“Push.
Push. Push! I gotta get it done! No time to waste. Someone else will
get there before I do.” We hear these statements, sometimes from
our own lips, don’t we?
On
the
other
hand
God
tells
us,
“Cool
it.”
He
even
puts
a
definite
“Hold
it!”
on
our
workweek.
God
created
all
of
His
creation
in
six
days
and
then
made
definite
plans
for
the
seventh
day
the
Sabbath
day
– He
designated
it
a
holy
day.
Like
God’s
example,
the
animals
and
we
are
to
rest
on
the
seventh
day
according
to
Exodus
20:8-11.
Remember
the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do
all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God:
in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy
daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor
thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made
heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the
seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed
it.
God
told His nation to keep one certain day of every week special; to
keep it holy. Holy means ‘set apart for God.’ Now don’t draw
the wrong conclusion when you read – ‘not do any work.’ It is
not a goof-off day. It is a day for special schooling within the
family. Lesson #1 in the passage is the first word “Remember.”
Teach your loved ones that this day is to be set apart for God.
The
following lessons of the passage begin with Creation showing God’s
power. We sometimes call it God’s omnipotence (power). Then
succeeding lessons taught on this special day of the week emphasize
His Authority. We see this in the passage with the words, ‘He
blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it.’
Guess
what? When we often remember God’s power and authority… we can
easily (patiently) rest, wait, and fret not, in our challenges
through the week.
If
you think the passage was just a suggestion from God and not a
command, read Numbers 15:32-36:
And
while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man
that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day. And they that found him
gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the
congregation. And they put him in ward, because it was not declared
what should be done to him. And the LORD said unto Moses, The man
shall be surely put to death: all the congregation shall stone him
with stones without the camp. And all the congregation brought him
without the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died; as the
LORD commanded Moses.
Our
military Commander is adamant about loving and protecting us. All He
expects in return is our allegiance and obedience. A spin-off of this
is that our minds, hearts, and lives become the fine-tuned powerhouse
we desire them to be.
So
far we have seen in these posts that:
- We have God to thank for the gift of time.
- He further demonstrates that what He creates, He continues to control – stop or back up.
- His written word explains His reasons for moving ahead slowly – little by little.
