Sabbath Rest
Genesis 2:1-3- Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their
hosts. By the seventh day God completed his work which he had done, and he
rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done. Then God
blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it he rested from all his
work which God had created and made.
It’s been a busy six days for God. He’s spun out galaxies and billions of blazing
stars, thundering oceans and silent mountains, bugs and birds and fish and,
finally, humans. It’s a frenzy of action and energy. And then comes the seventh
day. What will God do next?
God rests. The Hebrew word is sabat, from which we get the word “sabbath.”
The frenetic pace of the last six days comes to a sabat, a ceasing. God has done
his work and now he will rest. This doesn’t mean God takes a nap or goes to
sleep—that’s not what rest meant in the ancient world. Rather, to rest was to
slow down and enjoy the simple bliss of being. Things are stable and secure, so
you have permission and time to enjoy things.
For example, in Deuteronomy 12:10 we read: “But you will cross the Jordan and
settle in the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance and he will
give you rest from all your enemies around you so that you will live in safety.”
Rest happens for the people of Israel when get a chance to settle down in the
land and put down roots. God will create a safe space so Israel can enjoy their
life in the land.
This is sabbath rest. Not checking out but checking in with a deep sense of
peace. So when God rests, he doesn’t take a break from the world he created
but rather settles in to enjoy the goodness of his “very good” world (Gen. 1:31).
So notice—sabbath is not about checking out or escaping. Sabbath is about
checking in. Sabbath is about remembering we live in a fallen and yet very good
world. Sabbath is about embracing the sheer gift and wonder of our existence.
Sabbath is about slowing down enough to remind yourself that violence,
competition, and consumerism have no place in God’s economy. Sabbath is
about living in remembrance of the peace of creation and in anticipation of the
peace of new creation. Sabbath is about living in sync with the God who is infinite
peace, bliss, and joy. Sabbath is about the breathtaking realization that the story
which seems too good to be true—the story of Christianity, the story of sins
forgiven and the world redeemed—is, despite appearances, true.
Application
I have a love/hate relationship with sabbath that began in a monastery.
Three years ago, I spent a week at a monastery in New Mexico. Every day was
exactly the same. We would get up early for morning prayers, eat breakfast, go
work in the fields or garden, more prayers, eat lunch, more work, more prayers,
bed. And even though the setting was unbelievable (the monastery was out in
the mountains of New Mexico, miles away from anything), and there was nothing
I really had to do, I was miserable for the first three days and couldn’t figure out
why.
But eventually it dawned on me: there is nothing for me to do here except enjoy
being here. I don’t have anything to prove here, I can’t set myself apart here, I
don’t have anything to be anxious about here. And while you’d think I’d love all of
that, it was driving me crazy because I had developed an addiction for proving
myself and setting myself apart and being anxious. I was like an addict going
through withdrawals. I had forgotten what it was like to be at peace, to give
myself permission to just enjoy the wonder of my existence.
Sabbath is like rehab, and rehab can be tough. Because while you’d think that
you’d love the peace of sabbath, you’ve also got some unhealthy addictions to
competition and anxiety (and all sorts of other things) that will conspire to make
sabbath rather miserable at times. So here’s what I try to do.
Before I do anything else on my sabbath day, I find a quiet place and sit still. And
when I hit that point of anxiety and restlessness, I just make myself sit there a
little bit longer, reminding myself that my existence is the gift of a very good God.
Once I’ve surrendered to that, I go out and make it my mission to let myself enjoy
each moment of the day as fully and deeply as possible. I pray a lot, asking God
to enlarge my capacity for joy and enjoyment. I tend to picture God stretching out
my little, withered Grinch heart on sabbath.
Experiment and find your own sabbath rhythm, but remember: you don’t need to
check out—you need to give God some space to help you check in and enjoy
being checked in. That’s what sabbath is about.