Sabbath as Worship

If we are going to examine sabbath as an act of worship, I think we should begin by defining it. According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, the word sabbath is traced back to the Hebrew word Shabatth meaning to cease, end, or rest. John Mark Comer in his book, “Ruthless Elimination of Hurry”, defines Sabbath as a day to stop; stop working, stop wanting, stop worrying, just stop.  

God introduces and models the importance of Sabbath, right away, within the story of creation. In Genesis 2:2 it says that by the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so, on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. Not only does God model the Sabbath but he commands it to his people in the book of Exodus, after they are freed from 400 years of slavery! Look up Exodus 20:8 and see how God lists Sabbath, a holy day of rest, as one of the Ten Commandments.  

God models, commands, and blesses the Sabbath in the Old Testament but does Jesus practice it? You bet. Jesus, being Jewish, would have grown up observing the Sabbath in his home with Mary and Joseph but also as he learned in the temple. (Luke 2:41-51). Once Jesus starts his public ministry, we see examples of Jesus participating in Sabbath all throughout the Gospels. Matthew 11:25 – 12:21 gives many beautiful examples of Jesus and his observance of the Sabbath. He walks through grain fields with his disciples on the Sabbath, he heals on the Sabbath, he contradicts the Pharisees and does good on the Sabbath, and he calls himself the Lord of the Sabbath.  

Therefore, the question that I pose to you is one that I am currently wrestling with. If God rests, if he commands it of his people, if he blesses a day for stopping and doing good, and Jesus calls himself the Lord of the Sabbath… then why have I been so quick to dismiss practicing Sabbath as part of my attempts to follow Jesus and his ways? Am I above God? Does my soul and my body not need and require rest? If I do not intentionally stop and practice rest, then where am I getting the strength and provision to meet the next week and accomplish the purposes that God has laid out before me? 

The beauty and the hope lie in that it is not too late to begin or renew your practice of Sabbath as a way of following Jesus and worshiping your King. Sabbath is completely counter-cultural to the non-stop ways of the world. Therefore, it will take intentionality to make it a regular part of worship in our lives. Where can we begin? How about examining our schedules and making room for rest. Maybe it starts as an afternoon where you shut off screens and your phone, where you clear your calendar, where you examine what brings you joy and rest. Sabbath doesn’t mean zoning out in front of the television or sleeping all day. It also doesn’t mean spending every waking minute in prayer and the bible. Sabbath could include pieces of all those things if we are intentional about what we do that fills our souls and our bodies leading to true rest. The more I research about Sabbath, the more I wonder why I have allowed this discipline to elude me for so long. I am often ragged and worn, trying to run on achievements and a full calendar. When I have a gracious God who is offering me Sabbath, a day of stopping, a day that I can fill with things that bring me joy, and a day of refresh for a weary soul. Thank-you Jesus for continuously showing us the way of LIFE. 

If you would like to dive deeper into this topic, be challenged and uplifted, and learn more of how to practice Sabbath in a world gone mad, then I highly recommend the book “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry” by John Mark Comer. And if you need an accountability partner in stepping off the hamster wheel and deeper into the practice of Sabbath, I’m here for you! 

• Written by Jessica Delp