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We’ve grown so busy we’ve forgotten why we gather, and our culture whispers that rest is laziness—but Exodus 20:8 calls us to remember the Sabbath as a gift, not a rule, a weekly sign that we belong to the God who rescues us and knows what we actually need.
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So we are moving to the Fourth Commandment today, and it’s the one that I know has been on all your minds—the Sabbath. I get emails every day from all of you asking, “What should I do in the family? No, we don’t do that, right?” It’s funny because it used to be more present in our culture. Some of you may remember Blue Laws. Depending on what part of the country you are from, you may remember them more or less prominently.
I was fascinated as a little kid going into the grocery store on Sunday. It had progressed somewhat by then, but there were still chains over the liquor aisle on Sundays because you could come in and get food but not get drunk unless you prepared ahead of time on the Sabbath. I was reading about Blue Laws this week, and here’s something I didn’t realize: Bergen County, New Jersey still has some Blue Laws. They have had restrictions so that, for example, you cannot buy electronics, clothing, or furniture on the Lord’s Day, Sunday. Interestingly, you can buy video games but not anything to play them on.
Texas has eliminated their Blue Laws, but in the past, you could buy a hammer on Sunday but not nails. Someone quipped that it was so you couldn’t build anything on the Sabbath. It’s interesting how they figured out what to restrict and what not to if we are to observe a day of rest. These laws used to keep people from doing certain things, but that’s different from actually observing the Sabbath.
Some businesses today choose not to be open on Sunday, like Chick-fil-A, which is closed on Sundays. We often think about the Sabbath in a very legalistic way, focusing on what we cannot do. But that’s not the perspective God wants us to have. When God gave the Sabbath, he aimed to remind his people that he cares about them. Is that what you think of? Or do we think, “I can’t get chicken from Chick-fil-A”?
Let’s pray that God helps us think about this least observed commandment, the Sabbath, and how it shows the heart of God to us.
Father, we pray that as we look at the Sabbath, we wouldn’t see it as just rules to follow but as a gift to help us prosper and flourish as human beings you created. Remind us that this is about your grace, not about pointing out where we fail. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Let’s look at Exodus 20:8: “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male servant or your female servant, your livestock, or the sojourner within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore, the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”
The Sabbath speaks to God’s faithfulness. Most of God’s laws are like, “Don’t do this,” but the Sabbath has a whole story linked to creation. God modeled what the Sabbath should look like by resting on the seventh day after creation, not because he was tired but to model what was good for his people. He knows we need rest.
God calls us to observe this weekly day of rest because we need it; it is not simply a natural necessity. Our Christian culture became Western culture, which has had a profound impact worldwide. However, nothing in nature necessitates a seven-day cycle of rest—the moon and sun do not operate on seven-day cycles.
God declared the Sabbath as a day of rest every week for our restoration. It is different from other ancient religions’ festival days tied to lunar cycles. The Sabbath is a weekly gift of rest modeled from creation, a day set apart to be restored.
There are two places in scripture where you find the Ten Commandments: Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5. In Deuteronomy 5:15, it adds that “You shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out with a mighty hand and outstretched arm. Therefore, the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.”
This means the Sabbath is not only about creation but also a sign that we belong to the God who rescues. It testifies to God’s faithfulness and the fact that we are freed from slavery. The people around us can see the difference in how we live, including taking a day off every week.
The Pharisees struggled with the Sabbath because it felt like laziness, but God intended it as a day for rest, grace, and restoration. On the other hand, in the New Testament, Christians transitioned to observing a modified Sabbath on the first day of the week, the Lord’s Day, to celebrate Jesus’ resurrection and ongoing rescue.
In Revelation 1:10, John refers to the Lord’s Day, and in 1 Corinthians 16:2, Paul instructs, “On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up as you may prosper.”
The Sabbath is not about restriction but about responding to God’s rescue with worship, rest, and generosity. We can get so busy that we forget why we gather and rest. Sometimes, we attend services but barely remember them because we are distracted and focused on the next task.
Like when we give public presentations for the first time, we often have to remind ourselves to slow down and pause. We need reminders to slow down in our spiritual lives, too, to slow down and consider God’s love and mercy.
The Pharisees, in Mark chapter 2, were not resting but accusing others on the Sabbath, trying to elevate themselves above others instead of experiencing God’s grace and restoration.
How do we live the Sabbath differently? Remembering that it was given to free us, not enslave us. The Pharisees turned it into a form of slavery themselves, but God intended it to be freeing, a weekly declaration of freedom from sin, death, and evil.
Viewing the Sabbath as a legalistic restriction shows the wrong thing to the world. Instead, we should be excited about setting aside this time to be with God and his people, to be refreshed and renewed.
A wise person once told me to spend the week preparing for the Sabbath and look forward to it so that it restores you and gives you the energy to face the next week. The Sabbath should be the high point of our weeks, a climax where we find refreshment and delight.
Imagine talking about how excited you are to gather with God’s people and reflect on His goodness, not grumbling over mundane frustrations or current events. When people see that excitement, they might want what we have.
Every week is not going to be perfect; the church is made up of flawed people, but we can seek God’s help to keep our focus on Him rather than just on what we can or cannot do.
Jesus healed people on the Sabbath, showing that doing good is always right even on the Sabbath. There are times we need to rest and not do anything else, recognizing our own need for restoration.
Our culture idolizes busyness and achievement, but God calls us to rest and experience His faithful care. Sometimes admitting we need rest is a confession that brings grace.
Hebrews 4:8-10 says that there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, a rest that is a foretaste of eternal rest in God’s presence. This rest is restorative, not just a pause or idle time.
The author of Hebrews links this rest to creation, noting the seventh day didn’t end with “there was evening and morning.” This rest is for all who trust in God, a true and holy rest that restores.
This rest is very different from the image of harps on clouds; it is restoration to live and flourish as God’s image-bearers.
Whatever burdens, fears, and obligations you carry, God promises an end to them—a full satisfaction and freedom in His presence.
The Sabbath, or the Lord’s Day, is a chance to experience a foretaste of that rest now, even though we go back to work the next day.
A pause to reflect on God’s mercy and love refreshes us and prepares us to shine God’s light to others.
Please pray with me: Lord, you are the God who restores, who takes us from fear and exhaustion into rest. Help us to understand and experience this rest, to slow down and feel your love, and to be lights that invite others into your rest. We ask in Jesus’ name, Amen.
As we prepare for communion, the elements we are passing are from different manufacturers and brands but are essentially the same. The ones in the center are gluten-free.
We rest by coming into God’s presence. If you come without knowing Him, taking communion alone will not give you rest. But coming before Jesus and trusting in Him offers a foretaste of His rest.
If you haven’t yet trusted in Jesus, please let these elements pass you by. But if you trust Him, take them as a reminder of His love and sacrifice.
On the night Jesus was betrayed, He took bread, broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” After supper, He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, poured out for you for the remission of sins. Do this as often as you drink of it.”
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