Keep the Lord’s Day Holy

I wonder which of the Ten Commandments is violated most often, even by those who know Jesus? I would guess the fourth commandment is near the top. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” I am just thinking of the sheer numbers of people who say they follow Jesus but do not gather with a local expression His body. Or the people who belong to God but work every day of the week. Or if they don’t actually go to work on Sunday, they use it as a catch-up day so they can get ahead for Monday. Or if they don’t do that, their thoughts are consumed with work on Sunday instead of taking that day for worship and rest. They want to be efficient with their time, I get it. But at what cost? Billionaire Bill Gates was asked why he didn’t believe in God. He said, “Just in terms of allocation of time resources, religion is not very efficient. There’s a lot more I could be doing on a Sunday morning.” Yes, we have a lot of options for the use of our time if we choose to ignore the One who created it. And us. So, why do we keep the Sabbath? And how do we keep it? Should we become like the Pharisees and make an exhaustive list of all the things we can and cannot do on the Sabbath, and hold up our obedience as a sign to others whom we see fall short? Or can we look at this day and give thanks to God for calling us into a regular rhythm of work and worship, because He loves us and He knows what is best for His people? 

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” That is what we are commanded to do. God chooses the word “Remember” to start this command, which is significant. On the one hand, He is reminding his people in the wilderness of something. Remember? He had already laid a foundation for this commandment when He gave them manna. He told them then not to do any work on the day of rest, but to gather a double portion on the day before. Bake what you are going to bake and boil what you are going to boil on the sixth day. Prepare for sabbath before it comes. That day, the Lord said, “is a day of solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord.”

 They were also called to remember this day every week. Not just on occasion, or just when it fit their schedule, or just when they were in a really good stopping place and they felt okay about taking a day off. No. If the third commandment calls us to honor God with our words, the fourth commandment calls us to honor God with our time. It is for God’s glory. And it is for our good. Every week. Have you ever thought about where weeks come from as a measure of time? Days are measured by the earth’s rotation, which takes 24 hours. Months come roughly from the moon’s cycle. A year is one lap around the sun for us earthlings. But a week? Where did the week come from? We have weeks because God worked for six days and then rested on the seventh. 

In each week, God gives us one day to stop and remember. And worship. And rest. Remembering to gather with the saints every Sunday is not just for worship but it is for our spiritual, mental, and even our physical health. The rhythm of rest and worship has been a subject of scientific study for years, and as always, science confirms what the Word has already stated as fact. A recent Harvard Public Health study revealed that those who attend church every week have “lower mortality risk, lower depression, less suicide, better cardiovascular disease survival, better health behaviors, and greater marital stability, happiness, and purpose in life.” God knew that truth eons before Harvard Public Health did. God knows our frame. He knows what we need. If we are commanded by God to take a weekly day of rest it is because we are finite and limited. 

We are created for work, yes. But we are also created for rest.