True story, I grew up reading Little House on the Prairie books and there is a whole chapter dedicated to Laura Ingles Wilder, the author, experience of the Sabbath when she was a child. As an active child, she was forced to sit in a chair all day to pray and listen to scripture, all the while wearing clothes that were itchy or too small. It was a very long day for an active child and Laura considered it torture every week. She often received punishments for improper behavior on the Sabbath. Do you suppose this is what the Lord intended when he invited us to a holy day of rest (Ex. 20 8-11)?
Let’s look back at the very first day of rest to see what God intended for the Sabbath. In the first chapter of Genesis, God created everything. For six days the Lord created the heavens, the earth, the sea and everything in them. At the end of each day, he saw what he created and declared it good! After six days, God’s creation work was completed, so God rested on the 7th day from all his work. God blessed the 7th day and declared it holy. If God provided the example of a day of rest, it means he provided a day of rest for us. The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27).
Why did God choose the 7th day to rest? The Bible considers the number seven to be symbolic of perfection, fullness or completeness. The 7th day was called the Sabbath because the Sabbath means “rest”. God’s work of creation was completed in six days, so he rested in the work he declared as good. You know that feeling you get when you complete a project and begin to enjoy what you created with a sense of accomplishment! I bet God spent the day admiring the goodness of his creation too.
Adam and Eve experienced God’s perfection of completeness in the Garden of Eden for a brief period before they were disobedient and broke their covenant with God. They were sent out of the Garden and from that moment on, mankind had to work hard to sustain themselves. The hard work of sustainability continues. In the Old Testament we find the people of Israel lived in captivity and worked as slaves in Egypt. Moses, a prophet chosen by God, helped the Israelites escape from Egypt through the Red Sea. For the next 40 years they lived in tents in the desert, again due to their disobedience. This is when God gave them the 10 Commandments. Because God still wanted to provide for his people, the fourth Commandments says to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. Now, for the first time since Adam and Eve were cast out of the garden, the people have one day every week in which God invites them to rest. Rest was a wonderful provision for people who had worked tirelessly for generations as slaves. God wanted them to honor and worship him in unhurried time, giving them rest to freshen bodies, minds and spirits.
Fast forward to the start of the ministry of Jesus. In Luke 4:18 Jesus reads from Isaiah. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, and the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come. This passage, quoted by Jesus on the Sabbath, echoes Exodus 20:8-11. Jesus says he will set slaves and oppressed people free, providing rest for weary souls. Jesus echoes this thought again in Matthew 11:28-30 when he said “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear and the burden I give you is light.” Jesus clearly has picked up the baton of rest that God initiated to refresh his people.
So, what then, does a day of rest look like or feel like?
Simply put, practicing a Holy Sabbath involves setting aside a day for not only physical rest, but also spiritual rest, which we receive when we connect with God, and spend time with loved ones. Sabbath rest may involve refraining from labor, attending worship services, and engaging in activities that bring joy and rest.
The word ‘holy’ means sacred, consecrated, or set apart for religious purposes. The Sabbath day is supposed to look different, not like the other days of the week. Historically, Sunday was considered the Sabbath, but it doesn’t have to be. Work and family schedules in today’s culture don’t necessarily allow people the choice of not working on Sunday. The point is to find a time when you can practice a Sabbath.
If can be hard to set aside one day of the week to practice the Sabbath especially if you have not made it a habit! We live in a culture where busyness is overvalued. Living in a hurried state with chronic fatigue and a digital addiction is not normal, even though culture may promote it. Busyness is one way to practice idolization because you have made the schedule more important than God. To experience the benefits of true rest and a relationship with God, a Sabbath must be “practiced”.
John Mark Comer says in Practicing the Way: “A spiritual journey begins with rest. Overworked, stressed out, busy people do not rest well, respond to love well, and are not full of joy, or peaceful. A person in this state cannot hear God’s voice or sense he is near. Resting with God is supposed to be 1/7th of your life!”
How do we get started practicing the Sabbath?
A great place to start is to be intentional and plan ahead. Find patterns that work best for your schedule, your family and your needs. Create the necessary margins of time. This may require you to rearrange your routines.
Prioritize. The Bible says you have 6 days to accomplish your work/chores. Prioritize what work must be done before your Sabbath and what can wait. A Sabbath is not about adding to your routine, it is about doing less. Evaluate activities or habits you already have in place that could be considered part of your Sabbath?
Attend a worship/church service! Spend time in Bible study or prayer with friends or family after church. Inviting friends over creates social connections and offers community fellowship.
Participate in activities or hobbies you love or spend quality time with your family.
Unplug or limit technology and social media.
God’s invitation to Sabbath rest continues. Clearing schedules and breaking routines to focus our relationship with God provides spiritual rest, which in turn enhances our ability to hear God and sense his guidance. God has a good plan for you and wants you to come to him for all things. When we stay connected to the vine, we grow and produce more fruit. We are in a better position to experience love, joy and peace for ourselves and share them with others.
This is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
