Thoughts on Resting

Some verses that came to mind.


Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.

By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

--Genesis 2:1-3 (NIV)

Max Lucado once remarked that God took a break on the seventh day, and the world didn't fall apart. What makes us think it will if we follow suit?


Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

--Exodus 20:8-11 (NIV)

I think it was also Lucado who mentioned that this is the longest of the 10 Commandments, due to the detailed explanation given to it.


Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus' lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath.

--John 19:28-31a (NIV)

This was a special Sabbath because it occurred during the annual Jewish Passover. The work of redemption, as with that of creation, was completed on the sixth day.


Perhaps sometimes the best thing we can do under pressure, is rest. I mentioned that even God rested after creating the world, and Li-Shia said, "I wonder why." So do I. Did God need the rest? Surely the Almighty could have continued running the world without rest. Was He merely setting a pattern for us? If so, it doesn't seem to be a very satisfactory explanation.

All I know for sure is that God rested. And it seems he rested after the crucifixion too, as his first resurrection appearance was on Sunday morning after the Jewish Sabbath, which falls on a Saturday.