Sabbath

The Bible isn’t exactly a rule book, but it does contain a lot of guidelines for how to live our lives. Love your neighbor. Don’t kill. Care for the poor and the suffering. Don’t commit adultery. Welcome the stranger. Don’t steal or lie.

Of course, we can (and do) argue all day about the details of how to apply those guidelines. Can you kill in self-defense? Is divorce ok? Is it really sensible to invite in everyone who shows up at your door? Are there times when it’s ok to tell a lie?

We disagree on the details, but we mostly agree that the basic guidelines are good ones. We might not always manage to follow them, but we feel guilty when we don’t.

There’s only one rule in the Bible that I can think of that almost everyone I’ve ever met has been proud to violate. We just heard it read. “Observe the sabbath day and keep it holy.” God rested on the seventh day, and so must we.

Our culture has made work into an idol. We experience so little sabbath time that we don’t even notice we’re missing it. We measure our value by how busy we are. We’re never quiet. We’re hard-working and diligent and disciplined and we’re proud of it.

When was the last time you spent twenty-four hours resting? Not turning on the television or the computer or picking up your phone. Not mowing the lawn. Not running errands or taking out the trash. Not cooking a meal. Just resting, talking to loved ones, maybe spending some time in prayer.

Most of us only live that way in times of crisis. When we’re sick and unable to work. When a loved one is near death. Or if we’re depressed, unable to motivate ourselves.

And when we do spend time that way, we often feel guilty about it, anxious, lazy, or a bit useless.

But God commanded us to rest. “You shall not do any work—you, or your son or your daughter,” or those who work for you, “or your ox or your donkey”—so that all may rest.

On Friday nights, just before sunset, observant Jews light candles. They bless bread and wine. Parents bless their children. And they enter into a time of quiet. In more Orthodox traditions, people will avoid even flipping a light switch on the sabbath. By defining “work” so broadly, they make certain that they rest. And they do this for twenty-four hours every single week.

Today’s Gospel reading is about exceptions to the strict sabbath rules. Pluck grain if you’re hungry and ease suffering if you get the chance. But most Americans aren’t in much danger of applying sabbath rules too strictly. We’re much more likely to ignore them entirely.

What did Jesus do?

The Gospel of Luke tells us that even when crowds gathered around him “to hear him and to be cured of their diseases,” “he would withdraw to deserted places and pray.” (Luke 5:15-16). Jesus didn’t try to accomplish everything on his to do list before taking time to rest and pray.

In the Gospel of Matthew, we hear the story of a storm at sea. While the disciples panicked, Jesus slept in the stern of the boat. Even in a storm, Jesus found time for a nap, time to rest. (Mark 4:37-39).

Jesus said “do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” (Matthew 6:34). That’s another lesson of sabbath time.

Sabbath is hard. We’re busy. Sabbath is countercultural. And it can be scary to confront silence. If we’re not certain that we’re enough in ourselves, doing nothing can be terrifying.

But sabbath is important. Rest helps us in measurable ways. But it’s also practice for those times when we can’t be useful, when we’re sick, when we have no choice but to just be. Sabbath is a reminder that the world goes on without us. That can be scary, but it’s an important spiritual truth. Sabbath is a reminder that there are times when have to trust in God.

You might find it hard to observe a sabbath for an entire day. Take a whole day if you can. But if you can’t, try a shorter sabbath.

Have a sabbath meal. Prepare it by hand. Feel the textures of the food, smell the smells. Maybe go to the farmer’s market and then home to cook. Put away your phone. Light candles and say a prayer.

Take a sabbath walk. Wander. Pause when you feel called to pause. No agenda, no step goal. Leave your fitbit at home.

Or even develop a practice of sabbath moments. Take three slow breaths any time the phone rings, or you stop at a red light, or you open a door.

Jesus said that the sabbath was made for us, and not us for the sabbath. But the sabbath was made for us. And we need it.

Set aside time. Mark it as different in some way, with a beginning and an end. And do it regularly.

I’d like to end with a prayer from the New Zealand prayer book. It’s a prayer for the end of the day, but it’s a good prayer for times of sabbath as well.

Lord, it is night.
The night is for stillness.
Let us be still in the presence of God.

It is night after a long day.
What has been done has been done;
what has not been done has not been done;
let it be.

The night is dark.
Let our fears of the darkness of the world and of our own lives rest in you.

The night is quiet.
Let the quietness of your peace enfold us, all dear to us, and all who have no peace.

The night heralds the dawn.
Let us look expectantly to a new day, new joys, new possibilities.
In your name we pray. Amen.

Sabbath: Restoring the Sacred Rhythm of Rest by Wayne Muller was an inspiration for many of the ideas in this sermon.