Rest and Recovery: Living in God's Rhythm of Health and Wholeness by: Dr. Carl Hofmann "Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work" Exodus 20:10 Introduction A cycling coach once said: "You don't get stronger on the bike by riding; you get stronger by resting." It's a provocative statement--and it's counterintuitive. The coach meant that your body uses your rest day to repair and develop itself after your hard training sessions. The rest day is when you recover and when your body heals itself, lays down new capillaries, builds more muscle fibers, and does many other things--all so that you can grow stronger and fitter. It's a principle that God has hard-wired into human beings. If we work all the time we run ourselves down--we over-train, we burn out, we get sick. It's true in most areas of life. But if we rest and recover, as God has intended, we live in a healthy rhythm that strengthens all aspects of our lives. Bible Passages The Ten Commandments are the basic owner's manual for healthy life. They governed Jewish living--and they shaped Jesus's life and practice. But Jesus gave fuller meaning and corrected some extreme interpretations of these commands, too. Exodus 20:8-11 “Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work. 10 But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.” Deuteronomy 5:12 “Observe the sabbath day and keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. 13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work. 14 But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, or your son or your daughter, or your male or female slave, or your ox or your donkey, or any of your livestock, or the resident alien in your towns, so that your male and female slave may rest as well as you. 15 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there
with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the sabbath day.” Questions 1) What is similar in the Exodus and Deuteronomy versions of the Fourth Commandment? What's different?
2) Who gets to rest in these commandments? Why is that important?
3) By the time of Jesus, many Jewish religious leaders were demanding very stringent Sabbathkeeping practices for their people. Jesus lived in a way that challenged their teaching and practice. Read Matthew 12:1-8. What principles stand out in Jesus's reinterpretation of Sabbathkeeping? Application 1) How might the rhythm of work and rest that God builds into the human week of seven days be a gift to us--and a healthy practice?
2) How might taking a regular day of rest provide us with proper perspective--on our identity, our relationships, on God, and on what's most important in our lives?
3) Worship, prayer, Bible learning, time with other Christians--these are all practices that many Christians use on their day of rest to keep them centered. What practices are you currently employing for this purpose? What new practices might you want to incorporate? Go Deeper Read one of these brief articles and reflect on some of the questions raised: http:// www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/2012/08/08/sabbath-and-culture/ http://www.practicingourfaith.org/keeping-sabbath
