SABBATH: The Work is Done

In the Bible we find of the day of rest (heb. Sabbath) first mentioned in Genesis.

(Genesis 2:1-3) Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. (2) And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. (3) So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

After creating everything, the Lord “rested”. Does this mean that He was tired? We know that this can’t be, since God does not grow weary.

(Isaiah 40:26-31) Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name, by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power not one is missing. (27) Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, and my right is disregarded by my God”? (28) Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. (29) He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. (30) Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; (31) but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

God did not rest because he was tired, but because he was finished with the work he had set out to do. There was nothing more to add. Everything was perfect just as he had done it.

The “complete” work of God goes beyond what we can imagine. God not only finished creating that which was in the past, but also what was coming in the future. How can we know this is true? Because whatever God begins, he completes.

It might be hard for us to understand this because we are limited by time, but God isn’t. He transcends time and everything that he does is eternal. To Him, the future is already done.

It is not by chance that in the Bible there is a significant parallel between Genesis and Revelation. Where we begin is where we will end. From the beginning, God not only created what was present at that moment, but also what would come. That is why when he finished his work he rested. There was nothing more to do. Everything was done. From the beginning, God designed the end of the age and everything that was to come in between.

God has not forgotten the world. He is in control of everything. What sense of peace we should have in knowing that God has perfected his work, and that he will complete it. What better way to rest can we have than knowing that God is in control?

(Psalm 138:8) The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.

(Philippians 1:6)  And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

BLESSED AND SANCTIFIED DAY

Since that first week of creation God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it (Genesis 2:3).

It is a blessed day, the most special day of the week. In Hebrew, this is the only day that has a name: “Sabbath” (lit. rest, break). The other days are known by their number: day one (Sunday), day two (Monday), etc.

God also sanctified the Sabbath; that is, he set it apart for a special purpose. Why do we set the seventh day apart? It is the day that God chose to connect with his children. It is an appointment that He set with us. It is a day when the doors that connect heaven and earth are opened (Ezekiel 46:1).

Who wouldn’t want to respond to such a privileged invitation?

After doing our work for the week, we must stop and remember that God is in control of everything. Although things might not seem to be as perfect as we would like them to be, we need to have patience and faith in God, for he has completed the work. What He started to do in the beginning, he will finish.

What better rest than to know this!

HIS WORK IS FINISHED

Another occasion in which the Bible mentions that God finished his work is when Jesus said: “it is finished” (John 19:30). On the cross, He finished His work of Redemption.

(1 Peter 1:18-20) knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, (19) but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. (20) He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you.

During Sabbath we rest because God is in control. Let us stop our labor and recognize who is the one that is really doing the work. Let’s thank Him. Let’s rest, knowing that God is in control of everything; for He finished the work from the beginning until the end.

Sabbath Shalom!