By Mike Caton

Exodus 31:12-13, “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Say to the Israelites, You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the LORD, who makes you holy.’”

We talked about the Sabbath day before, God gave Moses the Ten Commandments back in Exodus 20. But the Sabbath actually began much earlier than that. In creation, God created the heavens and the earth in six days and then he rested on the seventh, the Sabbath. Think about that for a moment, was God tired after his work of creation? We certainly would be, but God was not. So then, why did he rest? He was setting an example for us, God knew the limitations of man, he still knows we are not designed to run at maximum capacity all the time. God knows we need to take time to rest and recharge. And so, from the beginning, God set apart one day out of seven for us to rest.

But there was to be more than just resting on those days. Those were days that we set apart for the Lord. And while we are to be honoring and praising God every day, there is one day that is specifically set aside for this activity. There is one day a week that we are to devote to the Lord. Sure, we can praise and worship God at any time and in any place. But God intends for his people to come together for corporate times of worship as well. To be sure in the beginning this was family worship, there was only Adam and Eve and their children to begin with.

But God is here instructing the people to build a tent for his meeting with the people, he wants them to gather together in their worship of him. There is much that can be said about the benefits of corporate worship; we are both able to encourage others and be encouraged by them, we get to hear lessons designed to draw us closer to God, we can work together with other believers to accomplish more than could alone, this list goes on and on.

But don’t forget the simple fact that God commands us to gather. Why else would he want a tent of meeting built if people were not to come together there? And the writer of Hebrews 10:24-25 will later tell us, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Sure, God set aside a day for his people to rest, but a vital component of our rest is to rest in the Lord.

Father, help me rest in you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Mike Caton is the preacher at Mount Olive Church of Christ in Belhaven. He volunteers at the Ponzer Fire Department and works as a full time AEMT with Hyde County EMS. Follow Mount Olive Church of Christ on Facebook for daily devotions.

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