After Pentecost Devotional - Day 62

“Jesus finished by saying, 'People were not made for the good of the Sabbath. The Sabbath was made for the good of the people.'” Mark 2:27

I remember being told as pastor of a church in rural Virginia that I should not mow the grass on Sunday afternoon. Some people would consider it work and would be upset that the pastor of the church was mowing on a Sunday.

At the time, I bowed to the expectation, determining that it was not worth fighting over something so mundane. Perhaps, though, I performed a disservice to that congregation by allowing them to dictate what was appropriate activity for a pastor on Sunday.

I could have made a point of the fact that Sunday was a workday for me. I could have made a point of the fact that mowing my lawn had nothing to do with earning a living, which is what the Sabbath rest was about. I could have referenced Jesus' teaching about the Sabbath being a respite from the week's labor, trusting God's provision to be sufficient to allow me that respite. I could have pointed out that Sunday is not the Sabbath, but that the Sabbath was Saturday.

While I did not respond in any of those ways, I did end up preaching about the Sabbath as a testament to God's generous provision for our needs, quite apart from our mantras about hard work. Sabbath is a declaration that God's provision goes beyond our efforts and myths of hard work paying off. Sure, hard work is part of our day to day experience. God's provision and generosity, however, are not tied inextricably and directly to our labor.

There is more to the issue, however. What Jesus was getting at in part is that God's decrees are not some declarations of whim. God does not establish laws that make no sense. God's directions are based upon purpose. They are designed to carry us where we need to be. They signal what it means to live lives of faith, love, and caring for one another in community. They are the design for a society that is built upon an outlook that is wholly other than that of needing to step on others to get ahead.

Sabbath is simply one aspect of that package. It is a reminder that God grants us with enough resources to care for our own needs, as well as those of others. It is a reminder that in spite of our best efforts we do not control all the outcomes. It is a reminder that even when we do not accomplish all we would like or believe we should that God steps in to bring sufficiency to the equation.

Sabbath does not mean that all our dreams, desires, and ideals are and will be fulfilled. It means, however, that life is not simply about working to meet our issues of economic security. It means that life is more than getting all the weeds out of the garden, making sure every section of fencing is in place, and gathering every last bit of produce out of the field. It means that life is also to be lived in family around the hearth, at our weekly gatherings for study and worship, and enjoying the fruits of our labor.

We can abuse God's directions, turning them into burdens. We can also learn to grasp that God wants us to live a little, relying on more than what we can see and do.

Take a moment to assess your attitudes about God's instructions.


"Lord, grant me the wisdom to see that following your will is also for my own benefit."

—©Copyright 2016, Christopher B. Harbin

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