Sabbath

“Then Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath.”Mark‬ ‭2‬:‭27‬ ‭NLT‬‬

We can be legalistic on one side of the Sabbath coin but on the other totally disregard the message in what Jesus said. Here, He was opposing the criticism about He and His disciples walking through the fields and eating the grain on the Sabbath. The legalisms were going to their extreme about Sabbath laws. God gave the law about the Sabath so that mankind would be refreshed and take time to worship Him. The legalisms had added to the law telling people they could not go a certain distance, could not eat certain things, they had turned the Sabbath into a prison.

As Christians we can disregard the teaching about the Sabbath to our own detriment. Resting one day a week from all labour is good for us, so is taking time to reflect on God’s goodness. Today, in Nepal, is the rest day. However, many churches occupy most of the day with long services. Foreigners who are used to Sunday being a rest day gather tomorrow to worship. We tend to fellowship and rest afterwards.

Taking time allows us to refresh, recharge and reflect. I enjoy church the worship is communal and the message gives me something to reflect upon. I lunch with friends and we chat about the message and about events of the week. After lunch some of us gather together for coffee and more chatting and perhaps a game. Us Aussies brought games with us to Nepal. Our friends enjoy them also. Playing games together reveals sides of our character that we might keep hidden otherwise. It is a good learning exercise.

Take time to worship Jesus, enjoy Him speaking to you through His word, the Bible, and enjoy fellowship with good friends. Jesus was walking through the fields with His friends. Who knows what they were chatting about?