Shabbat Shalom
Matthew 5:18 and Exodus 20:8-11 have me contemplating what my life will look like following sundown tonight until sundown tomorrow.
Even more importantly, Isaiah 58 has me contemplating what His Word proves is the “rest” that is “keeping it holy”.
Sabbath Rest:
“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!” – Matthew 5:17-20
“Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. For in six days the lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.” – Exodus 20:8-11
“Shout with the voice of a trumpet blast.Shout aloud! Don’t be timid.Tell my people Israel of their sins!Yet they act so pious!They come to the Temple every dayand seem delighted to learn all about me.They act like a righteous nationthat would never abandon the laws of its God.They ask me to take action on their behalf,pretending they want to be near me.‘We have fasted before you!’ they say.‘Why aren’t you impressed?We have been very hard on ourselves,and you don’t even notice it!’“I will tell you why!” I respond.“It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves.Even while you fast,you keep oppressing your workers.What good is fastingwhen you keep on fighting and quarreling?This kind of fastingwill never get you anywhere with me.You humble yourselvesby going through the motions of penance,bowing your headslike reeds bending in the wind.You dress in burlapand cover yourselves with ashes.Is this what you call fasting?Do you really think this will please the lord?“No, this is the kind of fasting I want:Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;lighten the burden of those who work for you.Let the oppressed go free,and remove the chains that bind people.Share your food with the hungry,and give shelter to the homeless.Give clothes to those who need them,and do not hide from relatives who need your help.“Then your salvation will come like the dawn,and your wounds will quickly heal.Your godliness will lead you forward,and the glory of the LORD will protect you from behind.Then when you call, the LORD will answer.‘Yes, I am here,’ he will quickly reply.“Remove the heavy yoke of oppression.Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!Feed the hungry,and help those in trouble.Then your light will shine out from the darkness,and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon.The LORD will guide you continually,giving you water when you are dryand restoring your strength.You will be like a well-watered garden,like an ever-flowing spring.Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities.Then you will be known as a rebuilder of wallsand a restorer of homes.“Keep the Sabbath day holy.Don’t pursue your own interests on that day,but enjoy the Sabbathand speak of it with delight as the lord’s holy day.Honor the Sabbath in everything you do on that day,and don’t follow your own desires or talk idly.Then the LORD will be your delight.I will give you great honorand satisfy you with the inheritance I promised to your ancestor Jacob.I, the lord, have spoken!” – Isaiah 58:1-14
Shabbat (/ʃəˈbɑːt/; Hebrew: שַׁבָּת [ʃa’bat], “rest” or “cessation”) or Shabbos ([‘ʃa.bəs], Yiddish: שבת) or the Sabbath is Judaism‘s day of rest and seventh day of the week, on which religious Jews and certain Christians (such as Seventh-day Adventists and Seventh Day Baptists) remember the Biblical creation of the heavens and the earth in six days and the Exodus of the Hebrews, and look forward to a future Messianic Age. Shabbat observance entails refraining from work activities, often with great rigor, and engaging in restful activities to honor the day. Judaism’s traditional position is that unbroken seventh-day Shabbat originated among the Jewish people, as their first and most sacred institution, though some suggest other origins. Variations upon Shabbat are widespread in Judaism and, with adaptations, throughout the Abrahamic and many other religions.
According to halakha (Jewish religious law), Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until the appearance of three stars in the sky on Saturday night.[1] Shabbat is ushered in by lighting candles and reciting a blessing. Traditionally, three festive meals are eaten: in the evening, in the early afternoon, and late in the afternoon. The evening meal typically begins with a blessing called kiddush and another blessing recited over two loaves of challah. Shabbat is closed the following evening with a havdalah blessing. Shabbat is a festive day when Jews exercise their freedom from the regular labors of everyday life. It offers an opportunity to contemplate the spiritual aspects of life and to spend time with family.
Biblical Sabbath is a weekly day of rest or time of worship. It is observed differently in Judaism and Christianity and informs a similar occasion in several other faiths. Though many viewpoints and definitions have arisen over the millennia, most originate in the same textual tradition of “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy“.
Observation and remembrance of Sabbath is one of the Ten Commandments (the fourth in the original Jewish, the Eastern Orthodox, and most Protestant traditions, the third in Roman Catholic and Lutheran traditions), sometimes referred to individually as the Sabbath Commandment. Most people who observe Biblical Sabbath regard it as having been instituted as a perpetual covenant for the people of Israel (Ex. 31:13-17, Ex. 23:12, Deut. 5:13-14), a rule that also applies to proselytes, and a sign respecting two events: the seventh day, during which God rested after having completed Creation in six days (Gen. 2:2-3, Ex. 20:8-11), and God’s deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt (Deut. 5:12-15).
Harold J. Ballinger 