All technology seems to have added speed and noise. We are running around frenetic and the pressure is on the family. God has given us a recipe to deal with restless homes. The jungle is in the home rather than the outside. God has given us a day of rest. Many of us do not use it. I want to talk about how to make the rest day the best day.

God has given us the Lord’s Day – which is the transformation of the Sabbath into something even more wonderful. The very name Sabbath means “rest”. There are three rests in the Bible.

• The creation rest. See Genesis 2:1-3. Does God get tired? See Isaiah 48:28. God’s rest has been disturbed – when man sinned. John 5:17.
• The covenant rest. See Exodus 31:13-16. This pertains to the nation of Israel. It was a Saturday. If you broke the Sabbath you were put to death! The Sabbath does not apply to the church today. You should not try to live under the Sabbath. You are chasing shadows. The Jews found 1,521 ways to break the Sabbath! E.g. They would not eat an egg laid on the Sabbath! They made a blessing a burden.
• The Calgary rest. See Colossians 2:1-17 & Hebrews 12:10. The Sabbath was a shadow that pointed to the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus came to create a new creation. The Sabbath day was a shadow of what was to come. Look in the New Testament and see what happens on the first day of the week. It is the most important day of the week. Ask God what you should do with the Lord’s Day – it is extra special. It is timeout for God.

1 – Holy

Take time to be holy and worship on the Lord’s Day. We are not to forsake the gathering of ourselves together. On every Lord’s Day we need to set aside time to come to church and worship. Start getting ready on Saturday for the Lord’s Day.

2 – Healthy

Rest on this day. You need to teach children to work on the six days. Take a nap on the Lord’s Day! If the ox keeps falling in the ditch then maybe you need to kill the ox or fill in the ditch! Slow down, take a day. Let it be the Lord’s Day.

3 – Happy

Sunday ought to be the happiest day of the week. You know why? Jesus came out of the grave on Sunday. Every Lord’s Day is an Easter! It is the Lord’s Day – it is a time of joy. It is a time for family – music, books and conversation. It is a day of liberty – to do the things that God wants us to do.

Categories: Exodus