Sabbath as Worship

“So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.” Genesis 2:31

It’s extraordinary—the God of the universe, the one who created it all, took a break.

Not because He needed to.

He’s a God of infinite power. God never lays his head down on the pillow at night in exhaustion.

And yet, when He created the world, He set apart a day of rest. No working. No creating. Nothing. And in doing so, He created a precedence for us, a Sabbath day.

It’s something only He could do because only He can make something holy—or set apart for a special purpose.

We cannot make a thing holy before the Lord.

In Genesis, God declared himself Lord of the Sabbath and that means we should enjoy that Sabbath as part of His kingdom reign. Enjoying the Sabbath is a part of our worship.

In laying aside our intentions, our work, our to-do lists, and ourselves, we honor his Lordship.This is countercultural, because our culture says one of two things:

1. Work, work, work. If you stop, you lose.
2. Rest, rest, rest. Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die.

The Sabbath is neither of these. It is distinct, because it worships God—not man—as its founder, sustainer, and the One to be enjoyed.

God created us, and He knew we would have a hard time slowing down. He knew, in all his infinite wisdom that we would struggle to protect time – especially an entire day – as a Holy day dedicated only to Him.

How incredible that we have a Creator who set aside time on our behalf? It means He designed it for our partaking. So, take the time, and enjoy.

Happy Sabbath-ing, my friends.

Today’s devotion by Jordan Loftis, bestselling author of Today We Win and editor of Short Daily Devotions.