What Makes You Think You're Stronger Than Jesus?

Many folks I know, including myself, tend to wear busyness on our sleeves as some kind of badge of honor. We live in a culture that values accomplishment and productivity.  Think about how we generally greet people we haven’t seen in awhile.  “What’s new?”  “What have you been up to?”  “How’s work?”  “How are the kids’ sports/music lessons/dance classes/other endless activities going?”

Don’t get me wrong.  Those can be good things; even Godly things.  It’s good to work, especially when our work blesses and benefits others.  It’s good to do fun things and have adventures with your family and loved ones.  It’s good to see our kids have fun playing sports and learning new things. 

But it’s also good to rest.  To unplug from all of our wireless and wired devices.  To shut off the TV and radio.  To cease from all of our running around for a time.  To take time where we don’t work.  Sadly, when I hear from many people, they’re almost apologetic for resting.  As if somehow not working and unplugging makes them feel guilty and less than human in some way. 

In one of today’s readings from Genesis 2 (following the For theLove of God daily reading plan by The Gospel Coalition) we see how important rest is.  We see that it’s important because it’s something that God Himself did after the work of creation.  When the work of creation was finished, v.v. 2&3 tell us “On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work.  And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation.”

If God rested from his work, what makes us think that we shouldn’t do the same?  Really now, do we think we’re stronger than God?  Do we really believe that rest is a curse and a guilty pleasure?  If we do, we’ve neglected to believe an important part of God’s Word.  A part of God’s Word that is life-giving; life-restoring and a blessing for us.

There’s something you should know about me.  I loathe New Year's Eve.  I don’t mind staying up late if there’s something I have to do, but I’ve never liked staying up late just for the sake of staying up late.  January 1 is just another day to me.  I was different than most kids in that I didn’t look forward to staying up late on New Year's Eve.  I’ve always been the type that is happy to go to bed early, when I’m tired. 

For many years, some very good and dear friends of ours have hosted a New Year's Eve party.  So I was thrilled when I received an e mail from those friends early this week saying that they wouldn’t be hosting their annual party.  I replied with a heart felt, “Woo Hoo!”  But our friends were very apologetic.  Their family has battled a lot of illness in the past several weeks and hadn’t had much time to rest.  They just wanted some time to spend together, quietly relaxing and having conversation with their kids.

I understood why they apologized.  Despite my disdain for New Year’s Eve I’ve grown to really enjoy their parties.  I’ll admit that I even began to look forward to their New Year’s Eve party.  As had many other people.  When I read their e mail, I understood their apology to their friends.  They love their friends and didn’t want to disappoint them.  But in my heart, I let out another hearty “Woo Hoo,” because my friends were choosing rest over busyness and activity because they needed to rest and relax.

In Mark 2 Jesus was in one of his many confrontations with the Pharisees.  This time, it was in regards to Sabbath keeping.  Jesus’ disciples were walking through some grain fields on the Sabbath and were breaking off heads of grain, which was a big affront to the Pharisees who were bent on making sure that people followed the letter of the law.  They complained in v.24 saying, "They shouldn't be doing that! It's against the law to work by harvesting grain on the Sabbath."  Jesus answered their complaint in v.27 by saying, "The Sabbath was made to benefit people, and not people to benefit the Sabbath.”

Just as God made us to work and enjoy life, He has also made us with a need to rest.  Jesus modeled this for us in his life as we find it recorded in the Gospels.  Jesus worked hard.  From the time he was a young boy until he began his public ministry at around age 30, he most likely worked as a carpenter with his dad Joseph.  That’s hard work!  No power tools and cordless drills.  Just raw strength and lots of sweat. 

Even after Jesus began his ministry, he was busy and worked hard.  He walked from town to town to announce that the Kingdom of God had come.  He preached to crowds of thousands.  He performed miracles.  He loved people and spent time with them.  And he also rested.  Luke 5:16 tells us that “Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.”

God invites us into Sabbath rest for our own benefit.  You’ve heard the cliché before: There aren’t any dying people that say, “I wish I would have worked more.”  Work is good and beneficial, and so is Sabbath rest. 

I’m not going to get into the semantics of debating when Sabbath rest should happen, because as a practical matter picking one specific day a week for the whole world to rest doesn’t work, and Sabbath rest was made for our benefit and blessing, not to be a burden.   But I do want to encourage you to consider the rhythm of your life as you begin a new year.  Is Sabbath rest a regular part of your life?  I’m not talking about sitting in front of the TV or spending hours on Facebook, Twitter or surfing the internet. 

I’m talking about intentional time in your life that is set aside to unplug from work; unplug from distractions; and to unplug from the demands of your life where your focus is on spending time with God and the important people in your life.  I know it’s a challenge for many of you, because it’s a challenge for me and my family to do this.  But when we are intentional about it, it’s a huge source of blessing for us.  Don’t fall into the trap of thinking you’re stronger than Jesus.  You’re not.  Don’t fall into the trap of feeling guilty for resting.  That’s from the world, not from Jesus.  Make resting and recharging a priority in your life in 2014 and see what God does through that time in your life.