"You shall keep the sabbath, because it is holy for you; everyone who profanes it shall be put to death; whoever does any work on it shall be cut off from among the people." (Exodus 31:14)
We may think that this is a bit outrageous, and we may even think to ourselves: "And, obviously, not true." We may smugly think: "Hey, I've worked seven days out of the week....I'm not dead....I still have friends and family....Silly commandment."
This commandment may be one of the hardest to keep. And it isn't simply about not doing any physical work on the Lord's Day. It is about having a day of resting in the Lord---a day, each week, when we stop from our labors, our accomplishments, our achievements, and recognize that the real work---the work of salvation--has already been completed. Time to rest; time to rest in the truth. Time to allow this Truth to be our well of life and refreshment.
We may not physically die from not observing the Lord's Day. We may still be in relationship with others. But when we skip the Sabbath, when we treat it lightly....as if it is an "extra" and not an essential, then we begin the process of dying to our true selves as God's beloved. Then we become less grounded and rooted in God, in the divine image within us. We become more self-centered and less God-centered, and that, my friends, definitely affects our relationships with others. No, it doesn't happen in an instant: one minute I'm with friends and the the next minute they've disappeared. It's a slow sinking into my humanity....a gradual leaking of the power of the Holy Spirit because I haven't gone to the fountain to be refreshed and reminded of who I am and whose I am.
Practice Resurrection: Keep the Sabbath.
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