A Day of Stop

A Day of Stop
Words of Faith 12-16-2022
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2022
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Exodus 20
[8] "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. [9] Six days you shall labor and do all your work, [10] but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. [11] For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

A Sabbath day was declared by God in the fourth commandment from Sinai. The Sabbath teaches us a positive way to love God. Remember that when asked what the greatest command was, Jesus said: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
If we look closely, we see that the two commands Jesus spoke of include love toward three persons-- God, self, and neighbor. Love of neighbor presumes love toward self. This may seem strange since sinful humans are by nature self-absorbed, but this is not genuine love. Part of our sinful nature is that we are incapable of rightly loving ourselves. The Lord seeks to restore a right relationship with God, self, and others. This is at least part of what Sabbath is all about.
Sabbath literally means "stop" or "quit." Sabbath is a day of "stop." We are to be renewed and refreshed on this day by rest and recreation. Our sinful nature is prone to reach for more and more without stopping as if everything depends upon us. Sabbath tells us that God has created us with specific patterns and cycles such that about every seven days, we need a change, and we need rest.
The Scripture tells us that the same cycle applies to animals and even the land. Every few years, the ground needs to lie fallow to be most productive. People need breaks, Sabbath, and vacations. Land needs to rest. It is a misuse of people and resources to work seven days a week without a break.
Jesus taught that Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Sabbath is a gift from God to us. He declares that He is the provider, and we need to learn to enjoy Him on this day in particular ways. We will learn from Sabbath that God's provision comes from His hand, not our own. By resting, we declare our faith in God to provide in six days what is needed for seven. This lesson was already being introduced through the gathering of manna.
Sabbath is also a day set apart for honoring and knowing God. Sabbath is organically connected to the creation in that God declared a day to rest and did so.
So how do we apply this? What do we do to "fly" according to this instruction?
First, we must realize what Sabbath is and is not about. It is not about rules and laws imposed upon us by religious reasoning. The Pharisees went down this path, and Jesus spoke words of correction concerning this. Sabbath is about faith. Sabbath is about trust. Sabbath is about caring for oneself because we are a creation of God and being a good steward of the self entrusted to us. Sabbath is about finding a pattern in life that includes rest, renewal, and time to honor God.
What day? Saturday is the Lord's Sabbath because that is the seventh day. Many Christians observe a Sabbath practice on Sunday, "The Lord's Day" of resurrection. Some rest on Saturday and worship on Sunday. Different patterns or days work for different people. The critical application here is to be sure and set aside time to stop and honor God with a day for renewing rest and re-creation.
But remember this. Sabbath is not a suggestion or a request. It is the law of God. The Lord commands that you treat yourself well and not abuse your body, mind, and spirit. Why? Because You are precious to Him. You are beautifully and wonderfully made. Take care of yourself so that you can love God for a long time and love others fully.

Father, help me find the Sabbath rest needed in my life. Thank you for this precious command that is so connected to creation. In Jesus' name.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2022
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2022 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.