Sabbath rest II – cultivating restfulness (Matt 11:28-30)

In my last post, I reflected on the background to the Sabbath command within the OT, today I consider what we do with such a command. Should Christians keep a rest-day? Should it be on Saturday or Sunday? What should such rest involve, and does it matter at all? The implementation of this command is perhaps the most debated of the Ten commandments. Among early Christians it was a grey area that was left up to individual conviction and conscience (Rom 14:5; Col 2:16-17).

Just as Sabbath for Israel expressed rest from hard labour and slavery, so Jesus also did many of His healings on this day to indicate a time of redemption from sin and release from bondage (e.g. Luke 13:15-16). The Sabbath, as the sign of the Sinai covenant (Exod 31:16-17), foreshadowed this fuller redemption reaching completion in Jesus. It can still be meaningful for Christians to keep a day of rest then, as a reminder of this new reality and many do so on Sunday when Jesus was raised from the dead. In our practice it is helpful to remember Jesus’ attitude, who took issue with the Pharisees when their rules around the Sabbath became another form of bondage and beat the purpose of the day (e.g. Mk 2:27). Any ‘sabbath rest’ whether on Saturday or Sunday should express the joy of redemption rather than become a new set of restrictions.

Interestingly, Hebrews 4 uses the Sabbath concept not as a practice for one particular day but as a principle of living. Rest, if you remember from my last post, meant the maintenance of the divine order God created in the world. This in practice required obedience to God’s ways. Although offered rest in the land, Israel worshipped other gods and caused chaos through their sinful actions. As a result they came repeatedly under the oppression of foreign powers. Sin always leads to chaos and enslavement. Thus, the promise of rest is offered once again to God’s redeemed people, the Church (Jews and Gentiles alike). What does it mean then to enter into God’s rest and how does one cultivate an attitude of restfulness? Jesus says,

²⁸ Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. (Matt 11:28-30)

In the OT, wisdom is personified as a woman who calls out at the cross-roads and promises blessing and life to those who follow her instructions (Prov 8:1-4; 32-36; 9:1-6). Jeremiah uses similar language calling people back to a life obedient to God, which will lead to rest (Jer 6:16), a verse quoted by Jesus. Significantly, Jesus applies the language of wisdom to Himself. He is the source of all wisdom. The imagery of a yoke for Jews carried a variety of associations. It evoked slavery (E.g. Isa 9:4; 10:27) but was also used by the rabbis of Torah (Law/instruction) in a positive sense as a delight and joy. The yoke Jesus speaks of is not an oppressive one; rather He uses the metaphor of a human yoke that helped distribute the weight on the shoulders and enabled carrying loads.[1]

In our lives we may feel burdened by so much: anxieties over living at a time of a global pandemic, desires that clamour for fulfilment, the entanglement of sinful habits, a sense of isolation or not being understood or loved, stresses of a heavy workload, health, the loss of loved ones, tensions in relationships – the possibilities are endless. Jesus’ promise of rest touches our hearts like a soothing balm. He invites us not simply to follow a set of rules but to learn from Him as a person. There are godly people who radiate something of the Lord’s peace and presence, so that when we meet them, we feel reassured, re-centred in God with our desires awakened to live like they do. This is the life of discipleship that Jesus calls us into, where we live in harmony with God’s created order in trust and faithfulness and find rest and hope.

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[1] R.T. France, The Gospel of Matthew, NICNT (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007), 449.

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