And God Said, "Take a Break"

[sanctus]

by Jon Jakoblich

"Remember to keep holy the Sabbath day." – God

The third and final Commandment pertaining specifically to loving God with our total mind, heart and soul is also a commandment designed for us. It gives us an opportunity to rest, relax, regroup and talk to God.

For the Jews this commandment meant to give the Sabbath day only to the Lord; it means this for Christians too. For the Jews the Sabbath day, or day of rest, was on Saturday, but the Christians changed the day of rest to Sunday to coincide with Jesus' resurrection which took place on a Sunday.

Jewish gathering and worship also took place on the Sabbath day. Since the Jewish followers of Christ changed what happened during worship or worshipped God in a different way with the Eucharist it only seemed fitting to change the Sabbath to a day more fittingly appropriate with their belief in Jesus as the Messiah.

In the first story of Creation found at the beginning of the book of Genesis we see that God made the world in six days and rested on the seventh. From this comes the command of the day of rest. "In six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the LORD has blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy" (Exodus 20:11).

Reading about the third commandment in the book of Exodus you will discover that God wants us to have a day of rest. God rested on the seventh day and so should you.

We all need a day to kick back and relax and enjoy some time with our families and friends. We should also take that time to connect with God and think about the wonderful things that he has blessed us with.

God gave us that day because he knows that we all need rest. In order to love God and love our neighbors we need to dedicate some time to do specifically just that.

So next Sunday take the day off and enjoy the day with God, your family/friends or just relax!

 

[Pangloss]

Sanctus -

First: do you ever sleep???

Second: While I don't keep the Sabbath, I do have a quiet day a week, and I wish the whole world would rest one day a week also. Does a body, mind and a family good.

Pangloss

 

[sanctus]

Sanctus -

First: do you ever sleep???

I tend to sleep an average of four-five hours per night. Have always been this way, at least since my teens. I wake up automatically every day between 4:30-5 a.m.

S Second: While I don't keep the Sabbath, I do have a quiet day a week, and I wish the whole world would rest one day a week also. Does a body, mind and a family good.

Pangloss

And that is the point! Remember when the country was shut down on Sundays? Families gathered for communal meals and people actually spent a day doing almost nothing but relaxing. that is what is needed by people again, I believe. Regardless of personal religious convictions, a day of rest is a good prescription for a healthy lifestyle.