Pushing Pause: A Rhythm of Rest
In part one of this series, Major Mat Badger offers a timely and persuasive biblical framework for Sabbath rest. As New Testament followers of Jesus, there is something deeply attractive about the practice of slowing down to be with God, particularly for Christians living in the fast-paced, open 24/7, digitally-driven 21st century.
How are you doing? A simple question, and usually ‘good’ or ‘fine’ just rolls off the tongue. But how often do we take that question seriously and give an honest answer? How often do we want an honest answer? But an honest answer often reveals that many people are tired—some deeply fatigued. Others are anxious, stressed and busy—including followers of Jesus.
Have you noticed that in the world of today, being a workaholic is socially acceptable? In fact, the one commandment that we consistently break and often brag about breaking is the commandment to rest. We wear our busyness like a badge, and all but dismiss the commandment to rest. Why?
When we say we are busy, what we are trying to say (without being entirely cognisant of it) is that we matter. We’re trying to communicate that we are contributing and that what we do has value. Society reinforces this dangerous idea that if you are not busy then you don’t have value. This toxic way of thinking is harming us. John Ortberg writes, ‘Busyness is not just a disordered schedule, but a disordered heart’.
If you are reading this, you are likely a Salvationist or connected somehow with the work of The Salvation Army. And we are an activist movement! The service we provide to the wider community, and ministry to one another, is immensely important. We boldly claim that we are the Army that brings life! And yet burnout persists in our ranks and with our staff. This is not what we want, and so we need to give serious thought and attention to how we can reverse this trend.
Corrie ten Boom famously said, ‘If the devil can’t make us bad, he’ll make us busy’. Both busyness and sin dull our awareness of the Holy Spirit and cut us off from the life God has planned for us. This is why proactive rest God’s way—soul rest—is important for all of us.
First things first
In the Bible, Genesis 1 starts ‘In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth… God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day’ (v31). And in Genesis 2:1–3 we read, ‘Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.’
Notice that God rested. God rested. Take that in for a moment! God rested. The word ‘rested’ is ‘shabbat’ (sha-vot) in Hebrew. It is where we get the word Sabbath from, and it literally means to stop. To cease. To finish. God wasn’t worn out or burnt out. The idea is that the rest God chose was something enjoyable. In fact, the word ‘shabbat’ can also be translated as ‘delight’.
Rabbis point out that the use of language here is odd, because not only did God rest, but by resting he created rest. Rest comes from God. It was God’s idea. God worked for six days and then he rested, and in doing so he built a rhythm of rest into the fabric of creation. And God extends the invitation to us.
Interestingly, studies show that human productivity drops off around the 50-hour mark in any week—which is of course about six days of work. A reputable American study showed that Seventh-day Adventists live 11 years longer than the average person in America. A doctor calculated that if you add up the time devoted to practising Sabbath it comes to about 11 years. He hypothesised that for every day you Sabbath, you get that day added back to your lifespan!
When we choose not to rest, or to practise any resemblance of Sabbath, we suffer the consequences. We may experience anxiety, sleeplessness, persistent illness, high blood pressure, a lousy immune system, poor mental health, burnout and even shallow relationships and a sense of disconnectedness from others and God. If we are not intentional about rest, sickness becomes Sabbath. As one teacher put it: ‘You can’t fight Sabbath rhythm any more than you can fight gravity—it just is.’
Blessed and holy
In Genesis we see that God blesses three things: animals, people and the Sabbath. The blessing given in the first two instances is the ability to procreate—be fruitful and multiply. In the case of the Sabbath, the principle is the same. God blesses the Sabbath to give us life through rest.
Not only does God bless the Sabbath, but God also makes it holy. This is the first time the word ‘holy’ appears in the Bible. Scholars suggest that when something is first mentioned, it is essentially a definition.
Furthermore, what we miss as 21st century followers of Jesus is that to those first listeners in the ancient Near East, the fact that God blessed and made holy a period of time was of huge significance and even controversial. In the ancient Near East, the gods and goddesses were found in a physical space like a temple or a mountain shrine, but not in time. The seventh day that God blesses and makes holy is not physical architecture but the architecture of time itself. This is what separates the God of the Bible from all other gods. There is no need to climb a mountain or go on a pilgrimage, we just need to stop and rest—God is right here, right now, in the architecture of time itself.
So Sabbath is coming, whether we choose it or not. Rest will come either through proactive and intentional soul rest, or it will be forced on us through sickness or burnout. What choice will you make? Will it be a Sabbath of delight or of brokenness? Will you welcome it or fight it? Is there an invitation for you to reduce your speed—slow down and stop for a while—to find rest for your soul in God’s presence?
Read Part Two
Based on a sermon series given at Johnsonville Corps. For full sermons, go to tinyurl.com/TSAJohnsonville
Mat’s recommended reading: The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer. Buy at tinyurl.com/JMCEliminateHurry
