Why does God want a Sabbath?

“Keep holy the Sabbath!” is Yahweh’s command to creation since time began. What’s behind God’s insistence that we take a day off? He is quite clear in the book of Deuteronomy: “Six days you may labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord, your God. You shall not do any work…”

We can see how emphatic the Lord’s mandate. And God includes everyone not just humans: laborers, donkeys, farm animals, slaves, hired aliens, guests, and many more.  The Lord exempts   no one from this decree.

Why? Is God just trying to be a kind and thoughtful creator who considers our welfare? Or is God simply providing us with special time to spend with our families, the principle reason why we work in the first place?  It’s probably all this and more for we do not know or understand the mind and heart of God.

I believe God, our Father wants the Sabbath observed to provide sacred moments for rest, reflection, and remembering who God is. What blessings our creator has bestowed on us!  And to furnish us with an opportunity to say thanks for our many gifts of love, life, and companionship  God donates daily.

These gifts freely given help us to deepen our love for God inspiring us to remember we are God’s children.  And as God’s family, we work with God to build his kingdom.

Realizing our purpose, we understand better the meaning of our experiences. God feeds these daily experiences hoping we seek their meaning to enrich ourselves and add to the greater glory of God.  

God knows we can easily get caught up in the doing of our work and forget to take the quiet time to go deeper. Sabbath provides this opportunity. Sabbath is about us and God’s desire to show his love for us.

Sabbath is about resting, but more about reflecting and remembering that everything God does for us costs nothing except a single  thank you Lord every once in a while.  Sabbath  provides this moment and the perfect way to “keep holy the Sabbath!”