"There Is an Appointed Time" for Work and for Rest - THE SABBATH-A TIME FOR REST AND WORSHIP

God's Word states that after six "days" of creating, God paused from his works as regards  the earth.  (Genesis 2:2) Yet, Jehovah loves to work, and in other aspects he "has kept working." (John 5:17)  The provision for the weekly Sabbath follows a pattern similar to that of Jehovah's day of rest described in Genesis. God said that Sabbath was a sign between him and Israel. It was a day of "complete rest . . . . , something holy to Jehovah." (Read Exodus 31:12-15)  The prohibition against work applied to everyone, including children, slaves, and even domestic animals.  (Exodus 20:10) It allowed the people to give more attention to spiritual matter.

The Sabbath day was good for God's people; however, many religious leaders in Jesus' time took an extreme rigid view of it.  They claimed that it was unlawful on the Sabbath even to pluck some  heads of grain or to heal a person who was ill.  (Mark 2:23-27; 3:2-5)  Such views did not reflect God's thinking, and Jesus made that clear to those who would listen.

Jesus and his Jewish followers observed the Sabbath because they were under the Mosaic Law. But Jesus showed by word and deed that keeping the Sabbath was to be reasonable and that kind and helpful actions were allowable. He plainly said: "It is lawful to do a fine thing on the Sabbath." (Read Matthew 12:9-12.) He did not view performing kind and helpful actions as a violation of the Sabbath. Jesus'
 actions highlighted a key feature of the Sabbath. Because God's people rested from their daily  labor, they were able to focus on spiritual things. Jesus grew up in a family that must have used the Sabbath for spiritual benefit. That is reflected in what we read about Jesus when he was in his hometown of Nazareth:  "According to [Jesus'] custom on the Sabbath day, he entered the synagogue and stood up to - LUKE  4:15-19.

Next time: "There Is an Appointed Time" for Work and for Rest - WHAT IS YOUR ATTITUDE TOWARD WORK? 

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