Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work (Deut. 5:12–13)
Expanded Passage: Deuteronomy 5:12-15
One hot summer Saturday evening, my father told me I could get anything I wanted at the ice cream stand. From the backseat of our Buick, I opted for a hot fudge sundae. “No,” he said, “You can only have that on a Sunday.” This was his sense of humor. Because we never were allowed to buy anything on the Sabbath, I quickly put together that I would never be able to enjoy one of those delicious treats. I’m sure he thought his theological reasoning was funny. I think he missed the whole point of a Sabbath.
To some rabbis the Jewish Sabbath was thought to be a seventh day of creation. Not when God ceased his creative work, but when God created the opportunity to enjoy it. On the seventh day God created “rest” and the ability to be satisfied. If we keep working 24/7, we will never have a time when we can appreciate what God helped us accomplish. If we keep taking from the earth, we will never allow it to recreate and flourish. The Sabbath principle should make all of life and the creation a rhythm of reclamation, joy and shalom.
My Dad hammered into my youthful head the need to keep the Sabbath holy in my life. But I have since then enjoyed many hot fudge sundaes that have made my life more joyful.
Consider the ratio of work to rest in your life.
Rich Eckley is professor emeritus of theology at Houghton University (NY). He is an ordained Wesleyan minister, and enjoys—with his wife Lynn—entertaining their active grandchildren.
© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
