command Three | Sabbath

command 3 | Sabbath

Our lives prove it is impossible for us not to worship idols

Our lives prove it is impossible for us not to take the Lord’s name in vain

We are 0-2

How about c3, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy”

Might want to go ahead and update your righteousness record to 0-3

As part of the Mosaic Covenant, the Sabbath was initiated as part of the law for the children of Israel. 

It mimicked God’s work/rest rhythm in the creation story

Basically, it was work 6 days, but on the 7th, do not work, but rest

Do not work

Do not let your kids work

Do not let your animals work

Complete rest for you and yours

Double manna the day before, so do not even pick up the honey bread

We, like the Israelites, are addicted to work

Busyness, often equated with righteousness

Exhaustion, a symbol of righteousness

Shame, often attached to needing a break or taking a rest

America leads the world in unused vacation days

Used vacation days, gobbled up by the office we hold in our hands

Work is a good thing, unless we make it a god thing

First thing we see God do in the Bible is work

God then puts Adam and Eve to work

Work is not a post-Genesis 3 curse

Work is a pre-Genesis 3 gift, though it is cursed with “thorns and thistles and expense reports”

Work is a good thing, unless we make it a god thing

Made a god, work collapses like Tower 2

Work cannot give us the endless affirmation, significance, and security our soul demands and aches for

Worshipping work, and the “other god’’ of productivity, is a self-salvation strategy

Works Righteousness is the sole enemy of the Gospel

Believing I can attain lasting affirmation, significance, and security by working more and working harder is idolatry

You and I are not the authors of our work ethic

You and I did not equip ourselves with our skills, talents, and experiences

You and I are not the authors of our work at all

You and I are not the owners of our income

You and I do not ultimately even work for whoever pays our paycheck

God is the one who provides for us

He is currently using your current employer to do so, but make no mistake

To have kept, be keeping and in the future keep c3,

perfectly requires that our identities and our work in the past, present, and future have been, are, and will be perfectly aligned. 

If for one second you were more of a Human Doing, than a Human Being 

If you have ever sought validation through work

If, one time, you have put your trust and hope in your job to provide for you security

Join me over here in the 0-3 column, there’s plenty of room

It is so ingrained in us that we can’t resist upon meeting someone for the first time, breaking the ice with, “So, what do you do?”

Thankfully, Jesus IS our Sabbath Rest

We can rest because of His work

When Jesus declared on the cross, “It is Finished!”

It relieved the burden to win, get ahead, and stay on top of everything

And it established a Gospel Freedom from work

It created a Gospel Distance from work

We can not labor and love from approval, not for it

That is true freedom

A Gospel Freedom that will allow you to be a beast at work AND have great relationships because you are not expecting either to be God for you.

Grindforth!…From Rest, not for it. Rest is a person.

Pastor Max Lucado recently revealed he got the word “tetelestai,” Greek for “it is finished,” tattooed on his right forearm at the age of 70 to commemorate the “golden anniversary of God’s great grace” in his life.

“I’m celebrating the golden anniversary of God’s great grace in my life. 50 years ago this spring, grace found me. My testimony is interwoven with my favorite word in the Bible. On the cross Christ proclaimed, ‘It is finished!’ (Jn. 19:30) In Greek — ‘Tetelestai!’ Among the meanings of this word is, ‘paid in full,’” the Oak Hills Church pastor captioned photos on social media displaying his tattoo.

“This was the message that changed my life. I was a 20-year old scoundrel, a bum, a train off the tracks. My priority was six-packs; not the kind that come from crunches, but from Coors. Friends, I was a mess. Not only was I drunk, I was a racist, a misogynist, a brawler, and a schemer. Worst of all, I was a hypocrite. I wondered, honestly wondered, could Christ forgive a jerk like me?”Pastor Max Lucado recently revealed he got the word “tetelestai,” Greek for “it is finished,” tattooed on his right forearm at the age of 70 to commemorate the “golden anniversary of God’s great grace” in his life.

“I’m celebrating the golden anniversary of God’s great grace in my life. 50 years ago this spring, grace found me. My testimony is interwoven with my favorite word in the Bible. On the cross Christ proclaimed, ‘It is finished!’ (Jn. 19:30) In Greek — ‘Tetelestai!’ Among the meanings of this word is, ‘paid in full,’” the Oak Hills Church pastor captioned photos on social media displaying his tattoo.

“This was the message that changed my life. I was a 20-year old scoundrel, a bum, a train off the tracks. My priority was six-packs; not the kind that come from crunches, but from Coors. Friends, I was a mess. Not only was I drunk, I was a racist, a misogynist, a brawler, and a schemer. Worst of all, I was a hypocrite. I wondered, honestly wondered, could Christ forgive a jerk like me?”