“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.”

Exodus 20:8

As we are approaching another weekend, it’s important to remember that we need rest. Not only do we need physical rest, but we also need a break from the pressures of life and an opportunity to reflect and recharge on a regular basis.

God prescribed a day of rest as a day set apart as holy before God.

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, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is 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.

Exodus 20:9-11

Possibly none of the Ten Commandments is surrounded by such a sense of legalism as keeping the Sabbath holy. When He was criticized for “working” on the Sabbath, Jesus reminded the religious of his day that, ““the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27).

And the day of the week we set aside matters less than the experience. Today, some worship on Saturdays, and most observe on Sundays. Paul addressed the idea in his letter to the Romans –

One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. Romans 14:5,6

God’s plan is for us to take time to honor Him and to find needed rest as part of our regular routine, so let’s remember and honor God in this way.