Celebrating Sabbath

Celebrating Sabbath.

Jesus said, “Come to me and Rest” --- yet that word rest can, in itself, be very deceptive. A holiday company here in Britain uses William Henry Davies’s poem all about rest and tranquilly to advertise a high activity holiday.

What is life if full of care

We have no time to stand and stare

No time to stand beneath the boughs

And stare as long as sheep and cows

No time to stand in broad daylight

And watch the stream like the skies at night

No time to turn at Beauty’s glance

And watch her feet how they can dance

No time to see if her mouth can

Enrich the smile her eyes began

A poor life this if full of cares

We have no time to stand and stare

It’s a beautiful poem – and full of sentiments I agree with – as we live our rushed and busy lives – and yet – the holiday company makes a valid point too – for sometimes after a long day in the office – and feeling tired – the best thing I can do is to get the mountain bike out, or take the dog for a brisk walk.

Yet the last three days, I confess, I wasn’t even able to do that. Rest, for me, was to be curled up in bed with a hot water bottle, shivering, and aching, and doing my best to overcome a dose of 'flu. If you’ve not had it: don’t. It’s no fun! And yet “rest” is what my body needed and forced me to take.

One Hebrew word for “rest” is Shabbathown (awtbb# ) meaning a complete rest – or as the New Testament book of Hebrews puts it, a Sabbath Rest – like the one God took when he had finished the work of creation.

And that’s a special kind of rest – because it’s one God took to enjoy what he had done rather than because he was tired and needed to recover from exhaustion.

Colonel Ilan Ramon was Israel ’s first astronaut, and, in space, Ramon discovered the complexity of celebrating his “Sabbath rest” in a low flying orbit where the sun rises and sets every 90 minutes.

So how do the Rabbi’s deal with that one? Certainly it doesn’t fit in easily with the Biblical idea of celebrating Sabbath from Sunset to Sunset (e.g. Lev 23:32 ). How many Sabbath’s does a man get in a 24 hour period?

Florida based orthodox Rabbi Zvi Konikov gives a simple answer. It’s a principle of Jewish law that if you live in a remote place, you should celebrate the Sabbath according to the times of the nearest big city with a sizeable Jewish Community. So for Ramon – blasting off from Cape Canaveral , he’ll keep the Sabbath, Cape Canaveral time.

A sensible principle, I guess – and one that must make live easier for those living in Norway or Alaska, above the Artic circle where the whole idea of sunset – or total lack of it, takes on new meaning.

So what else will Ramon do to celebrate the Sabbath in space? The traditional lighting of candles is obviously not an option – nor the idea of avoiding the use of labour or electricity – but he will be using Kiddush blessing.

And, perhaps with that, he is putting into effect a simple statement that Jesus made on the principles of Sabbath keeping, two thousand years ago: “The Sabbath was made for the good of man – man was not made for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27)

You see – the whole point of the Sabbath – is to be a blessing. In the first instance, for our first parents to be able to spend extra, quality time with their Creator – and then for each of us on a weekly cycle to be reminded of both his Creation and then his redemption.

God set it aside as a special time – to put to one-side the weekday cares of work, school exams etc – and to focus on God, family and friends. To relax. To rest.

And Jesus took it one stage further when he said, “Come unto me and rest” (Matthew 11:28 ) – for some can even make their Sabbath keeping – or their religion -- a burden that forces them to conform to stresses and pressures that God never intended. Jesus is there to relieve us of stresses and pressures. The picture he paints at the end of Matthew chapter 11 is one of Jesus walking beside us, helping us carrying our burdens – and finding true rest – however active that rest may be – in his care.

You are welcome to share this for your own personal devotion or to adapt it for use in your church or fellowship. However, in giving this freely to you we reserve all commercial copyright. You may not reproduce this elsewhere for commercial gain without our express written permission.