Rev. Jeremy preached a very powerful and relevant message on the weekend of the 15&16th of this month. He challenged all of us to take a careful look at the significance, meaning and purpose of the Sabbath and why the Lord commanded us to observe it.
The key verse is what Jesus said in Mark 2:27, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” When observed with the correct intent, Sabbath liberate and frees us. It was never intended to burden us.
Sabbath in the Hebrew means “to cease”. We need to cease from our normal responsibilities, activities, ministries and work. Why?
There are 3 practical reasons for keeping the Sabbath.
1. Sabbath is creating UNHURRIED time and space to distance ourselves from the frenzy of our own activities so we can see what God has done and is doing. At the end of the day, after all is said and done, we need to recognize and remind ourselves that it was not us but God working in and through us. This is truly liberating.
WE NEED TO RE-FOCUS OUR EYES.
2. Sabbath-keeping is quieting our noisy hearts so that we can hear the still small voice of our Lord. It is intentionally uprooting the sense of self-importance so that we can discern the presence of Christ.
WE NEED TO RE-TUNE our EARS. It is the “ONE thing” that Mary chose and Martha missed because she was too busy and distracted by all the serving.
3. Sabbath-keeping is separating ourselves from the people who are clinging to us, from the routines to which we cling to for our identity and surrendering them all up to God afresh.
It’s the NEED to RE-ALIGN our HEARTS.
When we take the Sabbath seriously, we cultivate the spiritual discipline that brings RESTORATION to our inner life.
Rev. Timothy Chow
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