Ever since MeRF to Grace OPC, this issue seems to have come up a few times.
Rejecting female pastors is one thing, I would too, though I doubt I am of the same stance with them on that issue as well. I think for many of them, they just can't stand seeing a woman on top on them while their excuse is the scripture. So they trapped themselves in the legalism of words. But as for me, I reject pastoral ordination for women at the same time, I also recognize female pastors. I noticed that trying to explain this simple stand fails on stubborn ears when they treat this principle of God in a legalistic manner.
Then there is this notion of equating official church membership to the communion of the Saints, and such without which, the official membership, one should not be partaking holy communion. I took the communion for one: I've been member of a few churches, and other than the church in Penang where I was baptized and thus automatically officiated my membership, I think, the other churches I have been to automatically entered me into membership themselves after regular attendance. Secondly, I consider I'm a member of the visible Church, that is among all Christians on this planet. The strict principle they have on this seems to be grounded on the fact that, if one were not a member, then the pastor can't use ex-communication to discipline one. I reject this, if one were not a member, one is still under submission to local church authority when one is in that church. It's still not hard to exercise discipline in this case. There maybe other "excuses", but this is enough. What then if you take away one's membership? Would you bar him or her from enter the church? Thus, this futile play of words over rules traps them yet again in legalism.
As for the Sabbath, here I post Dr. Stephen Tong's responses first (Source) and extract main points from it after in English:
Verses to consider:
Mark 2:27 The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath
John 20:19-20 Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord.
问； 耶稣因为安息日做工的问题让很多人不明白，为什么安息日不安息，还要做工呢？耶稣说；「在安息日做善事是可以的。」如果是这样，试问；「既然上帝歇了祂的工，那我们这些活在与神同工同行的生命中的信徒还有什么善事要去做的。」若要我们在安息日做善事，岂不是无法与神同工，也没有神同在的期间独自去行，我们岂能胜过撒但的拦阻与攻击呢？
答：你完全误会了。耶稣基督说「你安息日的时候，如果有一只牛掉到井里，你要不要拉上来？或者让它死？」（参：路加福音：14 章 5 节）；如果连牛你都不要让它死，那么，请问如果是人掉在坑里，你能不能说「因为安息日，所以我就让他死，因为明天才是工作日。今天神安息我也安息，我一工作，神不会帮我工作，我现在孤立独行，没有神的同在？」然而；耶稣基督在这里不是妥协；耶稣基督在这里要告诉你，「安息日是为人而设立的，人不是为安息日而设立的。」「主动 性」的问题，「意义」的问题。安息日要人休息的原因是要人与神有交通，有合一得到更大的能力，或更大的意义所以叫作「安息日」。安息日不是叫你什么事情都不做，你就以为你与神一样是很同心的，不是的。所以我认为我的安息，不是别的传道人的安息，安息年，一整年不做工，我不是那种安息。我很安息，我的安息是什么？心中的平静、平安，这个安息是我的安息。 有时候会因为环境的不同，或是事情的不同，神还会给人另一种安息；比如说；“我刚在(乙）这儿讲完道，（甲）那边就催我赶紧过去，我就急急忙忙往那儿赶，可是在这期间没有车或飞机，我自己又不能飞过去，怎么办，只好等，这样也是一种安息；是神为我预备的一种安息；其实我感觉我的生命是很安息的，你们看我很紧张，很辛苦，但是我知道怎样过一个平静安稳，在主面前享受安息的生活。你为我这样的事感谢上帝吗？所以我再加五倍的工作量（如果时间够），我也不会紧张。我感到能够对更多的人产效应，更荣耀上帝。如果聚会的数量大十倍，为什么不要？如果有可能对一万人讲道，为什么满意对一百个人？你明白我的意思吗？假如你对一万讲道，可是没有人认真听，个个吵吵闹闹；假如你对五个人讲，而且大家很注意听，当然是五个人好。这都要因着当时的情况而定。这其中也有神对我们负责的一种安息。但是如果是几万人的布道大会，却安静的一点声音都没有，只会听到讲台上讲道人的声音，如果是这样，为什么不可以呢? 所以这也是神给我们预备的又一种安息。如果你说「对一个人讲道他能听进去而且能听明白。好，那就对一个人讲；如果有一万个人可以这样听也是可以听得很清楚，那为什么不能？这样会更好是可以的。所以我一定要好好做，如果有同心的人一同做，我们就一同做。因为每一年人口增加这么多，听福音的人却越来越少，那每一年下地狱的人就越来越多。我们真的是爱灵魂，真的是爱主的工作，一定要事半功倍尽量利用时间，利用各样的可能性 来做更大的可能的工作。 那么；上帝为什么歇了工作进入安息呢？那不是给撒但可趁的机会来攻击吗？完全不是的。「上帝安息」，这就是说「创造不是永恒的」，创造的工作到了一段以后，以后上帝就继续用施恩，照顾，交通被造之物与祂产生关系，所以圣经提到了「安息日」，后来希伯来书又提到了「那安息」，「那安息」就是真正在安息的意义，不是没有事情做才叫作「安息」。上帝到了第六天做完了祂的工，第七天祂就安息了，这个安息就是享受，也可以使被造的与祂之间有一个交通，所以我们到了七日的第一日我们安息了，我们来到上帝的面前。但是有些人也按着字句性来理解安息日日本人就利用美国人享受形式中的（安息日），疏于战备的时候成功的偷袭了珍珠港。这时候你说「最好没有安息日，就可以不给他偷袭了」，这样说也不完全对，也不是这个意思，其实安息日还是要有人轮流值班的的。如果说，安息是完全什么都不顾的话，当然是很危险的事情，所以安息日的意义不是那样。我们对安息应该有更清楚的了解。犹太人的安息日是很严谨的，变成「字句性 」的安息日，结果变成「人就是为了安息日。」耶稣说「不是的，安息日是为了人。」所以律法是为了人，人不是为了律法。安息日是为了人，人不是为了安息日。 在犹太民族守安息日就比较认准字面性的，安息日嘛！什么都不要做。可是你知道吗？在特拉维夫有一个希尔顿，这希尔顿在起初做好了以后，几十层楼的旅馆，那怎么办呢？安息日是不可以按电梯的，你又是住在三十二层，难道你要走路走到上面吗？如果是这样，那你就真的「安息」了，因为累就累死了，永永远远安息了。所以怎么办呢？犹太人想尽了一切办法，结果想到一个办法，到了礼拜六安息日那一天，每一层楼都按电子显示自己停，你不必去按，你就跟着电子显示，什么时候轮到你住的哪一层楼的房间你就赶紧进去，......。所以如果你住三十二层，你要等它开关三十二次你才到你的房间，用这个办法。而耶稣基督对安息日的看法不是这样。所以我说耶稣基督的安息日是 paradoxical sabbath，是反合性的安息日，是以「人」为重，不是以「日」为重，因为上帝曾经说「我厌烦你们的安息日，我厌烦你们的祭物」【参：以赛亚书：1 章 13 节】。上个礼拜我提到了这个事情，所以不能把日子当作是最重要的。保罗也说「我为那些守日子的人感到惧怕」（参：加拉太书：4 章 10 - 11 节），因为他们已经把重要的丢掉了，把次要的当作重要的，已经把是非颠倒过来了。 问；上帝的律法既是永不废的，为什么绝大多数的基督徒都不守十诫里第七诫的安息日？而以其它一日来取代，这样不是违背律法和上帝的诫命吗？答：现在我要把这个问题解释详细一点。圣经里面第一次的安息日是上帝的安息日，人是没有份的。 第二种的安息日是模糊的安息日，就是从一直到摩西的时候，我们不知道谁守安息日，是模糊的。 第三、是律法中的安息日。律法中的安息是为了要记念上帝把他们的祖宗从埃及为奴之地领出来，所以要守安息日。所以第十条诫命所有的律例都是道德性 的，只有安息日是「日子性」的，你明白我的意思吗？而写安息日的时候有这句话，「你们要守安息日，要记念你们的祖宗曾经在埃及作奴仆。」好，现在我问你，你守安息日是不是记念你的祖父在埃及作奴仆？我问你啊？所以那个安息日是律法中的安息日，那个安息日跟我们是不一样的，因为我们的祖宗未曾在埃及作奴仆。这是第三个。 第四个安息日。就是等他们从巴比伦被掳七十年回来的时候，他们要另外守一种安息日记念他们曾经从巴比伦带回来。而这个安息日和这个律法中的安息日真正的意义就是从罪中被拯救出来享受赦罪平安的意义，所以这个是「预表」。所以「日子」不是真实的，日子不过是预表那个实体，那个实体就是因为与神和好，领受赦罪的平安的那种安息。 第五种安息日是「耶稣基督的安息日」，我叫它「反合性的安息日」。耶稣基督到底有没有守安息日？从犹太人来说，耶稣没有守。从我们基督徒来说，耶稣有守。因为耶稣基督反合性 的安息日他真正的意义是说，「安息日是为人设立的，人不是为安息日设立的」，这是第五种。 第六种的安息日是希伯来书所说的，「我使他们断不能进入那安息」，所以「那安息」就是「意义性 」的安息，是「属灵价值」的安息，不是日子，三百六十五天中间一天有二十四小时那种「日子」的安息。是「那安息」，是灵界的，是真正意义的安息。 最后，就是当耶稣基督再来的时候，我们永远在主里面与祂一同享受那永恒安息的安息。 所以你把这个弄清楚了，你就不认为我们如果在七日的第一日来敬拜上帝就是违背律法，因为这个说法是对「安息日（会）」的看法。不是我们基督徒学习的。【安息日（会）】的创立人是谁啊？你们知道吗？是【怀艾伦太太 (Ellen G. White)】。这个人从小是相当神经过敏，常常是歇斯底里的人，所以她有许多梦，有许多她认为是很特别的经验，有时候会惊叫，有时候会神经很不稳定的人。等到她大了，她把这些的经验当作是上帝给她的启示。不是来源于圣经。所以我对你们说「启示」这两个字不要随便用。今天很多灵恩派的人用「神启示我。」「神启示我。」；如果上帝真的启示你，你记下来，那我就多一本「启示录」了，因为你录下了启示嘛！把神对你的启示“录”下来不是「启示录」吗？所以这不能这样讲。 切记：安息日是为人而设立的，人不是为安息日而设立的。你把这个弄清楚了，你就不认为我们如果在七日的第一日来敬拜上帝就是违背律法，违背律法的说法是「安息日（会）」自己对圣经的理解错误而产生的那种看法。弟兄姊妹们千万不要解错了圣经，自讨苦吃。
The good points from Tong:
The Sabbath was made for man, not vice versa.
The True meaning of Sabbath - Able to find peace in the Lord, thus even in work, any work, one can find such rest, one must. Emphasis on peace, not rest. For such is joy in the Lord. Emphasis on rest is to justify indolence, and I've made my case in this writing how legalism is used to vindicate that. This is why preachers could preach on Sundays, Jesus could work on the Sabbath. I like the Chinese translation of Shabbat in this case: 安息日 denoting restful peace. In English, the word is transliterated, hence one would not know the meaning without studying Hebrew. The Jews know this rest, but unfortunately, without pondering on it's deeper meaning, they could only take the superficial meaning and abolish all works together, including pressing elevator buttons on Shabbat.
If we do nothing but keep ourselves in church fellowship and services the whole Sunday, that's great too, if we enjoy the presence God. But if what we enjoy is satisfaction in what we think we obey in scripture, legalistically, and perhaps even to the point of looking down on others who don't without any deeper communication and analysis, then it's bad. I think it is worse than those who stay for social reason, which is...bad as well. Bottom line, as long as one finds peace in the Lord on Sundays, it's good enough for me. And when I say "peace in the Lord", I don't mean some nonchalant ecstasy. It's a peace that grows one's faith and relationship with Christ in spirit and in truth.
A good point raised by Tong: that's why the Japanese took advantage of the American's complacent in the FORM (and not the meaning) of Sabbath. Well, I think, one, if unrepentant, would hate and put all blames on the Japanese for it, or worst, to deny God and abolish Sunday rest for good. If one fears the Lord however, would take this lesson to repentance and learn to be wiser, to impose shifts on Sundays.
Thus God said to the Jews and those who put too much emphasis on the form of days: Isaiah 1:13 and Galatians 4:10-11.
Thus Tong calls our Lord's Sabbath, the Paradoxical Sabbath! It centers on man, not on the day.
Now this is new and interesting:
Tong breaks the Sabbath down into 7 types:
1. God's sabbath, the first mention in the Bible, men cannot partake.
2. Blurry sabbath. That is, that which is assumed to be practiced until the time of Moses, the time of the Law. We do not know who kept this.
3. The Sabbath in the Law. The purpose of this is to commemorate their (Israel) deliverance from Egypt. Thus, this is the only commandment that is temporal while the other 9 are on moral. For gentiles, this is not the same kind of Sabbath we are observing, because "Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day" Deuteronomy 5:15 is for the Jews. We gentiles don't observe this Sabbath, which is the Sabbath in the Law, our ancestors were not slaves in Egypt.
4. Postexilic Sabbath: (Isaiah 14:1-3) After 70 of captivity in Babylon, the Jews observed a different kind of Sabbath, that which commemorates that they were brought back from Babylon. And these #3 & #4 types of Sabbath have a true meaning behind it: The deliverance from sin and to enjoy the peace of being forgiven. Such is a typology. God hinting on the true Sabbath. Thus, it's never about the day. The day is merely a typology to the truth: Being reconciled to God, the peace in receiving the forgiveness of sin - this kind of peaceful rest.
5. The Sabbath of Jesus Christ: The paradoxical Sabbath. Did Jesus observe Sabbath? Not according to the Jews. From Christian standpoint, yes He did, because Sabbath is made for man, not man for the Sabbath. [So saith the Lord of the Sabbath!] - my addition 😉
6. The Sabbath in the Book of Hebrews: Hebrews 3:11 - So I swore in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest. This is a spiritual one, not a temporal one. This is the one with the true meaning. It has nothing to do with the 24-hour days in a 365-day year.
7. The final Sabbath: When Jesus comes, we shall enjoy this Sabbath FOREVER, it's eternal, it has no specific days. It's every moment, it has no temporal boundary.
Although, from another source, #7 is combined with #6, and the missing # of all 7 types is The Sabbath that God hate:
第四个安息日是「上帝所厌烦的安息日。」
这意思是什么呢？就是律法中间的安息日，有名无实，有样无质；只有现象没有本质，只有名，但是没有实际。所以上帝说「我厌烦你们的安息日；我厌烦你们的祭物，你们的祭物千千的公羊，万万的油河（参：弥迦书：6章7节）对我有什么益处呢？我根本讨厌、恨恶你们的安息日。你们初一、十五，你们安息日献祭对我有什么益呢？」上帝说「我厌烦你们的安息日」，然后加上一句话，「听命胜于献祭」（撒母耳记上：15章22节）大家说「听命胜于献祭」。所以第四个安息日是被厌烦的，只有表样，没有实质的安息是神所不喜悦的事情。「你们敬拜我是枉然的，因为你们的嘴唇亲近我，你们的心却远离了我」（参：以赛亚书：29章13节；马太福音：15章8节；马可福音：7章6节）这是第四样。
Tong continues: Once you master this understanding, you wouldn't consider Sundays as the day of worship unbiblical, unlike the Adventists.
I call these legalism what they do, because they find comfort in these and never want to step deeper from their shallowness. When multiple challenging cases were presented to them, they became lost and played the "humility" heart: "I don't know much about this, I'm just trying to follow God's words". They want the words as a list of things to do but never consider the deep meaning behind them. They fail to ponder why "the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life" 2 Corinthians 3:6. Thus, this is why such denominations fail in growth, despite a good, very good stand on doctrine.
Also note: Colossians 2:16
Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath.
Got Question has a good response on this as well:
Question: "What day is the Sabbath, Saturday or Sunday? Do Christians have to observe the Sabbath day?"
Answer: It is often claimed that “God instituted the Sabbath in Eden” because of the connection between the Sabbath and creation in Exodus 20:11. Although God’s rest on the seventh day (Genesis 2:3) did foreshadow a future Sabbath law, there is no biblical record of the Sabbath before the children of Israel left the land of Egypt. Nowhere in Scripture is there any hint that Sabbath-keeping was practiced from Adam to Moses.
The Word of God makes it quite clear that Sabbath observance was a special sign between God and Israel: “The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from work and rested” (Exodus 31:16–17).
In Deuteronomy 5, Moses restates the Ten Commandments to the next generation of Israelites. Here, after commanding Sabbath observance in verses 12–14, Moses gives the reason the Sabbath was given to the nation Israel: “Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day” (Deuteronomy 5:15).
God’s intent for giving the Sabbath to Israel was not that they would remember creation, but that they would remember their Egyptian slavery and the Lord’s deliverance. Note the requirements for Sabbath-keeping: A person placed under that Sabbath law could not leave his home on the Sabbath (Exodus 16:29), he could not build a fire (Exodus 35:3), and he could not cause anyone else to work (Deuteronomy 5:14). A person breaking the Sabbath law was to be put to death (Exodus 31:15; Numbers 15:32–35).
An examination of New Testament passages shows us four important points: 1) Whenever Christ appears in His resurrected form and the day is mentioned, it is always the first day of the week (Matthew 28:1, 9, 10; Mark 16:9; Luke 24:1, 13, 15; John 20:19, 26). 2) The only times the Sabbath is mentioned from Acts through Revelation, the occasion is Jewish evangelism, and the setting is usually a synagogue (Acts chapters 13–18). Paul wrote, “To the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews” (1 Corinthians 9:20). Paul did not go to the synagogue to fellowship with and edify the saints, but to convict and save the lost. 3) After Paul states, “From now on I will go to the Gentiles” (Acts 18:6), the Sabbath is never again mentioned. And 4) Instead of suggesting adherence to the Sabbath day, the remainder of the New Testament implies the opposite (including the one exception to point 3, above, found in Colossians 2:16).
Looking more closely at point 4 above will reveal that there is no obligation for the New Testament believer to keep the Sabbath, and will also show that the idea of a Sunday “Christian Sabbath” is also unscriptural. As discussed above, there is one time the Sabbath is mentioned after Paul began to focus on the Gentiles, “Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ” (Colossians 2:16–17). The Jewish Sabbath was abolished at the cross where Christ “canceled the written code, with its regulations” (Colossians 2:14).
This idea is repeated more than once in the New Testament: “One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord” (Romans 14:5–6a). “But now that you know God — or rather are known by God — how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? You are observing special days and months and seasons and years” (Galatians 4:9–10).
But some claim that a mandate by Constantine in A.D. 321 “changed” the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. On what day did the early church meet for worship? Scripture never mentions any Sabbath (Saturday) gatherings by believers for fellowship or worship. However, there are clear passages that mention the first day of the week. For instance, Acts 20:7 states that “on the first day of the week we came together to break bread.” In 1 Corinthians 16:2 Paul urges the Corinthian believers “on the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income.” Since Paul designates this offering as “service” in 2 Corinthians 9:12, this collection must have been linked with the Sunday worship service of the Christian assembly. Historically Sunday, not Saturday, was the normal meeting day for Christians in the church, and its practice dates back to the first century.
The Sabbath was given to Israel, not the church. The Sabbath is still Saturday, not Sunday, and has never been changed. But the Sabbath is part of the Old Testament Law, and Christians are free from the bondage of the Law (Galatians 4:1-26; Romans 6:14). Sabbath keeping is not required of the Christian—be it Saturday or Sunday. The first day of the week, Sunday, the Lord’s Day (Revelation 1:10) celebrates the New Creation, with Christ as our resurrected Head. We are not obligated to follow the Mosaic Sabbath—resting, but are now free to follow the risen Christ—serving. The Apostle Paul said that each individual Christian should decide whether to observe a Sabbath rest, “One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind” (Romans 14:5). We are to worship God every day, not just on Saturday or Sunday.
Recommended Resource: The End of the Law: Mosaic Covenant in Pauline Theology by Jason Meyer
Tim Keller on Sabbath, closely related to Stephen Tong's, though not as detail and strong as Tong:
Wisdom and Sabbath Rest
Tim Keller July 13, 2021
Leadership is stewardship—the cultivation of the resources God has entrusted to us for his glory. The Sabbath gives us both theological and practical help in managing one of our primary resources: our time.
In Ephesians 5, Paul invokes the biblical concept of wisdom:
“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.”
— Ephesians 5:15–17
The King James Version translates verses 15 and 16 as, “walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” Living wisely (or circumspectly) is to a great degree a matter of how we spend our time.
So what does this verse tell us? First, the word “redeem” is drawn from the commercial marketplace. It means, essentially, to “make a killing” in the market, or to spend so wisely and strategically that the returns are many times that of the investment.
Second, Paul’s phrase “the days are evil” doesn’t simply mean his readers were living in bad times. When Paul speaks of “the present evil age” (Galatians 1:4), he means the time between the first coming and the second coming of Christ. It’s the overlap between the old age and the new kingdom age, a time when Christians are spreading the gospel and being a witness to the kingdom. Thus, Christians are solemnly obliged not to waste time. Stewarding time well is a command!
However, applying the principle of “making the most of every opportunity” from a kingdom perspective may be harder today than ever. Especially in global cities, we find more pressure, fewer boundaries, and less stability in our daily work than perhaps ever before. Part of the issue is how connected we are through technology. Part of it is globalization, which creates such enormous economic pressures that everybody is pushed to their limits. Employers are trying to get so much productivity out of workers that many of us are being asked to go beyond what is really fair and right.
Even though technology and contemporary idols have created longer and longer work weeks, “do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.” Discern God’s will. Long ago someone told me that God does not give you more to do in a day than you can actually do, and I’ve wrestled with that for many years. We may feel there’s way too much to do, but some of it is not his will. The pressure is coming from you, or your employer, or your friends, or your parents, or someone else besides God!
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SABBATH PRINCIPLES
When it comes to time management, one of the fundamental principles of the Bible is the Sabbath. If we are to be an “alternate city” (Matthew 5:14–16), we have to be different from our neighbors in how we spend our time outside of work; that is, how we rest. So what is the Sabbath about?
According to the Bible, it is about more than just taking time off. After creating the world, God looked around and saw that “it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). God did not just cease from his labor; he stopped and enjoyed what he had made. What does this mean for us? We need to stop to enjoy God, to enjoy his creation, to enjoy the fruits of our labor. The whole point of Sabbath is joy in what God has done.
Writer Judith Shulevitz describes the dynamic of work and Sabbath rest this way:
My mood would darken until, by Saturday afternoon, I’d be unresponsive and morose. My normal routine, which involved brunch with friends and swapping tales of misadventure in the relentless quest for romance and professional success, made me feel impossibly restless. I started spending Saturdays by myself. After a while I got lonely and did something that, as a teenager profoundly put off by her religious education, I could never have imagined wanting to do. I began dropping in on a nearby synagogue.
It was only much later that I developed a theory about my condition. I was suffering from the lack [of a Sabbath]. There is ample evidence that our relationship to work is out of whack. Ours is a society that pegs status to overachievement; we can’t help admiring workaholics. Let me argue, instead, on behalf of an institution that has kept workaholism in reasonable check for thousands of years.
Most people mistakenly believe that all you have to do to stop working is not work. The inventors of the Sabbath understood that it was a much more complicated undertaking. You cannot downshift casually and easily. This is why the Puritan and Jewish Sabbaths were so exactingly intentional. The rules did not exist to torture the faithful. They were meant to communicate the insight that interrupting the ceaseless round of striving requires a surprisingly strenuous act of will, one that has to be bolstered by habit as well as by social sanction.
In the Bible, Sabbath rest means to cease regularly from and to enjoy the results of your work. It provides balance: “Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God” (Exodus 20:9–10). Although Sabbath rest receives a much smaller amount of time than work, it is a necessary counterbalance so that the rest of your work can be good and beneficial.
God liberated his people when they were slaves in Egypt, and in Deuteronomy 5:12–15, God ties the Sabbath to freedom from slavery. Anyone who overworks is really a slave. Anyone who cannot rest from work is a slave—to a need for success, to a materialistic culture, to exploitative employers, to parental expectations, or to all of the above. These slave masters will abuse you if you are not disciplined in the practice of Sabbath rest. Sabbath is a declaration of freedom.
Thus Sabbath is about more than the external rest of the body; it is about the inner rest of the soul. We need rest from the anxiety and strain of our overwork, which is really an attempt to justify ourselves—to gain the money or the status or the reputation we think we have to have. Avoiding overwork requires deep rest in Christ’s finished work for your salvation (Hebrews 4:1–10). Only then will you be able to “walk away” regularly from your vocational work and rest.
Sabbath is the key to getting this balance, and Jesus identifies himself as the Lord of the Sabbath (Mark 2:27–28)—the Lord of Rest! Jesus urges us, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 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” (Matthew 11:28–29). One of the great blessings of the gospel is that he gives you rest that no one else will.
SABBATH “PRACTICALS”
In practical terms, how do we figure out how much time we need for Sabbath rest, and how do we spend that time? The following are a few suggestions or guidelines, by no means exhaustive.
WHAT IS THE IDEAL AMOUNT OF TIME OFF FROM WORK?
The Ten Commandments require one day (twenty-four hours) off each week. When God gave these commandments, the Hebrews had been working from sunup to sundown, but the gift of the Sabbath was to stop working at sundown on Friday and rest until sundown on Saturday.
If you look at the Scripture, there’s nothing that says you have to confine yourself to a forty- or fifty-hour work week. I suggest that to be within the biblical boundaries, you need to have at least one full day off, and the equivalent of an additional half-day off during the week.
For example, if your work and commute take up almost all of your weekdays but you have a full weekend off, with church participation on Sundays, then that is probably a sufficient Sabbath. Or if you get one full day off per week, and perhaps three evenings free after 6:00 p.m, you can live a pretty balanced life. This still allows quite a lot of hours for work during the week.
WHAT COUNTS AS TIME OFF?
Of course, ”making the most of every opportunity” is not simple. It never has been simple. Yes, two hours spent in prayer with God will produce far more spiritual benefits than watching an old Cary Grant movie; yet, recreation is something you must have! Mental refreshment is part of a balanced diet for the body and soul, so prayer cannot replace all recreation, exercise, and so on. Sabbath encompasses several different types of rest, as outlined below.
1. TAKE SOME TIME FOR SHEER INACTIVITY.
Most people need some time every week that is unplanned and unstructured, in which you can do whatever you feel like doing. If your Sabbath time is very busy and filled with scheduled activities of “recreation” and ministry, it will not suffice. There must be some cessation from activity or exertion. This pause in the work cycle is analogous to Israel’s practice of letting a field lie fallow every seventh year to produce whatever happened to grow (Leviticus 25:1–7). The soil rested so over-farming would not deplete its nutrients and destroy its ability to keep producing. Whatever came up in the soil came up. You need some unscheduled time like that every week to let come up—out of the heart and mind— whatever will.
2. TAKE SOME TIME FOR AVOCATIONAL ACTIVITY.
An avocation is something that is sheer pleasure to you, but that does require some intentionality and gives some structure to your Sabbath rest. In many cases an avocation is something that others do for ”work,” which is analogous to occasionally planting a different crop in a field to replenish the nutrients and make the soil more fertile for its normal crop. Include these elements:
You need some contemplative rest.
Prayer and worship are a critical part of Sabbath rest, from any perspective. Regular time for devotion, reading the Scripture, and listening to God forms the basis for inner rest and provides time away from the more exhausting exertions of life.
You need some recreational rest.
The Puritans and others were rightly skeptical of recreations that required spending a great deal of money and time and exertion, because those types of recreations exhaust people. Be careful that recreation really refreshes.
You need to include aesthetic rest.
Expose yourself to works of God’s creation that refresh and energize you, and that you find beautiful. This may mean outdoor things. It may mean art—music, drama, and visual art. God looked around at the world he made and said it was good, so aesthetic rest is necessary for participating in God’s Sabbath fully.
3. CONSIDER WHETHER YOU ARE AN INTROVERT OR AN EXTROVERT.
When planning your Sabbath rest, ask yourself what really “recharges” you. This self-assessment can help you determine how relational your Sabbath time should be. Introverts tend to spend their energy when out with people and recharge their batteries by being alone. Extroverts tend to spend energy in personal work and recharge their batteries by getting out with people. If you are a real introvert, be careful about trying to maintain all of your community-building relationships during your Sabbath time. That would be too draining. On the other hand, relationship-building could be one of the greatest things a true extrovert could possibly do. Don’t try to imitate an introvert’s Sabbath rhythms if you are an extrovert or vice versa! Recognize that some avocational activities take you into solitude, while some take you out into society.
4. DON’T NECESSARILY COUNT FAMILY TIME AS SABBATH TIME.
Do a realistic self-assessment of “family time” and how it affects you. Family time is important, but parents need to be very careful that they don’t let all of their regular Sabbath time be taken up with parental responsibilities. (Introverts especially will need time away from the kids!) Keeping all of these things in good balance may be virtually impossible when your children are very young, but this too will pass.
5. HONOR BOTH MICRO- AND MACRO-RHYTHMS IN YOUR SEASONS OF REST.
Israel’s Sabbath cycles of rest-and-work included not only Sabbath days but also Sabbath years and even a Year of Jubilee every forty-nine years (Leviticus 25:8–11). This is a crucial insight for workers in today’s world. It is possible to voluntarily take on a season of work that requires high energy, long hours, and insufficient weekly-Sabbath time. A new physician has to work long hours in a residency program, for example, and many other careers (such as finance, government, and law) similarly demand some sort of initial period of heavy, intense work. Starting your own business or pursuing a major project like making a movie will require something similar. In these situations you have to watch that you don’t justify too little Sabbath by saying you’re “going through a season”—when in actual fact that season never ends.
If you must enter a season like this, it should not last longer than two or three years at the most. Be accountable to someone for this, or you will get locked into an “under-Sabbathed” lifestyle, and you will burn out. And during this “under-Sabbathed” time, do not let the rhythms of prayer, Bible study, and worship die. Be creative, but get it in.
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BRAINSTORM IDEAS WITH OTHERS
As soon as Christian communities start defining specific rules for what everyone can and can’t do on the Sabbath (like traveling, watching television, or recreation, for example), we begin to slip into legalism. Observing Sabbath rest along with a community can be beneficial, but keep in mind that people differ widely in their temperaments and situations.
It may be helpful to find other Christians in your field of work and ask them how they handle the need for rest, leisure, and restoration. Inquire about their weekly or seasonal rhythms. You will probably discover one or two ideas that are really helpful. If you can, bring these people together to brainstorm in person.
We live in a broken world, and some employers do relentlessly exploit their employees. Dealing with situations like these is difficult, but being part of a community made up of wise Christians in your field can help you correctly assess your work situation and your alternatives.
“INJECTING” SABBATH INTO OUR WORK LIVES
I have come to see that if you develop the foundation and inner rest of Sabbath, it will not simply make you more disciplined about taking time off, but it will also lead you to be less frantic and driven in your work itself. This is perhaps the most important application of Sabbath, where we can truly act as a counterculture, and here’s how it works.
Associated with the Sabbath laws were “gleaning laws,” such as Leviticus 19:9, in which field owners were not allowed to “reap to the very edges” of their fields. They had to leave a percentage of grain in the field for the poor to come and harvest. Sabbath, then, is the deliberate limitation of productivity, as a way to trust God, be a good steward of yourself, and declare freedom from slavery to our work.
In concrete terms this is the hardest thing to do, because it’s a heart matter. Personally, this has meant deliberately setting fewer goals for myself in a given day and week, rather than harvesting “out to the edges.’”
In global cities, many people are stingy with their money yet freely give their bodies away. By contrast, we Christians are stingy with our bodies and generous with our money. Likewise, many people are willing to mortgage their souls to work, but at a certain point Christians have to say, “I’m willing to set fewer goals, not go up the ladder as fast, and even risk not accomplishing as much, because I have to take Sabbath time off. And ultimately, I don’t need to be incredibly successful. I can choose this path of freedom because of the inner rest I’ve received from Jesus Christ through what he has done for me.”
You have to actually inject this Sabbath rest into your thinking and into your work life. Some of our work worlds are institutionally structured toward overwork. Sometimes you have to “pay your dues” in the early stages of your career when you’re in a season of hard work (as I mentioned previously) or are trying to gain some credibility in your field. When you’re more established in your field, you may be able to moderate your workload. However, at some point, even if that doesn’t happen, you will have to trust God and honor Jesus—who is Lord of the Sabbath—by practicing Sabbath and risk “falling behind” in your career.
It may happen that you will fall behind, and yet retain your sanity. Or it may be that God will allow you to keep moving ahead in your career despite your practice of Sabbath and the “gleaning” principle. It is up to him.
The purpose of Sabbath is not simply to rejuvenate yourself in order to do more production, nor is it the pursuit of pleasure. The purpose of Sabbath is to enjoy your God, life in general, what you have accomplished in the world through his help, and the freedom you have in the gospel—the freedom from slavery to any material object or human expectation. The Sabbath is a sign of the hope that we have in the world to come.
Frank Turek puts it well against the Messianic Jews:
Jesus is our sabbath. There is no transitioning from Saturday into Sunday. Our rest is in Jesus.
Tim Keller on Sabbath, worth referencing:
https://redeemercitytocity.com/articles-stories/wisdom-and-sabbath-rest
R.C. Sproul on Sabbath: Defining the Debate
Augustine was one to set the 4th commandment as an exception. He grounds his argument on Paul's view of keeping Sabbaths;
His opponents would argue for their position based on creation, which precedes Mosaic economy.
Within the Reformed tradition, we have as Sproul calls it: Continental view of the Sabbath vs. the Puritan view of the Sabbath. Both hold that Sabbath is still in effect, a time for corporate worship, rest, abstain from unnecessary commerce. But they disagree on recreation: Is it a form of rest-taking (Continental) or corruption to sacred Sabbath observance (Puritan: Isaiah 58:13-14)? The Puritans were wrong on this as it adds a new dimensions to OT with respect to Sabbath-keeping: a prohibition of recreation. Continental view: The distinction in Isaiah 58 is between doing what is pleasing to God and doing what is pleasing to ourselves in opposition to what is pleasing to God.
There was a story about how John Knox was shocked to see Calvin engaging in lawn bowling on Sabbath. If the story is true, it may indicate that the theologian most devoted to Sabbath-keeping in history, Calvin, did not see recreation as a violation of the Lord’s Day, but as a part of the rest-taking or recreation that is to be part of this day.
Another internal Reformation struggle on this until this day is on the subject of works of mercy performed on the Sabbath. Starting from Jesus' example. The debate is about if one MUST do works of mercy on sabbaths or only out of necessity.
Sproul concluded: All of these issues continue to be examined and debated as the church seeks to understand how God is best honored on this day.
[I, like Turek, and possibly Stephen Tong, do not side with this "reformed" tradition. It is more of an American Puritan fundamentalist problem.]